Our Team
Executive Officers and Directors
Dr. Paul Moller, Ph.D.
President, CEODr. Moller founded the Company and has served as the company's President since its formation. He holds a Masters in Engineering and Ph.D. from McGill University. Dr. Moller was a professor of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering at the University of California, Davis, from 1963 to 1975, where he developed the Aeronautical Engineering program. In 1972 he founded SuperTrapp Industries and was Chief Executive Officer, as SuperTrapp became the most recognized international name in high-performance engine silencing systems. SuperTrapp Industries was sold in 1988. In 1983 he founded the Company to develop powered lift aircraft. Under his direction the Company completed contracts with NASA, NOSC, DARPA, NRL, Harry Diamond Labs, Hughes Aircraft Company, California Department of Transportation and the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air force. These contracts included the development and deployment of numerous unmanned aerial vehicles and Wankel based engines. Dr. Moller has received 43 patents including the first U.S. patent on a fundamentally new form of powered lift aircraft. In 1980 he developed the Davis Research Park, a 38-acre industrial- research complex within the city of Davis, CA in which the Company is located.
Jim Toreson
DirectorDr. Toreson has over 16 years of experience as a chief executive, and over 20 years of experience in manufacturing, including quality control, materials management, JIT production, process control, and manufacturing engineering. He also has eight years of experience in flexible automation, statistical process control (SPC), and quality system including ISO 9000 and Six Sigma programs. More recently as the founder of ONSHORE, a management consulting firm specializing in technology-intensive products and services he has acted as the CEO of Chineseinvestors.com, an Internet portal serving the world-wide ethnic Chinese marketplace for financial services; VP of Marketing and Sales of APPIANT Technology, Inc., a NASDAQ company providing ASP services for speech recognition; and VP of Business Development for eSpaces, a company providing physically secure and cyber-secure work spaces. Dr. Toreson has a BSEE and MSEE from the University of Michigan, a Dr. of Science from the University of Nevada, and has completed coursework for his PhD EE at the University of Pennsylvania.
George Stevens
Chief EngineerMr. Stevens has over 25 years of technical and managerial experience in developing rotary and two-stroke piston engine technologies and advanced control systems. Mr. Stevens background includes multi-fuel direct and multi-port injection systems, hybrid engine integration and control, and guidance/control systems. Furthermore, Mr. Stevens brings invaluable engine testing experience to the Moller development team including data acquisition and dynamometer equipment. The team's engine development effort is focused on further improving the rotary engine power density, endurance, fuel efficiency, and emission performance. Mr. Stevens holds a BSEET from Brigham Young University and BSME from California State University.
Mike Shanley
DirectorMr. Shanley has been a pilot since 1969, serving with the Royal Australian Air Force in Vietnam in 1971 and has been an enthusiastic supporter of the Skycar project since 1987. Mr. Shanley has a BA in English Literature from the University of Queensland, Australia, is the author of the novel "Strela" and was a magazine publisher and editor from 1987 to 1996. Mr. Shanley is Chairman of Shanley International Ltd., a company set up specifically to facilitate trade with China.
Faulkner White
DirectorMr. White received his B.A. in Psychology (Distinction) with a minor in Computer Science from Dartmouth College in 1972. He has consulted for Apple Computer, Motorola and McDonnell Douglas. In 1995 Mr. White collaborated in the development of a new type of breast biopsy gun for Biopsys Medical Inc., developing software to track the efficacy of the new design for the FDA, and subsequently for the customers themselves. He is currently developing Customer Relationship Management software for the laser eye surgery and cosmetic surgery markets. Mr. White is also a certified DBA in Oracle database technology.
Otto Scharft
Otto has 25 years in engine development at OMC where he worked for over 10 years as Group Leader in rotary engine research. He was responsible for a number of new rotary engine designs.
Mike Griffith
Mr. Griffith joined the Company in 1987 as Manager of Engine Development. He earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Saskatchewan in 1964. Mr. Griffith has a 40-year history in Wankel engine development including Program Manager and Development Engineer at John Deere's Wankel Engine Division (1984-1987), Senior Technical Specialist in the Wankel Engine Division of Curtiss-Wright (1979-1983), and Wankel Engine Project Engineer for Outboard Marine Corporation (1966-1974).