Ultralight trike

Last updated

AirBorne XT912 Tourer AirBorne XT912 Tourer microlight.jpg
AirBorne XT912 Tourer
Ultralight trike in Prokhorovka, Belgorod Oblast Del'talet 1.jpg
Ultralight trike in Prokhorovka, Belgorod Oblast

An ultralight trike or paratrike is a type of powered hang glider where flight control is by weight-shift. [1] These aircraft have a fabric flex-wing from which is suspended a tricycle fuselage pod driven by a pusher propeller. The pod accommodates either a solo pilot, or a pilot and a single passenger. Trikes grant affordable, accessible, and exciting flying, and have been popular since the 1980s.

Contents

Trikes [lower-alpha 1] are classified as microlights in Europe, and as light-sport aircraft in the United States. The aircraft are also known by other names, including 2-axis microlights, flex-wing trikes, microlight trikes, deltatrikes [2] or motorized deltaplanes . [3] In the United States, they are formally recognized by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as weight-shift-control aircraft. [4]

History

'Dr. George A. Spratt towed his hang glider on floats using a motorboat. USA, 1929 EarlySpratt6.jpg
'Dr. George A. Spratt towed his hang glider on floats using a motorboat. USA, 1929
First towing tests of NASA's Paresev glider (Para Wing Research Vehicle), March 1962. Paresev 1 in Landing (E-8009).jpg
First towing tests of NASA's Paresev glider (Para Wing Research Vehicle), March 1962.
Richard Miller flying his 'Bamboo Butterfly' hang glider. Vista Del Mar California, 1966. Richard Miller.jpeg
Richard Miller flying his 'Bamboo Butterfly' hang glider. Vista Del Mar California, 1966.
'Standard' flexible-wing hang glider, based on variants of the Rogallo-wing aircraft, 1975. MilesFagerlie early hg photo.jpg
'Standard' flexible-wing hang glider, based on variants of the Rogallo-wing aircraft, 1975.

The history of the trike is traced back to the invention of Francis Rogallo's flexible wing and subsequent development by the Paresev engineering team's innovations and then others. On 1948, engineer Francis Rogallo invented a self-inflating wing which he patented on March 20, 1951, [5] as the Flexible wing. In 1957, Rogallo released his patent to the government and with his help at the wind tunnels, NASA began a series of experiments testing Rogallo's wing – which was renamed Para Wing – in order to evaluate it as a recovery system for the Gemini space capsules and recovery of used Saturn rocket stages. [6] [7] F. Rogallo's team adapted and extended the totally flexible principle into semi-rigid variants. This mainly involved stabilizing the leading edges with compressed air beams or rigid structures like aluminum tubes. By 1960, NASA had already made test flights of a powered heavily framed cargo aircraft called the Ryan XV-8 or Fleep (short for 'Flying Jeep') [8] and by March 1962, of a weight-shift experimental glider called Paresev. By 1967, all Para Wing projects were dropped by NASA in favor of using round parachutes without officially considering development of personal ultralight gliders, but the airfoil's simplicity of design and ease of construction, along with its capability of slow flight and its gentle landing characteristics, did not go unnoticed by hang glider enthusiasts. The challenge then, was to modify and fit a Rogallo flexible wing with an appropriate frame to allow it to be used as a hang glider.

Some modern Rogallo flexible-winged aircraft

A crucial development toward the trike was introduction of several mechanical innovations developed by the Paresev and the Fleep engineers; they proved the Rogallo wing suitable for free-flight gliding, powered and unpowered, and for safe landing.

Publicity from the Fleep [9] and the Paresev tests sparked interest in the design among several tinkerers, including Barry Palmer, and Sport Aviation of 1962 shown Jim Hobson of Experimental Aircraft Association (wing shown on US national TV in Lawrence Welk Show in 1962). An Australian engineer Mike Burns developed and used the boat-towed Rogallo-airfoiled SkiPlane starting in 1962 through the 1960s. A fellow countryman of Mike Burns, John W. Dickenson, made ski-kites and eventually partnered with Mike Burns to improve the ski-kite; he formatted a ski-kite that used what could be found in the 1929 George A. Spratt simple triangle control bar or A-frame with single-point pendulum weight-shift control.

