Flew level in formation with the Porter for a few minutes without losing altitude. Issues with starting the engines meant they had to be started at 6000ft and idled till exit, and never liked to run over 10000ft.
Monster wings, folding and ugly as fuck... but it flew.
Someone has already used jet engines on a rigid wing flight, can't remember who or where but it has been done.. didn't provide much lift if any if i remember correctly
Someone has already used jet engines on a rigid wing flight, can't remember who or where but it has been done.. didn't provide much lift if any if i remember correctly
www.jet-man.com
(This post was edited by P-dro on Jun 26, 2005, 7:28 AM)
That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen. I tried to watch that video from work a few months ago, it didn't work, and I forgot about it. I just watched it now.
I'm intensely curious about what technologies would require so many millions to prototype. Guesses anyone? -Chris
A large airbag the size of a runway would probably set back at least 1 million if not more. I'm not sure one that size has ever been made, so I guess it could be considered a "prototype"
A large airbag the size of a runway would probably set back at least 1 million if not more. I'm not sure one that size has ever been made, so I guess it could be considered a "prototype"
i think landing on something the size of a runway still might be a little too small to allow for errors. i'm thinking it would be bigger than this.
i also think he said it was 4 pieces of technology. airbag is only 1, what would the other 3 be?
I think he's developing a winged surface, that can be attached to the jumper witn lines. But neatly packed and stowed away on the back, so it doesn't temper with wingsuit-flight. Uppon closing in on the ground, the extra winged surface wil emerge from the backpack, and will give the wingsuiter the extra lift and flair needed to land!
Why hasn't anyone thought of this before...!!!
TomAiello (D 22400)
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Jun 27, 2005, 2:30 PM
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I think he's developing a winged surface, that can be attached to the jumper witn lines. But neatly packed and stowed away on the back, so it doesn't temper with wingsuit-flight. Uppon closing in on the ground, the extra winged surface wil emerge from the backpack, and will give the wingsuiter the extra lift and flair needed to land!
Why hasn't anyone thought of this before...!!!
There is a discussion of such a system on the Flybirdman forums.
Land the wingsuit at a water park on one of those slides that have a really steel incline.. the one where the girls all get wedgies at the bottom.. the water parks are already there so it cant cost that much to rent the slide for a day or two...
maybe 5k at the most... I gotta think low budget cause thats all the budget i got.
good luck to you JEB and I cant wait to read/see the feat of landing sans parachute Will you be wearing one during the attempt... "just in case"?????
I know knew a guy who landed a sheet of corrugated iron from 4 stories.TRUE He was lucky he was a skydiver cause he rode it the whole way down without letting go. The pile of sand helped a little as well. There's a few clues here for landing a wing-suit. Another of my friends took a nice long fall onto his back pushing away equipment that was falling with him. Winded was all. We're gonna need lots of padding , ligament cream handy and some very talented professionals to lift us all out of the mythological belief that we can't land with wings on our arms..........without hurting ourselves. Too fast you say...seen a swoop contest lately ..not exactly slow. Flat-earthers and star gazers.... with santa's little helpers very busy....perhaps next Xmas.... oh and why is it a big secret? is there a huge dollar prise to the first lander.? Cue rich kid putting up a mil or two ....just to see it happen. Trail of bodies? Take care on the road there's car comin' da other way.
Modern wingsuits do not have brakes. You can only change the angle of attack of the whole arm and leg wing -- analogous to rear riser input -- but you cannot deflect a part of the wing to slow down and increase lift. Thus, poor flaring capabilities of modern wingsuits make them unlandable. Imagine Luigi landing his VX39 on rear risers, without brakes. Ouch! Now imagine landing VX10 (area equal to wingsuit) on rear risers. Quarter the area, double the speed, quadruple the kinetic energy. Quattro ouch!!!!
Jeb did his homework. Unlike most people here making macho impressions by speed typing in front of their computers, Jeb did real experiments flying his wingsuit side-by-side with Luigi on his VX39. Jeb knows his stuff. If he says "This can be done", he will do it. Safely.
I have a few technical ideas and did some calculations to ascertain that this is possible. I don't have money and sponsors to build the stuff needed, and don't have experience necessary. But I do "find it funny how everybody thinks this is so impossible", as Jeb himself writes above.
One key piece of technology could be a flare-able wingsuit, with some means of deflecting the tail of the wings to flare and slow down. Similar to airplanes and canopies.
Another key piece of technology could be a huge pond with powerfull air compressors "bubble-izing" water into a homogenious foam. Air makes water compressible, a substance with density between that of air and water. Several feet layer of bubbled water will help flyer to slow down without hitting him hard. Besides, the foam can be set in motion towards the flyer by pumps, reducing his speed relative to ground. As for retrieving the jumper from water -- as long as he doesn't die on landing, who cares about him drowning after?
Hitting water at ~60mph tangentially is nothing new to water skiers and swoopers. I believe flare-able wingsuit can be brought to <60mph horizontal and zero or almost zero vertical speed. Hook turn in a wingsuit, anyone?
Or it could be done completely different, perhaps using some kind of very light mesh suspended from a bridge on bungee cords. Jeb does have an experience flying his wingsuit under the bridges.
When parachutes were round, who could have imagined that there will be times when people will be swooping ground or water at 70mph with a fraction of an inch precision and land safely?... Wingsuit can be made similar to ram air canopy in all aspects -- swoopable and landable. There are many ways -- other than breaking bones -- to safely dissipate the kinetic energy.
As Jeb said and Einstein repeated, "great spirits often encounter heavy opposition from mediocre minds." Think outside the box.
(This post was edited by veter_ on Aug 8, 2005, 12:42 PM)
Powered fall? Or is that just what we call powered flight? 
