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Ruppert Archaeopteryx
The Ruppert Archaeopteryx ( en, ancient wing) is a Swiss high-wing, pod-and-boom, single-seat, microlift glider that was designed by Roger Ruppert and is produced by Ruppert Composite GmbH.Bertrand, Noel; Rene Coulon; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2003-04'', page 42. Pagefast Ltd, Lancaster OK, 2003. ISSN 1368-485X The aircraft is named for the feathered Archaeopteryx dinosaur. Design and development The Archaeopteryx was conceived as a foot-launchable microlift sailplane, with the design goals of a light empty weight, low stall speed with gentle stall characteristics, good maneuverability and good high speed performance. A further goal was a sailplane that could be foot-launched in zero wind conditions. The Archaeopteryx design started in 1998 at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) as a research project. The first flight of the initial prototype was in September 2001. Based on initial lessons the prototype was modified and reflown in May 2002. Fu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glider (sailplane)
A glider or sailplane is a type of glider aircraft used in the leisure activity and sport of gliding (also called soaring). This unpowered aircraft can use naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to gain altitude. Sailplanes are aerodynamically streamlined and so can fly a significant distance forward for a small decrease in altitude. In North America the term 'sailplane' is also used to describe this type of aircraft. In other parts of the English-speaking world, the word 'glider' is more common. Types Gliders benefit from producing the least drag for any given amount of lift, and this is best achieved with long, thin wings, a slender fuselage and smooth surfaces with an absence of protuberances. Aircraft with these features are able to soar – climb efficiently in rising air produced by thermals or hills. In still air, sailplanes can glide long distances at high speed with a minimum loss of height in between. Sailplanes have rigid wings and eithe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Air Brake (aircraft)
In aeronautics, air brakes or speed brakes are a type of flight control surface used on an aircraft to increase the drag on the aircraft. Air brakes differ from spoilers in that air brakes are designed to increase drag while making little change to lift, whereas spoilers reduce the lift-to-drag ratio and require a higher angle of attack to maintain lift, resulting in a higher stall speed. Introduction An air brake is a part of an aircraft. When extended into the airstream, it causes an increase in the drag on the aircraft. When not in use, it conforms to the local streamlined profile of the aircraft in order to help minimise the drag. History In the early decades of powered flight, air brakes were flaps mounted on the wings. They were manually controlled by a lever in the cockpit, and mechanical linkages to the air brake. An early type of air brake, developed in 1931, was fitted to the aircraft wing support struts. In 1936, Hans Jacobs, who headed Nazi Germany's '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sailplanes Designed For Foot-launching
A glider or sailplane is a type of glider aircraft used in the leisure activity and sport of gliding (also called soaring). This unpowered aircraft can use naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to gain altitude. Sailplanes are aerodynamically streamlined and so can fly a significant distance forward for a small decrease in altitude. In North America the term 'sailplane' is also used to describe this type of aircraft. In other parts of the English-speaking world, the word 'glider' is more common. Types Gliders benefit from producing the least drag for any given amount of lift, and this is best achieved with long, thin wings, a slender fuselage and smooth surfaces with an absence of protuberances. Aircraft with these features are able to soar – climb efficiently in rising air produced by thermals or hills. In still air, sailplanes can glide long distances at high speed with a minimum loss of height in between. Sailplanes have rigid wings and either ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2000s Swiss Sailplanes
S, or s, is the nineteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ess'' (pronounced ), plural ''esses''. History Origin Northwest Semitic šîn represented a voiceless postalveolar fricative (as in 'ip'). It originated most likely as a pictogram of a tooth () and represented the phoneme via the acrophonic principle. Ancient Greek did not have a phoneme, so the derived Greek letter sigma () came to represent the voiceless alveolar sibilant . While the letter shape Σ continues Phoenician ''šîn'', its name ''sigma'' is taken from the letter ''samekh'', while the shape and position of ''samekh'' but name of ''šîn'' is continued in the '' xi''. Within Greek, the name of ''sigma'' was influenced by its association with the Greek word (earlier ) "to hiss". The original name of the letter "sigma" may have been ''san'', but due to the complic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Gliders
This is a list of gliders/sailplanes of the world, (this reference lists all gliders with references, where available) Note: Any aircraft can glide for a short time, but gliders are designed to glide for longer. By nationality *List of American gliders *List of Argentine gliders * List of Australian gliders *List of Austrian gliders *List of Belgian gliders *List of Brazilian gliders *List of British gliders * List of Bulgarian gliders *List of Canadian gliders *List of Chinese gliders *List of Czechoslovak gliders *List of Danish gliders *List of Dutch gliders * List of Estonian gliders *List of Finnish gliders *List of French gliders *List of German gliders *List of Greek gliders *List of Hungarian gliders *List of Indian gliders *List of Iranian gliders *List of Irish gliders *List of Italian gliders *List of Japanese gliders *List of Latvian gliders *List of Lithuanian gliders *List of New Zealand gliders *List of Philippines gliders *List of Polish gliders *List of Portugu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rensselaer RP-1
