Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 12, 2026

Pascal Chretien

Pascal Chrétien is a French-Australian commercial helicopter pilot and engineer with degrees in electronics and aerospace who designed, built and test flew the world’s first crewed electric helicopter the Solution F/Chretien Helicopter on 12 August 2011. The helicopter, built for the French company Solution F, set a Guinness World Record and received the IDTechEx Electric Vehicles Land Sea & Air award. The prototype is on permanent display at the Musée de l'air et de l'espace in Paris le Bourget, France.

Last revised
Jun 12, 2026
Read time
≈ 3 min
Length
594 w
Citations
23
Source
Wikipedia ↗
Pascal Chrétien
Born (1968-04-07) 7 April 1968
Occupationshelicopter pilot, engineer, inventor
AwardsGuinness World Record

Pascal Chrétien (born 7 April 1968) is a French-Australian commercial helicopter pilot and engineer with degrees in electronics and aerospace who designed, built and test flew the world’s first crewed electric helicopter the Solution F/Chretien Helicopter on 12 August 2011.1234 The helicopter, built for the French company Solution F,5 set a Guinness World Record and received the IDTechEx Electric Vehicles Land Sea & Air award.67 The prototype8 is on permanent display at the Musée de l'air et de l'espace in Paris le Bourget, France.9

Chrétien has been pioneering electromagnetic transmissions10 and hybrid propulsion applied to aircraft since 20021112 and holds several patents in the field.13 Chrétien obtained commercial helicopter pilot licences in Canada and Australia, in 1993 and 1994, respectively. He has aerial work and aircraft testing experience.14

World's First manned electric helicopter source ↗

Biography

Pascal Chrétien obtained two professional helicopter pilot licenses in Canada in 1993 and Australia in 1994, with experience in aerial work and flight testing.15

Since 2002, he has been innovating in Hybrid vehicle and electromagnetic transmissions applied to aircraft.161718 Among other things, he holds several patents in this field.19

A professional helicopter pilot and electronic engineer specializing in Electromagnetism, Pascal Chrétien designed, built, and flew the world's first human-piloted electric helicopter on August 4 and 12, 2011.20212223

He designed and built this helicopter for the French company Solution F. For his helicopter and its record-breaking flight, he received the Guinness World Records and the IDTechEx Electric Vehicles Land Sea & Air award (USA). The prototype is on display at the Musée de l'air et de l'espace in Le Bourget in the Helicopter Hall.

References

References

  1. First manned electric helicopter flies
  2. "Modern-day aviation pioneer achieves world's first untethered, manned electric helicopter flight". Gizmag.com. 5 September 2011. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  3. Designer of Electric Helo Reflects on 2011 Flight Tests
  4. "Vertiflite First Electric Helicopter April 2012". Scribd.com. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  5. "1ère Mondiale en Provence : le premier hélicoptère électrique". Solutionf.fr. Archived from the original on 7 December 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  6. Guinness World Records (2013) First electric helicopter, retrieved 9 May 2013
  7. "Electric Vehicles Land, Sea and Air USA 2012 - Award winners". Electric Vehicles Research. 5 April 2012. Archived from the original on 18 July 2018. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  8. Vertical Flight Society Solution F Helicopter
  9. Air and Space Museum First electric helicopter
  10. NASA Aeronautics Mission Directorate FY11 Seedling Phase I Technical Seminar; Page 19
  11. Dubois, Thierry. "Electric Helo Designer Pitches Hybrid Powertrain For Future Helo Power | Aviation International News". Ainonline.com. Archived from the original on 20 January 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  12. Chretien, Pascal, M.E. (undated), Paving the way to hybrid helicopters, retrieved 9 May 2013
  13. Espacenet (4 April 2017), [1], retrieved 2 April 2017
  14. "Challenges of Aircraft Hybridization". IDTechEx. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  15. Challenges of Aircraft Hybridization - IDTechEx.com, 2013
  16. Helo Designer Pitches Hybrid Powertrain For Future Helo Power - Thierry Dubois, AIN online, 4 décembre 2012
  17. Combined Electric Aircraft and Airspace Management Design for Metro-Regional Public Transportation - NASA, 5-7 juin 2012
  18. Pascal Chretien, M.E. Paving the way to hybrid helicopters (consulté le 9 mai 2013).
  19. Liste de résultats : Chrétien Pascal, Espacenet
  20. First manned electric helicopter flies - Lithium Balance
  21. Loz Blain, Modern-day aviation pioneer achieves world's first untethered, manned electric helicopter flight, New Atlas, 5 septembre 2011
  22. Thierry Dubois, Designer of Electric Helo Reflects on 2011 Flight Tests, Rotor & Wing, 26 septembre 2012
  23. Vertiflite : First Electric Helicopter, Scribd, avril 2012