A ballistic parachute, ballistic reserve parachute, or emergency ballistic reserve parachute, is a parachute ejected from its casing by a small explosion,[1] much like that used in an ejection seat. The advantage of the ballistic parachute over a conventional parachute is that it ejects the parachute canopy (oftentimes via a small rocket), causing it to open rapidly, this makes it ideal for attaching to light aircraft, hang gliders and microlights, where an emergency may occur in close proximity to the ground. In such a situation, a conventional parachute would not open quickly enough.
In 1982, Comco Ikarus developed the FRS rocket-launched parachute system for its ultralight and hanglider aircraft.[2] In 1999, Cirrus Aircraft (then known as Cirrus Design) provided the first ballistic parachutes as standard equipment on their line of type-certified aircraft, the Cirrus SR20; and in 2016, the company delivered the Cirrus Vision SF50, the first jet aircraft with a ballistic parachute. The Curti Zefhir is the first helicopter fitted with a ballistic parachute, successfully tested in 2018.[3]
In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets. Missiles have five system components: targeting, guidance system, flight system, engine and warhead. Missiles come in types adapted for different purposes: surface-to-surface and air-to-surface missiles, surface-to-air missiles, air-to-air missiles, and anti-satellite weapons.
A recoilless rifle, recoilless launcher or recoilless gun, sometimes abbreviated to "RR" or "RCL" is a type of lightweight artillery system or man-portable launcher that is designed to eject some form of countermass such as propellant gas from the rear of the weapon at the moment of firing, creating forward thrust that counteracts most of the weapon's recoil. This allows for the elimination of much of the heavy and bulky recoil-counteracting equipment of a conventional cannon as well as a thinner-walled barrel, and thus the launch of a relatively large projectile from a platform that would not be capable of handling the weight or recoil of a conventional gun of the same size. Technically, only devices that use spin-stabilized projectiles fired from a rifled barrel are recoilless rifles, while smoothbore variants are recoilless guns. This distinction is often lost, and both are often called recoilless rifles.
In aircraft, an ejection seat or ejector seat is a system designed to rescue the pilot or other crew of an aircraft in an emergency. In most designs, the seat is propelled out of the aircraft by an explosive charge or rocket motor, carrying the pilot with it. The concept of an ejectable escape crew capsule has also been tried. Once clear of the aircraft, the ejection seat deploys a parachute. Ejection seats are common on certain types of military aircraft.
The CRV7, short for "Canadian Rocket Vehicle 7", is a 2.75-inch (70 mm) folding-fin ground attack rocket produced by Bristol Aerospace in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It was introduced in the early 1970s as an upgraded version of the standard U.S. 2.75-inch air-to-ground rockets. It was the most powerful weapon of its class, the first with enough energy to penetrate standard Warsaw Pact aircraft hangars. The CRV7 remains one of the most powerful air-to-ground attack rockets to this day, and has slowly become the de facto standard for Western-aligned forces outside the United States. Beginning in 2021, 83,303 stored Canadian CRV7s are slated for disposal having been removed from service from 2005 to 2007.
A drogue parachute is a parachute designed for deployment from a rapidly-moving object. It can be used for various purposes, such as to decrease speed, to provide control and stability, or as a pilot parachute to deploy a larger parachute. Vehicles that have used drogue parachutes include multi-stage parachutes, aircraft, and spacecraft recovery systems.
Mid-air retrieval is a technique used in atmospheric reentry when the reentering vehicle is incapable of a satisfactory unassisted landing. The vehicle is slowed by means of parachutes, and then a specially-equipped aircraft matches the vehicle's trajectory and catches it in mid-air.
The Cirrus Design Corporation, doing business as Cirrus Aircraft, is an aircraft manufacturer that was founded in 1984 by Alan and Dale Klapmeier to produce the VK-30 kit aircraft. The company is owned by a subsidiary of the Chinese government-owned AVIC, and is headquartered in Duluth, Minnesota, United States, with additional operational locations in six other states across the US, including North Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Arizona, Florida and Michigan, as well as sales locations in France and the Netherlands.
The Cirrus SR20 is an American piston-engined, four- or five-seat composite monoplane built since 1999 by Cirrus Aircraft of Duluth, Minnesota. The aircraft is the company's earliest type-certified model, earning certification in 1998.
BL755 is a cluster bomb developed by Hunting Aircraft that contains 147 parachute-retarded high explosive anti-tank (HEAT) submunitions. Its primary targets are armoured vehicles and tanks with secondary soft target capabilities. It entered service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) in 1973.
Ballistic Recovery Systems, Inc., doing business as BRS Aerospace, is a manufacturer of aircraft ballistic parachutes.
A backpack helicopter is a helicopter motor and rotor and controls assembly that can be strapped to a person's back, so they can walk about on the ground wearing it, and can use it to fly. It uses a harness like a parachute harness and should have a strap between the legs. Some designs may use a ducted fan design to increase upward thrust. Several inventors have tried to make backpack helicopters, with mixed results.
The Cirrus SR22 is a single-engine four- or five-seat composite aircraft built from 2001 by Cirrus Aircraft of Duluth, Minnesota.
The Cirrus Vision SF50, also known as the Vision Jet, is a single-engine very light jet designed and produced by Cirrus Aircraft of Duluth, Minnesota, United States.
The Kamov V-80 was a design study designation for an attack helicopter that eventually evolved into the single seat Kamov Ka-50 family of aircraft.
The Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS) is a whole-plane ballistic parachute recovery system designed specifically for Cirrus Aircraft's line of general aviation light aircraft including the SR20, SR22 and SF50. The design became the first of its kind to become certified with the FAA, achieving certification in October 1998, and as of 2022 was the only aircraft ballistic parachute used as standard equipment by an aviation company.
The Martin-Baker Mk.1 is a British ejection seat designed and built by Martin-Baker. Developed in the late 1940s it was the first in the line of production Martin-Baker seats for military aircraft. Ground and air testing of earlier designs resulted in the first successful test ejection of a company employee in July 1946. A seat type designed for the Saunders-Roe company was known as the Pre-Mk.1.
Comco Ikarus GmbH is a German aircraft manufacturer. The company produced hang gliders through the late 1970s, followed by ultralight aircraft, Flight Rescue System (FRS)-branded ballistic parachutes, and light aircraft.
The Ikarus C52 is a German ultralight aircraft, designed and produced by Comco Ikarus, introduced at the Aero show held in Friedrichshafen in 2011. The aircraft is supplied as a complete ready-to-fly-aircraft.
Major Scott Douglas Anderson was an American aviator, engineer, inventor, football player, musician, outdoor adventurer, and award-winning author. He flew F-16s and instructed pilots for the Air National Guard, and was a general aviation test pilot and flight operations officer. In 1998, he completed the flight-testing of the first certified whole-plane parachute recovery system, which is credited with saving over 200 lives as standard equipment on Duluth, Minnesota-based Cirrus Aircraft's line of single-engine light aircraft.
The Curti Zefhir is a two-seat light-single turbine-powered recreational or trainer helicopter designed and produced by Italian aircraft manufacturer Curti Aerospace. Development was partly funded by the European Commission. It performed its maiden flight in 2017 and was commercially launched at the April 2018 AERO Friedrichshafen. Curti aim to secure type certification of the Zefhir as an ultralight aircraft.
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