Roy LoPresti

LeRoy Patrick "Roy" LoPresti (June 9, 1929 – August 7, 2002) was an eclectic American aeronautical engineer. He worked on projects as diverse as the Apollo Moon Program and missile design, served as advisor to the US Congress, became known as "Mr. Fast" in the general aviation field, and created an aircraft manufacturing, design and support company which is still in existence.

LoPresti designed the Grumman American AA-5, was Chief Engineer and Vice President of Engineering at Mooney where he designed the Mooney 201, and worked at both Beech Aircraft and Piper Aircraft before starting his own company, LoPresti Speed Merchants. Speed Merchants is obtaining FAA certification of the LoPresti Fury.

Biography Roy LoPresti was born to Agnes LaRusso LoPresti and Patrick LoPresti in Lyndhurst, New Jersey. While attending New York University as an Aeronautical Engineering student Roy won a Chance Vought Design Award for "Best Student Light Airplane Design".

LoPresti graduated in 1950 and obtained employment with Grumman Aerospace on Long Island, New York, but was soon called to serve in the United States Air Force during the Korean War. He became a pilot in the Air Force, serving a total of six years. During the Korean War he met and married Margaret "Peggy" LoPresti (1952). They would eventually have five children, a daughter and four sons.

He then became the Vice President of Engineering at Beech Aircraft in Wichita, Kansas, The Starship development was completed as the general aviation market was in a process of rapidly downsizing, and LoPresti became increasingly frustrated as he was put into a series of management positions making missiles and bombs. When he expressed his frustration to his wife, she advised him to quit. The project was put under LoPriesti's care, and the SwiftFire and SwiftFury designs emerged. They showed the prototype at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh in 1988 and returned with 131 orders, each with a $10,000 deposit.

In spite of this promising start, Piper went bankrupt in 1991, leading to a huge legal squabble over the rights to the designs. LoPresti formed LoPresti Speed Merchants as an upgrade firm, making modifications to existing aircraft to make them fly faster. They also created a large fixed-base operation in Florida. The company finally gained the rights to build the upgraded Globe Swift, which is now called the LoPresti Fury.

During the 1980s LoPresti served on the Aeronautical Advisory Committee to the US Congress. In 1990 he received the Godfrey L. Talbot Trophy for outstanding contributions to the science of aerospace engineering, from the Aero Club of New England.

LoPresti was climbing a ladder to clear leaves from his house's rain gutter when he slipped and fell. He died 35 days later (7 August 2002) of complications from the fall.