An influence through John Dickenson's duplication of his device, [10] [11] who named his flexible-wing ski-kite the Ski Wing. [12] Dickenson fashioned a water ski kite airframe to fit on a Rogallo airfoil [11] [13] [14] [15] where the pilot sat on a swinging seat while the control frame and wire bracing distributed the load to the wing as well as gave a frame freedom to be pushed/pulled for weight-shift control. [16] Dickenson's Ski Wing turned out to be stable and controllable under tow, [17] unlike the flat manned kites used at water ski shows. The Ski Wing kite was first kited in public at the Grafton Jacaranda Festival in September 1963 by Rod Fuller while towed behind a motorboat. Australian manufacturers like Bill Bennett [18] and Bill Moyes, [19] [20] actively developed and marketed Dickenson's innovations [21] to the world, which significantly fueled the hang glider revolution.

Although by the early 1970s many rigid wings were developed, none sold well, while dozens of flexible-wing hang glider companies were springing up worldwide, building variants of Dickenson's Ski Wing. In 1972, Popular Mechanics and Popular Science magazines published articles on hang gliding which further increased its popularity, [22] as the Sky Raiders hang gliding movie released in 1975. [23]

Francis Rogallo, Barry Palmer, John Dickenson, and others never made any money out of their innovations. [11] [24] Profit to manufacturers of hang gliders and Rogallo-winged hang gliders came once organized and insured sporting events grew in popularity. Dickenson's adaptation and innovations eventually produced a foldable hang glider that dramatically reduced difficulty in control, storage, transport, assembly and repair. In addition, the flexible wing lends itself to design changes for possible improvements.

The crucial developments put together by the Paresev engineers, Barry Palmer, John Dickenson, Bill Bennett, Bill Moyes, Richard Miller, and then hundreds of other innovators gave success to the flexible-wing hang glider. [25]

First trikes

Ryan XV-8 'Fleep' flown in the Full Scale Tunnel at Langley, 1962 XV-8A Fleep Prototype - GPN-2000-001271.jpg
Ryan XV-8 'Fleep' flown in the Full Scale Tunnel at Langley, 1962
Pierre Aubert, Switzerland, 1964 PierreAubert.jpg
Pierre Aubert, Switzerland, 1964

In 1961, Engineer Thomas Purcell built a towable Rogallo-wing glider with an aluminum frame, wheels, a seat and basic control rods; soon he replaced the wheels for floats and motorized the aircraft. [26] In 1964, Swiss inventor Pierre Aubert saw a photo of NASA's Fleep and completed construction of a similar trike. As with the Fleep, his Rogallo wing was fixed and did not allow for pendulum weight-shift control. [27]

In March 1967, aeronautical engineer Barry Palmer completed the earliest example of a true weight-shift powered trike: the Paraplane; [28] [29] it was controlled by a single vertical control bar as the Paresev experimental glider that inspired him. The Paraplane used two West Bend-Chrysler 820 engines of 8 hp at 6000 RPM, reduced to 4700 RPM for about 6.5 hp each, for a total of 13 hp. Each engine had a direct drive to a 27-inch-diameter two-blade propeller made of polyester and fiberglass. On March 24, 1967, Palmer registered the trike with the FAA as the Palmer Parawing D-6, serial number 1A, registration number N7144; no restrictions were noted.

The second Palmer trike, Skyhook (FAA registration N4411), in spite of its early date of origin, had most of the attributes of a modern ultralight, except it used a single-cylinder snowmobile engine, as the two-stroke twin-cylinder engines were not available yet. It was powered by a 17 hp at 5000 RPM single-cylinder JLO L297 two-stroke engine, driving a composite propeller designed and built by Palmer himself and driven by a 2.1/1 reduction gearbox. The engine had electric start and the craft had fiberglass composite spring landing gear. Airframe construction was bolted 6061-T6 aluminum thin-wall tube, with 6061 T-6 extruded angle. The craft took off, flew, and landed at around 30 mph. [30]

The commercial availability of Dickenson's hang glider made the Rogallo wing very popular, and prompted several builders during the 1970s to attempt motorization of their flexible-wing aircraft [31] but unlike Barry Palmer – who placed the center of gravity well below the keel – most builders were mounting the engine to the wing, where a fine balance existed between applying too much power, causing the aircraft to overtake the pilot, or not enough power for flight. It was not until Roland Magallon took a long look at the Motodelta ultralight [32] (a hybrid Rogallo wing designed by Jean-Marc Geiser had a 'fuselage' and a rudder) that Magallon decided to replace the Motodelta's 'fuselage' with a simple tubular framework pendulum and dispensing with the rudder. [33] Magallon is thus generally thought to have invented the trike because it was he who first marketed it. He called the first version 'Mosquito' and marketed it from October 1979 through 1981. The prototype had flown with a McCulloch MC-101A motor of 125 cc, delivering 10 hp at 8000 RPM to a direct-drive prop with ground-adjustable pitch. Later he offered it with a Solo 210 engine which produced 15 hp (11 kW) at much smaller RPM. [34]

