postdoctoral

After a nerve-racking flying experience, aerospace engineer Hector (Haofeng) Xu was inspired to make helicopter flight safer. In 2021, he founded autonomous helicopter company Rotor Technologies, Inc. This company retrofits existing helicopters with sensors and software to automate dangerous flights and prevent pilot accidents. Xu was pursuing his PhD at MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and…

In 2019, Haofeng "Hector" Xu, a PhD student in MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics with a solid grounding in aviation and aerospace engineering, decided to learn to fly helicopters. Witnessing first-hand the risks associated with piloting, he set out to make helicopter flight safer. In 2021, he founded Rotor Technologies Inc., an autonomous helicopter…

After enduring a few frightening experiences while learning to fly helicopters, aerospace engineering PhD student, Haofeng Xu, was motivated to improve helicopter flight safety. In 2021, Xu founded Rotor Technologies, targeting the dangers prevalent in small private aircraft flights which lead to fatal accidents every year across the U.S. Rotor Technologies aims to retrofit existing…

Haofeng 'Hector' Xu's PhD studies in aviation and aerospace engineering at MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics led him to train as a helicopter pilot. After encountering several near-miss situations, Xu decided to make helicopter flights safer and founded Rotor Technologies, Inc. in 2021. The company is retrofitting existing helicopters with sensors and software to…

In the quest to make helicopter flights safer, helicopter enthusiast and researcher, Hector (Haofeng) Xu, launched Rotor Technologies, an autonomous helicopter company in 2021. The basis for the company's operations was informed by Xu's knowledge of the concerning mortality rates in small, private aircraft that are often used for fighting fires, crop dusting and medical…

After witnessing the potential dangers attached to helicopter flights, MIT PhD Hector (Haofeng) Xu founded Rotor Technologies, Inc. in 2021. The autonomous helicopter company aims to make helicopter flight safer by retrofitting existing helicopters with advanced sensors and software. This technology, in turn, removes the pilot from dangerous flights and widens the use of aviation. Across…