Dragonfly Is Back Home in Florida — Hang Glider Tug … Working Ranch “Tractor”

Dragonfly was born in Florida in the early 1990s. Back-of-the-napkin sketches started in the 1980s following the dynamic 1970s when hang gliding swooped into national awareness. What one designer did with Dragonfly would become one of the most celebrated developments in hang gliding.

Throughout the ’70s, hang glider designs accelerated smartly in glide performance and sink rate, stretching from slope-hugging 4:1 triangular-shaped wings to elegantly long and slender “bladewings” that could exceed a 20:1 glide yet remain foot-launchable and still be an aircraft you could carry on your shoulder (when folded down). Passionate enthusiasts thrilled to a 5X performance improvement in a decade or so.

In the beginning, most pilots launched off mountains to get enough height to catch thermals. Yet lots of America doesn’t have mountainous terrain. Florida had plenty of pilots eager to fly hang gliders but to find the best soaring, they had to load up their gliders and drive 10-12 hours to the hills of Tennessee where flight park operators like me catered to them with mountain launch sites. At home they did boat towing regularly but that rarely got them high enough to catch thermals. One Florida man dreamed of a solution.

Enter Dragonfly
by Bobby Bailey

Bobby Bailey was one of the hang gliding faithful in a large central Florida flying community. These gung-ho young guys in excellent physical condition used no-run starts to leap off the beach towed on a long line by a powerful ski boat. They had fun and it got them in the air, but extended duration flights were simple luck because boat towing generally didn’t lift the glider high enough for those early wings to effectively work the lift.

Bobby observed the parallel development of Part 103 ultralight vehicles, growing from low-powered single seaters to more powerful two seaters. He saw that with enough thrust, he might tow a hang glider into the air much like a Piper Pawnee tows a sailplane aloft. Hang gliding pioneers like Bill Moyes tried towing behind conventional aircraft but it was scarily too fast. He barely managed to keep control of the glider flying near its never-exceed speed.

Bobby knew the challenge was not to speed up the hang gliders but to slow the tow plane. He adapted a modified King Cobra* (a Quicksilver-like design of that day) with large ailerons and made other changes. It flew slowly but not enough. He realized it needed to be a clean-sheet design, made purpose-built to tow hang gliders.

Towing from a point under the tailplane like a Pawnee does is not optimal either. The hang glider is weight-shift controlled and needs more control flexibility than a single tow point allowed. Notice the tube extending from the rudder stabilizer. A V-line from that high point to a low point lets the hang glider rise or descend with minimal impact on the towplane. All this needs to happen at 30-35 miles per hour, even with two persons on board the towed aircraft. A Pawnee stalls at 62 miles per hour even with full flaps. That’s way too fast for any hang glider. Dragonfly would eventually fill the need perfectly.

Within a couple years (about 1991, I believe) Wallaby Ranch hang gliding air park operator Malcolm Jones invited me out to a open field where I watched Bobby fly an early Dragonfly.

Right then, I knew the hang gliding game had changed forever.

Hang gliding could now happen almost anywhere. In combination with the rapid performance increases, Dragonfly could efficiently haul a hang glider up to 2,500 feet — typically it takes only 5-8 minutes even if the towed glider has two persons on board. At that height a skilled pilot can catch thermals and fly for hours. Flights in unpowered hang gliders have successfully run the north-south length of Florida into Georgia, all after release at 2,500 feet from a Dragonfly. Mountain launch sites continue to have appeal but Dragonfly made everywhere a hang gliding site.

Back Home In Florida

New Bailey Moyes Dragonfly owner Randy Dorsey purchased the business from Ed Pitman‘s estate after he passed away (unrelated to the aircraft). Ed had broadened Dragonfly’s appeal by getting approval as “farm equipment” (article link below). Over the years deliveries climbed beyond 150 aircraft, an impressive achievement thanks to Ed’s efforts. From California Randy and helpers brought inventory and tooling in a school bus to set up shop at Marion County Airport, X35, in Dunnellon, Florida.

This central-northwestern area is home to fancy equestrian ranches and the spacious airport has begun to thrive from light aircraft operations. Airport manager Mike Grawe supported by industry expert Roy Beisswenger and airfield entrepreneur Troy Townsend welcomed Randy Dorsey along with another business setting up to build the former Belite Chipper 2, the latter operated by husband-and-wife team Nick and Charlotte Jones. Along with two powered parachute operations and 40 brand-new T-hangars (sorry, already fully booked), X35 looks alive and thriving.

Learn more about plans for Dragonfly back home in Florida in the video below. You can also read several articles below from my earlier reporting.

ARTICLES ON DRAGONFLY:
Listed oldest to newest

• Dragonfly Approved as Special LSA
• Dragonfly Earns Approval as Working Aircraft
• Dragonfly Wins SLSA Approval with Rotax 912
• Dragonfly Rancher Working Aircraft Introduced

Is It Affordable? — In early 2024, a factory-built Dragonfly Special LSA with 100 horsepower Rotax 912ULS lists for $99,995. If you have the time, skills, and facililties to assemble an Experimental LSA version, the price with that same engine is $69,995.

“The ELSA is a great deal, but so is the SLSA. For $30K more, you get a factory-built Special LSA, saving over 200 hours of build-time labor. SLSA buyers will have the ability to use their Dragonfly for hire as well as qualifying for a tax write-off,” said Randy. “SLSA owners also get factory support and will have priority for factory service and annuals.”

Potential buyers can shave off another ten grand by choosing a Rotax 582 Dragonfly ELSA for $59,995. An Experimental Amateur-Built version can save even more but for details on any of these choices please contact…

• BaileyMoyesDragonfly, company website, or
• Go direct to pricing guidelines

With prices of everything you buy up 50% or more in the 2020s, those costs to own a Dragonfly may be considered reasonable (though I clearly understand everybody’s budget is different). Only you can decide if one of those descriptions above is truly affordable for you.

* Earlier I reported an Advanced Aviation Hi-Nuski was the proof-of-concept aircraft. I was corrected thanks to Barb and Steve Flynn, who along with several other local pilots, were involved in the development of that first tug.

Recorded in late April 2024, this Dragonfly update has the latest information about the ongoing manufacture of this popular aircraft.

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A Tribute to
Bobby Bailey

Barely a week before I visited Dunnellon to record the video above, Bobby Bailey, 71, was killed while flying a Dragonfly. No official evaluation has been released but the loss of this talented designer is tragic and will be deeply felt in the hang gliding community.

A man of highly innovative design but very few words, many knew Bobby for years yet learned little about him. He was rarely one to talk about himself in public settings. I always figured that much of the time he was designing the next aircraft in his mind.

A celebration of his life is planned for Sunday, May 26th, 2024 at 6548 Groveland Airport Rd, Groveland, FL 34736 — the airport Bobby called home for decades.

Florida and southeastern U.S. pilots who knew him can gather to share personal details and tell tall stories of Bobby’s numerous flying exploits. Learn more here.

Bobby is survived by his wife Connie Bailey; his siblings, Marlene and Michael; his nieces, Ginger and Mira; his nephew Chick; and his close friend Logan Harris.

Never Forgotten

One of Bobby’s other creative designs made use of a single float intended for a larger aircraft. It ended up making a beautiful shape (at least to my eyes). My old friend Gregg Ellsworth dubbed it “The Flying Float.”

Bobby named it after his wife.

• The Flying Float — Connie by Bobby Bailey