The "trike", as it soon became known, quickly became popular in the UK and France, where it had been reborn. Trike technology still shows its hang gliding origins, though the wings are no longer converted hang gliders, but are designed for power. In fact, none of the commercially available trike wings can be used as foot-launched hang gliders as they are too heavy and too fast. [35]

Manufacturers

Many trike manufacturers produce only the undercarriage and procure their wings elsewhere. The majority of these companies are found in Europe, with a number appearing in the United States. Manufacturers can also be found in India, South Africa, Australia, and elsewhere. At their most basic, manufacturers often sell single-place ultralight trikes at a price of around $10,000–$17,000 [36] Prices often depend on whether the wing is included. Two-person, high-performance trikes may cost from $15,000–$30,000 and up. For instance, the two-seater Air Creation Tanarg can cost up to $85,000 when loaded with every available performance option. [37]

Records

Brian Milton flew from London to Sydney in 1987 in the Dalgety flyer which at the time was the longest recorded microlight flight taking 59 days. The Dalgety Flyer is now on display at Sydney Airport. In 1998, he made the first circumnavigation of the world by ultralight, completing the flight in 80 flying days (over a period of 120 days) in the Global Flyer, a Pegasus Quantum, including crossing the Alps and being buzzed by a Syrian MiG, setting a Guinness World Record for the first and fastest ultralight circumnavigation of the world and resulting in the award of both the Britannia Trophy and the Segrave Trophy.

On January 19, 2008, Mark Jackson from Altrincham, UK, flew over Kilimanjaro. In doing so, he broke the record for the highest altitude attained in a microlight, 24,262 feet (7,395 m), and the fastest climb to 20,000 feet (6,100 m) (25 minutes). He also broke the British record for the fastest climb to 10,000 feet (3,000 m) (19 minutes). He did the flight with Eve Jackson. [38] In 1994, an altitude record has been set by Serge Zin at Saint-Aubin at an altitude of 9720 meters.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hang gliding</span> Unpowered glider air sport

Hang gliding is an air sport or recreational activity in which a pilot flies a light, non-motorised, heavier-than-air aircraft called a hang glider. Most modern hang gliders are made of an aluminium alloy or composite frame covered with synthetic sailcloth to form a wing. Typically the pilot is in a harness suspended from the airframe, and controls the aircraft by shifting body weight in opposition to a control frame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fixed-wing aircraft</span> Heavier-than-air aircraft with fixed wings generating aerodynamic lift

A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air flying machine, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using aerodynamic lift. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft, and ornithopters. The wings of a fixed-wing aircraft are not necessarily rigid; kites, hang gliders, variable-sweep wing aircraft, and airplanes that use wing morphing are all classified as fixed wing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ultralight aviation</span> Aviation field involving lightweight aircraft

Ultralight aviation is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and conventional three-axis control aircraft with ailerons, elevator and rudder, calling the former "microlight" and the latter "ultralight".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rogallo wing</span>

The Rogallo wing is a flexible type of wing. In 1948, Francis Rogallo, a NASA engineer, and his wife Gertrude Rogallo, invented a self-inflating flexible wing they called the Parawing, also known after them as the "Rogallo Wing" and flexible wing. NASA considered Rogallo's flexible wing as an alternative recovery system for the Mercury and Gemini space capsules, and for possible use in other spacecraft landings, but the idea was dropped from Gemini in 1964 in favor of conventional parachutes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francis Rogallo</span> American aeronautical engineer

Francis Melvin Rogallo was an American aeronautical engineer inventor born in Sanger, California, U.S. Together with his wife, he is credited with the invention of the Rogallo wing, or "flexible wing", a precursor to the modern hang glider and paraglider. His patents were ranged over mechanical utility patents and ornamental design patents for wing controls, airfoils, target kite, flexible wing, and advanced configurations for flexible wing vehicles.

