| Heaven Rubber Bandit | |
|---|---|
 | |
| First rollout of the Rubber Bandit | |
| Role | Experimental aircraft |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | George Heaven |
| Number built | 1 |
The Rubber Bandit was an experimental aircraft, designed and built in the 1990s by George Heaven, of Van Nuys, California, which was powered by a rubber-band motor.
George Heaven was a pilot and aeronautical engineer who wanted to make the first flight in a rubber powered airplane. [1] Development work included the building and testing of a 1⁄25th scale free flight model, which had a 27 in (69 cm) wingspan. This was followed by building and testing of a 1⁄4 scale rubber powered, radio-controlled model, which had a 17 ft (5.2 m) wingspan. The latter craft was said to be the largest rubber-powered airplane to have taken off and flown under its own power. [2]
The full-sized craft, dubbed the Rubber Bandit, was of conventional configuration. It was a high-wing monoplane, fitted with a tractor propeller. The craft's primary structure was made of carbon-fiber and Kevlar tubing, with the wings and tail surfaces being built from carbon-fiber ribs, and covered in blue Mylar film. [3] The wing was of constant chord, with the outer panels set at a slight dihedral. There were no ailerons, with all control being via the tail surfaces, which were operated by remote control servos. The fuselage consisted of a single tube, within which the rubber-motor was contained. A small nacelle, located under the fuselage and below the wing, accommodated the pilot and a passenger. [4]
The motor was made of 0.25 in (0.64 cm)-wide rubber, folded into 800 strands, and measured 20 ft (6.1 m) long and would be wound up to 800 revolutions. The motor is lubricated with 3 gallons of castor oil. [1] According to an article in Flying the motor, fully wound, would initially generate the equivalent of 11 hp (8.2 kW), at high torque and rpm, before reducing down to 4 hp (3.0 kW) after 20 seconds. [3] The motor would run for an estimated 90 seconds, sufficient for the airplane to take off and make a 0.5 mi (0.80 km) flight.
Initial media coverage indicated the airplane would be completed and flight testing undertaken before the end of 1996. [2] [1] A 1998 Los Angeles Times article reported that the first taxi tests took place in March 1998, with the second being on May 3. [4] A 2011 article published on the Sustainable Skies website reported that testing of the Rubber Bandit had continued through to 2003, with some short hops but no flights being made. [5]
Data from George Heaven [6]
General characteristics
Performance
The SZD-45 Ogar (Hound) is a T-tailed cantilever high-wing monoplane of wooden, aluminium and fibreglass construction designed and manufactured in Poland.
The PWS-20 was a Polish single-engine high-wing 8 passenger airliner, built in the PWS factory and when it made its first flight in 1929 it became the first Polish-designed transport aircraft to fly.
The IAR CV 11 was a Romanian fighter prototype in 1930, designed by Elie Carafoli, and it was IAR's first original aircraft.
The Fisher FP-303 is a Canadian single-seat, low wing, conventional landing gear, single engined light kit aircraft designed for construction by amateur builders. Fisher Flying Products was originally based in Edgeley, North Dakota, USA but the company is now located in Woodbridge, Ontario, Canada.
The Fisher Celebrity is a Canadian two-seat, conventional landing gear, single engined, biplane kit aircraft designed for construction by amateur builders. Fisher Flying Products was originally based in Edgeley, North Dakota, United States but the company is now located in Dorchester, Ontario, Canada.
The Pipistrel Taurus is a Slovenian self-launched two-seat microlight glider designed and built by Pipistrel.
The Hipp's Superbirds J-3 Kitten and related designs are a family of single-engined, single seat, high wing conventional landing gear-equipped aircraft available in kit form or as plans from Hipp's Superbirds of Saluda, North Carolina.
The RagWing RW9 Motor Bipe is a family of single seat, open-frame fuselage, open-cockpit, single engine ultralight aircraft designed by Roger Mann and sold as plans by RagWing Aircraft Designs for amateur construction.
The CubCrafters CC11-160 Carbon Cub SS is an ASTM certified light-sport aircraft based on the Piper J-3 Cub manufactured by Cub Crafters. It is modernized, with light-weight carbon fiber components and a 180 hp (130 kW) engine.
The e-Genius is a crewed electric airplane developed by the Institute of Aircraft Design at the University of Stuttgart, which first flew in May 2011.
The Spacek SD-1 Minisport is a Czech amateur-built aircraft, designed by Igor Špaček and produced by Spacek of Hodonín. The aircraft was also produced for a short time in the United States by SkyCraft Airplanes of Orem, Utah as a light-sport aircraft, but they had gone out of businesses by 2017. The aircraft is supplied in the form of plans, as a kit for amateur construction, or as a ready-to-fly aircraft.
The Aeroput MMS-3 was the first Yugoslavian twin-engined light three-seater passenger aircraft, produced by Aeronautical service of Aeroput for its own needs in 1935. The chief designer was the aviation engineer Milenko Mitrović - Spirta, the CTO of Aeroput.
The Wier RDW-2 Draggin' Fly was a homebuilt light aircraft, designed in the United States in the 1970s, aimed at fairly inexperienced builders and flyers. Plans were available but only one was built.
The Transcendental Model 1-G was an experimental American tiltrotor prototype of the 1950s. It was a single-seat aircraft powered by a piston engine, and was the first tiltrotor to fly. A single example was built, which was destroyed in a crash in 1955.
The Fahlin SF-2 Plymocoupe was a high-wing, cantilever type, prototype experimental airplane produced in 1935.
The Rowley P-40F was an American homebuilt aircraft that was designed by Richard J Rowley and marketed by his company 76th Fighter Squadron Inc, of Meadow Lake Airport, Colorado, first flown in 1986. When it was available the aircraft was supplied in the form of plans for amateur construction.
The Caudron C.580 was a French advanced trainer aircraft intended to prepare pilots for the new low wing monoplane fighters of the mid-1930s. It did not go into production and only two were built.
The NASA X-57 Maxwell was an experimental aircraft developed by NASA, intended to demonstrate technology to reduce fuel use, emissions, and noise. The first flight of the X-57 was scheduled to take place in 2023, but the program was cancelled due to problems with the propulsion system.
The BURD II was a two-place human-powered biplane, designed and built by graduates and undergraduates of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It is very similar to the original BURD, which suffered a structural collapse during testing in 1975, but incorporated changes to its structure and its control systems.
The Sunbird is a single-seater homebuilt motor glider, designed and built in New Zealand by Charles Stanton. It first flew in 1995, and was retired in 2005.