On a warm summer evening, a large field of 3-foot-tall oats sways gently in the breeze. In this pastoral setting a runway is cut down the middle. The farmer who owns this field has a light aircraft he flies from his country property, and he’s kind enough to allow Tim Norling, a local powered parachute pilot, to use it, too. Norling operates Let’s Fly, an Infinity powered parachute dealer 20 miles north of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
By the time Norling gets his Infinity powered parachute set up, the winds have quieted down, as we hoped they might. It is a beautiful evening for flying in Minnesota, and I am ready for a flight.
Some pilots say, “Oh, those powered parachutes are too vulnerable. You can only fly them in gentle winds.” Yeah, so? Is it really imperative to fly in strong winds? Is being restricted to mild conditions a bad thing?
Powered parachutes tend only to be flown when it’s pleasant to do so.
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Italy’s Ramphos Flying Boat
Making a Splash
Last year as the flying season began, an unusual flying boat appeared at airshows. The machine was called Ramphos (pronounced RAM-fohss) and it featured a form of ducted prop surrounding a pair of counter-rotating blades. While these two components commanded a lot of attention, they were de-emphasized when the 2004 season arrived.
In 2003, the presentation was market-savvy. By showing a somewhat radical version of the familiar flying boat design – we’ve seen a few of these configurations over the years – the Ramphos attracted attention in a crowded marketplace. When you’re new (to the American public), you need some way to stand out from the crowd.
However, the downside of new, potentially radical ideas is that people – like me – tend to wait until the new concepts prove themselves. So I didn’t fly the Ramphos in 2003. That changed for 2004.
Modern Machine
For the 2004 flying season, the emphasis had been taken off the counter-rotating props, though it was still displayed and remains an option.
Simple Sprint Pleasures
Excelling at “Just For Fun”
Going back to our roots and the dandy little ultralights that have given in-flight satisfaction to so many, we’re going to take a look at one of those aircraft, Quicksilver’s MX Sprint.
Some veteran pilots call the MX Sprint “humble,” but it is one of those “original” ultralight aircraft that simply won’t go away, and it shouldn’t. Why? Because the Sprint still offers a joyful flying experience that redefines boring holes in the sky. You pilot a Sprint in relative ease and at remarkable low cost, and once price enters the discussion, many ultralights show their value clearly.
Many in light-sport aviation are realizing that aircraft certified Experimental Light-Sport Aircraft (ELSA) and Special Light-Sport Aircraft (SLSAs), even when approved under a simplified, industry-created, ASTM-guided program, will be rather expensive aircraft. Some sleek fiberglass creations are reaching toward the six-figure mark – an unbelievable development given that ultralights have historically traded in a range of $8,000 to $35,000, the latter being a superbly equipped, Rotax 912-powered machine.
NH:Press 4/09/05
ByDanJohnson.com Launches New Features and Content;Celebrates First Anniversary Online
ST. PAUL, MINN. – For pilots and newcomers interested in light-sport aircraft (LSA) and ultralight pilot reports, ByDanJohnson.com offers the Internet’s largest database of pilot reports. On its first anniversary, the website added “SPLOG ByDanJohnson,” a web log (or blog) of light sport aviation observations by Dan Johnson, the site’s author. Additionally, nearly 200 articles have been added to the site’s database in the last year.
“The upgraded site has much new content. In particular, SPLOG will catch the interest of those following developments in light aviation,” said Dan. A sport pilot-oriented takeoff on the popular blog concept, SPLOG is a series of photo and paragraph blurbs often giving advance information about new aircraft that Dan may subsequently cover in full-length aircraft evaluations. SPLOGs will be added weekly, or more frequently if warranted, with a complete archive of this quick-read content available at the click of a mouse.
Clipper 912 with iXess Wing and Fun 450
After flying all their models, after visiting with company representatives on several occasions, and after visiting the factory in Aubenau, France, I feel like I know the Air Création people. So I should have known they wouldn’t just make a new wing purely for marketing reasons.
Indeed, when I few the iXess after flying their new Fun 450 wing (also reported in this article), I came away with that same head-shaking-in-wonder feeling that has affected me before. I know a little something about delta wing design, having been around hang gliding since the early 1970s, and trikes since their beginning. That helps me to comprehend how far these wings have progressed and how much harder it is to extract additional gains year after year.
Trike wings (and hang gliders) generally trade more glide or speed performance for handling ease. At least, that was how it used to be. Today, that statement must be modified to reflect the surprising capacity of modern wing designers to find more performance at the same time they refine the handling.
Seagull Aerosports takes a new angle
Seagull Aerosports takes a new angle on weight-shift construction with a fully enclosed cockpit.
