MakerPlane: Open Source Aircraft and the Maker

How far can Open Source Hardware go?  MakerPlane is an Open Source Aircraft project and is taking OSHW to new levels of safety requirement and product complexity for all aspects of aircraft design and construction.  It will encompass community-developed Ikea-like construction videos and instructional materials.  Issues that need to be addressed and mitigated include legal, liability and insurance problems and how to control community design contributions without compromising safety.

About John Nicol

John Nicol is a technologist, dreamer and maker.  Among his nerdy interests, his recently published book, “Fundamentals of Real-Time Distributed Simulation” contains information and knowledge gained over a 20+ year career in the field and relevant for both beginners and seasoned professionals.  John started his working life as an Electronics Technician a few hundred years ago and has had various leadership roles in technology companies including Vice President Engineering for a US Silicon Valley NASDEQ listed corporation and founder and CEO of a Canadian Top 40 Defence and Public Safety company.   A lifetime interest in aviation, coupled with an interest in the maker movement, hardware hacking and open source business models led to the founding of MakerPlane, an organization that attempts to bring the revolution in home-based manufacturing technologies to the home-built aircraft movement.