Kite types, kite mooring, and kite applications result in a variety of kite control systems. Contemporary manufacturers, kite athletes, kite pilots, scientists, and engineers are expanding the possibilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nanolight</span>

A nanolight is an Australian class of ultralight powered aircraft. It was originally defined as a powered hang glider with an empty weight, including both wing and power system, of less than 70 kg (154 lb). A nanolight may be launched on foot or using a wheeled undercarriage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of hang gliding</span>

Hang gliding is an air sport employing a foot-launchable aircraft. Typically, a modern hang glider is constructed of an aluminium alloy or composite-framed fabric wing. The pilot is ensconced in a harness suspended from the airframe, and exercises control by shifting body weight in opposition to a control frame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NASA Paresev</span> Experimental NASA glider using the Rogallo airfoil

The NASA Paresev was an experimental NASA glider aircraft based upon the kite-parachute studies by NASA engineer Francis Rogallo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Powered hang glider</span> Foot-launched powered hang glider

A foot-launched powered hang glider (FLPHG), also called powered harness, nanolight, or hangmotor, is a powered hang glider harness with a motor and propeller often in pusher configuration, although some can be found in tractor configuration. An ordinary hang glider is used for its wing and control frame, and the pilot can foot-launch from a hill or from flat ground, needing a length of about a football field to get airborne, or much less if there is an oncoming breeze and no obstacles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan XV-8</span> American experimental STOL aircraft

The Ryan XV-8 Flexible Wing Aerial Utility Vehicle was an improved version of the Flex-Wing. Both aircraft were built by Ryan Aeronautical Company in collaboration with NASA for the United States Air Force and the United States Army and tested in 1961 as a STOL patrol, reconnaissance, and light utility aircraft to transport people or freight when a more specialized aircraft is not required or available.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glider (aircraft)</span> Aircraft designed for operation without an engine

A glider is a fixed-wing aircraft that is supported in flight by the dynamic reaction of the air against its lifting surfaces, and whose free flight does not depend on an engine. Most gliders do not have an engine, although motor-gliders have small engines for extending their flight when necessary by sustaining the altitude with some being powerful enough to take off by self-launch.

Barry Hill Palmer is an American aeronautical engineer, inventor, builder and pilot of the first hang glider based on the Rogallo wing or flexible wing. Palmer also designed, built and flew the first weight-shift ultralight trike aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John W. Dickenson</span> Australian inventor (1934–2023)

John Wallace Dickenson was an Australian inventor, who developed some liquid flow measuring devices and designed a successful hang glider configuration, for which he was awarded the Gold Air Medal, the highest award given by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, the world governing body for air sports, aeronautics and astronautics world records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flexible wing</span> Flexible airfoil

In aeronautics, a flexible wing is an airfoil or aircraft wing which can deform in flight.

Charles Richard was a design engineer, who designed the collapsible four-tube Rogallo wing used in the experimental NASA Paresev glider. The wing configuration he created was used for manned hung-pilot kite-gliders and was to be found copied only with slight ornamental variation in a decade of hang gliders. Richards was of the Flight Research Center's Vehicle and System Dynamics Branch. The four-beamed wing folded from the nose plate; one of the beams was the spreader beam that kept the flexible-wing's sweep. Those in the following decade copying the Charles Richard wing configuration expanded kiting, hang gliding, ultralight, and trike flight.

The Spartan DFS Trike is an American ultralight aircraft designed and produced by Spartan Microlights. The aircraft was the first ultralight introduced that could be flown with a hang glider-style wing as an ultralight trike or with a powered parachute wing.

The PowerTrike Light is a German ultralight trike and powered parachute, designed and produced by PowerTrike of Mackenbach. The aircraft is supplied as a complete ready-to-fly-aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TrikeBuggy Delta</span> Type of aircraft

The TrikeBuggy Delta, Bullet and Transformer are a family of American ultralight trikes and powered parachutes, designed and produced by TrikeBuggy of Santa Barbara, California. The aircraft is supplied complete and ready-to-fly.

The Purcell Flightsail or Flight Dynamics Flightsail is an experimental towed glider by Thomas H. Purcell, Jr. He sold plans in several publications for the tow-launched hung-mass controllable kite-glider. He flew first off water in late 1961 and then arranged things for off-land and landing on land. His efforts would find similarity echo later in early 1963 by the SkiPlane of Mike Burns.

