Posted on 12/09/2007 11:48:50 PM PST by neverdem
Jeb Corliss wants to fly not the way the Wright brothers wanted to fly, but the way we do in our dreams. He wants to jump from a helicopter and land without using a parachute.
And his dream, strange as it sounds, is not unique. Around the globe, Mr. Corliss said, at least a half-dozen groups in France, South Africa, New Zealand, Russia and the United States have the same goal in mind. Although nobody is waving a flag, the quest has evoked the spirit of nations pursuits of Everest and the North and South Poles.
All of this is technically possible, said Jean Potvin, a physics professor at Saint Louis University and a skydiver who does parachute research for the Army. But he acknowledged a problem: The thing Im not sure of is your margins in terms of safety, or likelihood to crash.
Loïc Jean-Albert of France, better known as Flying Dude in a popular YouTube video, put it more bluntly: You might do it well one time and try another time and crash and die.
The landing, as one might expect, poses the biggest challenge, and each group has a different approach. Most will speak in only the vaguest terms out of fear that someone will steal their plans.
Mr. Corliss will wear nothing more than a wing suit, an invention that, aeronautically speaking, is more flying squirrel than bird or plane.
He plans to land on a specially designed runway of his own design. It will borrow from the principles of Nordic ski jumping and will cost about $2 million, which explains why he is so much more vocal than the others about his quest.
Mr. Jean-Albert figures he could glide to a stop on a snowy mountainside...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
That’s not flying. It is gliding with a fairly rapid rate of descent.
bookmark for later reading (bmflr)
Wonder how putting your arms out when there is no atmosphere works.
I have to disagree. The landing is guaranteed, walking away may be problematic.
I guess that what they used to say when I was in the Army years ago is still true. The only thing that falls from the sky is bird$#it and idiots.
Looks to be about 25 square feet of wing. At 200 pounds total weight, thats about about 8 pounds per foot.
If he can perform the flare correctly, he’ll have a stall/landing speed of around 60-80 mph.
If he can run really fast, he’ll do OK.
How about some little wheels ?
pretty funny. I tried to get a friend to sky dive w/ me she was afraid of breaking bones. I told her she didn’t need to worry about that it was a matter of living or dying.
They could add a Reverse Thruster, but then they would become a rock.
I thought turkeys could fly...
Not if he lands on snow on the side of a mountain like he says. he could come in as fast as he wants as long as he matches the angle of the mountain, the mountain is perfectly smooth and he has a slippery enough belly to avoid tumbling head over heels. Personally I would rather ski off the side of Mount Everest than try that.
That having been said, anyone can accomplish this. But only one time. Hopefully, this guy hasn't reproduced yet so that his next-of-kin can pick up his Darwin Award.
A skate board?
fore and aft.
Oh they’ll land alright...they’ll land!
If you’re at some type of orbital or sub-orbital velocity, you’d need significantly more protective gear. Like a space shuttle or something...otherwise, re-entry is a
bee-yotch.
They could add a skateboard or roller blades, with an appropriate runway and guardian angel.
A simple foil is a lifting device. More so than slats or flaps, especially slats.
Having said that, you are essentially correct. It is a lift vs drag question. Maybe the answer is a high speed landing on ski's?
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