The Team
Carl Dietrich, Anna Mracek Dietrich and Samuel Schweighart, three of Terrafugia’s founders, have
brought together a world-class team to bring the Transition® to fruition and build Terrafugia. Along
with Alex Min and Arun Prakash, they began developing Terrafugia and the Transition® in 2005 while
at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Today, the Terrafugia leadership team includes:
Carl Dietrich
Terrafugia’s CEO/CTO, Co-Founder, received his BS, MS and Ph.D. from the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) shortly after being selected as
the 2006 winner of the prestigious Lemelson-MIT Student Prize for Innovation. Carl was additionally
recognized by the Aero/Astro Department at MIT as one of sixteen exceptional graduates under the
age of 35. Carl has also been named as one of the Boston Business Journal's "40 Under 40" in 2009. He has been a private pilot since the age of seventeen.
Anna Mracek Dietrich
Terrafugia’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), Co-Founder, received her Bachelors and Masters degrees
from the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at MIT. With experience at both GE Aviation and
Boeing Phantom works, Anna brings project management expertise to the Transition® development
effort. Anna was named one of the Boston area's top 15 Innovators by the Boston Globe in October 2010 and was one of the 10 women selected for the 6th annual Mass High Tech Women to Watch Award in 2009. In 2011, Anna was elected to the Board of Directors of Women in Aviation International (WAI). She is also a private pilot.
Samuel Schweighart
A Terrafugia Technical Fellow and Co-Founder, received his MS and Ph.D. from the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at MIT and hold his BS from the University of Illinois. Sam brings a high degree of practicality and hands-on experience to the program, having left the Charles Stark Draper
Laboratories to pursue Terrafugia. He is a private pilot and active hang glider pilot.
Col. Phil Meteer, USAFR (Ret.)
Flight Test Coordinator, Test Pilot, has over 3,000 hours of flight and instruction experience in the Air
Force, including the F-4, F-16 and A-10. Phil brings both his perspective as an experienced pilot and
as an operations and systems engineer and operations manager, both in the Air Force and as a civilian. Phil has also acted as test engineer, lead test pilot and airborne mission commander for a new
infrared countermeasure system. Phil is currently working onsite at Hanscom AFB and looking forward to production and certification flight testing.
Richard Gersh
VP of Business Development, joined Terrafugia with over 25 years of executive-level experience in
all phases of financial service company operations and risk management. Dick has his MBA from the University of Massachusetts and a M.Ed. from Suffolk University. He is pursuing a private pilot license.
Cliff Allen
VP of Sales, a life-long self described "aviation nut" with a depth of experience in consumer products, Cliff has been intimately involved with general aviation since earning his Private Pilot's Certificate in 1980, using GA as a business tool during his work at both PepsiCo in Utah and Crane & Co. as well as developing and providing transition training for the New England dealers for Aviat Husky and Jabiru Light Sport Aircraft. He holds an Airline Transport Pilot Certificate and is a Certified Flight Instructor (among other ratings) and is a member of AOPA, EAA/EAA Chapter 106, NAFI, SAFE, and the Boston Region FAASTeam for aviation safety. Cliff also owns a 1949 Piper Clipper which he is currently restoring.
Andrew Heafitz
VP of Engineering, is another graduate of MIT with his BS and MS in Mechanical Engineering and recipient of the Lemelson-MIT Student Prize in 2002. He brings eighteen years’ experience in composite automotive construction and testing to the Terrafugia team. Andrew has designed, built, and raced
light-weight composite solar cars across the Australian outback.
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