References

  1. ↑ FAA-H-8083-5: Weight-Shift Control Aircraft Flying Handbook (and Addendum). Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). 2008.
  2. ↑ Deltacat ULM AVIATION: deltatrike
  3. ↑ Motorized Delta plane term
  4. ↑ 14 CFR § 1.1: General definitions.
  5. ↑ Article: How to Fly Without a Plane by Robert Zimmerman, aerospace writer. "AmericanHeritage.com / How to Fly Without a Plane". Archived from the original on March 1, 2007. Retrieved February 21, 2007.
  6. ↑ SPACEFLIGHT REVOLUTION
  7. ↑ On 1965 Jack Swigert, who would later be one of the Apollo 13 astronauts, softly landed a full-scale Gemini capsule using a Para Wing stiffened with inflatable tubes along the wing's edges
  8. ↑ The earliest photographic press release of a Rogallo flexible wing in record dates to August 14, 1961, by Aviation Week and Space Technology magazine.
  9. ↑ Press release of the XV-8 'Fleep': August 14, 1961, by Aviation Week and Space Technology magazine.
  10. ↑ The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum' Archived July 5, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  11. 1 2 3 Dickenson built a model based on the 'flexile wing' principle with a single hang point on an A-frame: "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 31, 2007. Retrieved August 12, 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  12. ↑ Ski Wing
  13. ↑ Article by Mark Woodhams, British Columbia Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association: "Cloudstreet May 2004". Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved August 12, 2008.
  14. ↑ Western Museum of Flight Archived June 2, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  15. ↑ The Australian Ultralight Federation – History Archived October 1, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  16. ↑ The swinging seat and control frame are two key control elements J. Dickenson 'imported' from ski kites into his successful Ski Wing kite/hang glider.
  17. ↑ Stability and weight-shift control are flex-wing characteristics previously established and described by its inventor F. Rogallo and by NASA engineers in the Paresev and Fleep programs.
  18. ↑ Bill Moyes Contributions by Bill Bennet as explained by the 'Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum': Delta Wing Phoenix VI "Delta Wing Phoenix VI.B Jr". Archived from the original on August 19, 2007. Retrieved August 17, 2007., Delta Wing Phoenix VI "Delta Wing Phoenix VI". Archived from the original on July 5, 2007. Retrieved August 17, 2007., Delta Wing Phoenix Mariah M-9 "Delta Wing Phoenix Mariah M-9". Archived from the original on August 17, 2007. Retrieved August 17, 2007., Delta Wing Model 162 "Delta Wing Model 162". Archived from the original on July 5, 2007. Retrieved August 17, 2007., Delta Wing Phoenix Viper 175 "Delta Wing Phoenix Viper 175". Archived from the original on July 5, 2007. Retrieved August 7, 2007., Delta Wing Streak 130 "Delta Wing Streak 130". Archived from the original on January 18, 2008. Retrieved August 7, 2007..
  19. ↑ Moyes's story: , The History of Moyes:
  20. ↑ ABC History – an interview with Moyes
  21. ↑ On October 11, 1963, Dickenson filed for a patent, and a provisional protection was awarded for his application number 36189/63 but the patent was not finally awarded; the claims were not officially reviewed for priority and validity. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 31, 2007. Retrieved August 12, 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  22. ↑ Hang gliding articles on Popular Mechanics and Popular Science magazines: "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 11, 2007. Retrieved July 14, 2007.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  23. ↑ The Swallowtail hang glider was featured in the 1976 movie Sky Riders (filmed in Greece during 1975) starring James Coburn, Robert Culp, Susannah York, and Charles Aznavour. After filming of the action was complete, the Wills Wing team toured Europe and stopped by in England to win the British Championships at Mere, Wiltshire, in August 1975.
  24. ↑ Article by Mark Woodhams Archived May 9, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  25. ↑ "Order of Australia" award for contributions to aviation given in 1996 Archived August 31, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  26. ↑ Thomas Pourcell
  27. ↑ Pierre Aubert
  28. ↑ Palmer's trike
  29. ↑ Original video on YouTube
  30. ↑ Palmer's web site
  31. ↑ Some early powered hang gliders
  32. ↑ Motodelta – images
  33. ↑ Rolland Magallon Archived August 7, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  34. ↑ Roland Magallon's trike Archived August 7, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  35. ↑ Aerial Pursuits
  36. ↑ UL trikes general pricing
  37. ↑ Tanarg Pricing
  38. ↑ MEN news
  1. ↑ While many aircraft have tricycle landing gear, the term "trike" refers specifically to the form of aircraft described here.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.