The Rensselaer RP-1 (for Rensselaer Polytechnic design 1) is an American low-wing, single-seat, foot-launchable glider that was designed and produced by the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute of Troy, New York. It first flew in 1980. Design and development The RP-1 was partly funded by NASA and was the first aircraft in Rensselaer's Composite Aircraft Program. The aircraft is of mixed construction, made from composites, Kevlar and PVC foam. Its span wing employs a Wortmann FX-63-137 airfoil. The aircraft weighs just and was intended to be foot-launched. The landing gear consists of a main skid and dual tail skids. The aircraft achieved a 20:1 glide ratio In aerodynamics, the lift-to-drag ratio (or L/D ratio) is the lift generated by an aerodynamic body such as an aerofoil or aircraft, divided by the aerodynamic drag caused by moving through air. It describes the aerodynamic efficiency under giv .... Only one was completed. Specifications (RP-1) See also Referenc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maupin Carbon Dragon
The Maupin Carbon Dragon is an American, high-wing, single-seat, glider that was designed by Jim Maupin and made available as plans for amateur construction. Plans are no longer available.Maupin, Jim: ''Carbon Dragon'', sales brochure, October 1988Bertrand, Noel; Rene Coulon; et al: ''World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2003–04'', p. 57. Pagefast Ltd, Lancaster OK, 2003. ISSN 1368-485X Design and development The Carbon Dragon was intended to take advantage of the US FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicles regulations that classify unpowered aircraft with empty weights of or less as hang gliders and thus allow them to be flown without a pilot license, Federal Aviation Administration aircraft registration or a Certificate of Airworthiness. The Carbon Dragon's standard empty weight is and the aircraft has a gross weight of , giving a payload of . The designer said "The philosophy behind its development was to try to bring foot launch soaring performance up into the lower performance ran ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hall Vector 1
The Hall Vector 1 is an American high-wing, ultralight glider that was designed by Stan Hall for serious cross-country flights.Said, Bob: ''1983 Sailplane Directory, Soaring Magazine'', page 44. Soaring Society of America, November 1983. USPS 499-920 Design and development The Vector 1 was intended to take advantage of the US informal rules for hang gliders at the time of its development that in 1982 became the FAR 103 Ultralight Vehicles regulations. These define a hang glider as any unpowered glider with an empty weight of or less. The Vector 1 was designed with the goal of building a foot-launchable glider with cross country performance. With an empty weight of , the design qualifies as a hang glider and thus does not need to be registered or have a Certificate of Airworthiness. The aircraft resembles a small sailplane and not a traditional hang glider. The aircraft achieves its light weight through small dimensions, with a wingspan of only . The Vector 1 was designed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aériane Swift
The Aériane Swift is a lightweight (48 kg) foot-launched tailless sailplane whose rigid wings have a span of 40 feet. The Swift has been succeeded by the "Swift'Lite". Although designed in California, Swift aircraft are now manufactured by Aériane, a European firm based in Gembloux, Belgium. Aériane first manufactured the Swift under licence, but the firm is now the sole manufacturer. Design & development The Swift (an acronym for 'Swept Wing with Inboard Flap for Trim') was originally conceived as a rigid hang glider with sailplane-like performance. Bright Star Gliders had developed the 1989 U.S. National Hang Gliding Championship winning Odyssey prototype. Meanwhile Professor Ilan Kroo and a group of graduate students at Stanford University had developed the Stanford SWIFT design project. When Brian Porter of Bright Star met Stanford student Steve Morris, the projects merged. Bright Star constructed the revised SWIFT and its first flight took place in December 1989.Il ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lithium Polymer Battery
A lithium polymer battery, or more correctly lithium-ion polymer battery (abbreviated as LiPo, LIP, Li-poly, lithium-poly and others), is a rechargeable battery of lithium-ion technology using a polymer electrolyte instead of a liquid electrolyte. High conductivity semisolid (gel) polymers form this electrolyte. These batteries provide higher specific energy than other lithium battery types and are used in applications where weight is a critical feature, such as mobile devices, radio-controlled aircraft and some electric vehicles. History LiPo cells follow the history of lithium-ion and lithium-metal cells which underwent extensive research during the 1980s, reaching a significant milestone with Sony's first commercial cylindrical Li-ion cell in 1991. After that, other packaging forms evolved, including the flat pouch format. Design origin and terminology Lithium polymer cells have evolved from lithium-ion and lithium-metal batteries. The primary difference is that instead ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Winch-launch
Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word ''soaring'' is also used for the sport. Gliding as a sport began in the 1920s. Initially the objective was to increase the duration of flights but soon pilots attempted cross-country flights away from the place of launch. Improvements in aerodynamics and in the understanding of weather phenomena have allowed greater distances at higher average speeds. Long distances are now flown using any of the main sources of rising air: ridge lift, thermals and lee waves. When conditions are favourable, experienced pilots can now fly hundreds of kilometres before returning to their home airfields; occasionally flights of more than are achieved. Some competitive pilots fly in races around pre-defined courses. These gliding competitions test pilots' abilities to mak ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Auto-tow
Gliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word ''soaring'' is also used for the sport. Gliding as a sport began in the 1920s. Initially the objective was to increase the duration of flights but soon pilots attempted cross-country flights away from the place of launch. Improvements in aerodynamics and in the understanding of weather phenomena have allowed greater distances at higher average speeds. Long distances are now flown using any of the main sources of rising air: ridge lift, thermals and lee waves. When conditions are favourable, experienced pilots can now fly hundreds of kilometres before returning to their home airfields; occasionally flights of more than are achieved. Some competitive pilots fly in races around pre-defined courses. These gliding competitions test pilots' abilities to mak ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