Developer Michael Riggs might prefer I called his Escape Pod something other than Everyman’s Motorglider, but if you have any interest in self-launched soaring flight, Riggs’ invention is one of the most cost-efficient purchases you can make. The Escape Pod costs thousands less than ultralight motorgliders and literally hundreds of thousands less than sailplane motorgliders.
Oh, and one more thing this kind of flying machine is a hoot to fly. That the Escape Pod also transports easily, can be stored in a small space and is attractively shaped are icing on the cake.
Sure, it’s obvious-I like the Escape Pod. But could it be for you, too? Even if this aircraft isn’t your type, you might enjoy reading about how thoughtfully it was designed.
Trike Motorgliders
Before the Sport Pilot/Light-Sport Aircraft (LSA) rule was recently passed, trike enthusiasts had several other ways to fly such aircraft.
Product Lines – March 2005
OSHKOSH, WISC. — While the deep snow swirls in strong winter winds up here in the
southern tundra, it’s enjoyable to think about the 15th World Meet taking
place in sunny, hot Australia where this time of year is “summer.” The event concluded
just as this column was sent to the editor, and I’m pleased to report a few highlights.
Some contest enthusiasts followed this on Davis Straub’s
Oz Report (ozreport.com) from which I’ve distilled a few points of interest.
The new
reigning champion of flex wings is Oleg Bondarchuk of the Ukraine. Working
for Aeros, he was, of course, flying an Aeros Combat L and finished with a
clear lead over second place finisher Rob Reisinger of Austria flying an Icaro Zero
7, followed by fellow Austrian, Gerolf Heinrichs, flying a Moyes Lightspeed S4. Congratulations
to these top three finalists in hang gliding’s top worldwide competition. You may
also note with interest that the top three pilots flew different brands so no company
“swept” the top positions.
Thorp T-211
Thorp T-211 Sport E
From the world of general aviation aircraft comes an entry to the proposed Light-Sport Aircraft (LSA) category. Presently known as the Thorp T-211, the all-metal airplane will be called the Thorp T-211 Sport E when it makes its debut as a light-sport aircraft.
Famed designer John Thorp is perhaps best known for his work leading to the Piper Cherokee series and the T-18 homebuilt. His work on a design that became the T-211 started back in the 1940s before general aviation planes had transportation as their primary goal. When the T-211 was first created – as the T-11 Skooter and later the T-111 – it was intended to become competition for the Cessna 150. The T-211 is a light plane, tipping the scales at hundreds of pounds less than Cessna’s smallest model and so it was expected to perform better.
Under new management since 2003, Thorp’s design is ready to make the leap to the Sport E.
Connie Amphib — “The Flying Float” (and it is!)
Check out Bobbie Bailey’s Connie Amphib.
Many pilots are aware of aircraft referred to as flying boats. Among ultralight aircraft, the Aventura, SeaRey and Buccaneer stand out as good examples as do trikes like Polaris’ Flying Inflatable Boat. The flying boat reference describes those aircraft built around a boat hull with substantially different structure than airplanes equipped with two floats.
That clear definition is blurred by the introduction of a novel new ultralight from the inventive mind of Bobbie Bailey. His new Connie amphibian is neither flying boat nor a float-equipped ultralight. My BRS associate, Gregg Ellsworth, tagged it a “flying float.” Works for me.
Canada’s Lotus Float company offers a single float setup that functions much the same way but is an add-on to a wheeled ultralight. This may make a perfectly fine floatplane, but you have to do the fitting yourself, and it simply won’t be as elegant as Bailey’s Connie amphib.
Four-Stroke Engines for Ultralights
Ultralights have long been defined by their two-stroke engines. Rotax and other brands refined the two-stroke for aircraft use, and today’s two-stroke powerplants deserve their popularity. In the important power-to-weight ratio, two-strokes are hard to beat. Their cost is low, their overhauls cheap; these humble powerplants have lifted many a pilot into the air for many hours.
But despite the improvements, despite plentiful businesses to help you maintain your two-stroke engine, and despite a good performance record, two-strokes are still seen as inferior to four-strokes by many aviators.
Add to these impressions the regulatory changes many see as inevitable. The blue-smoking two-stroke (even when optimized) presents environmental problems for snowmobiles, watercraft and gas-powered lawn tools. Two-stroke days are numbered—not because of efficiencies, but because of ecological concerns and political decisions.
Hail the Four-Stroke
General aviation people say, “Well, of course four stroke is better.” But that’s the only kind of engine most of them know, and their aircraft weigh enough to accommodate heavier powerplants.
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