Hang gliding is an air sport or recreational activity in which a pilot flies a light, non-motorised, fixed-wing 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.
James Stephen Fossett was an American businessman and a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer. He was the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon and in a fixed-wing aircraft. He made his fortune in the financial services industry and held world records for five nonstop circumnavigations of the Earth: as a long-distance solo balloonist, as a sailor, and as a solo flight fixed-wing aircraft pilot.
In aerodynamics, the lift-to-drag ratio is the lift generated by an aerodynamic body such as an aerofoil or aircraft, divided by the aerodynamic drag caused by moving through air. It describes the aerodynamic efficiency under given flight conditions. The L/D ratio for any given body will vary according to these flight conditions.
The Scaled Composites Model 311 Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer is an aircraft designed by Burt Rutan in which Steve Fossett first flew a solo nonstop airplane flight around the world in slightly more than 67 hours in 2005. The flight speed of 342 miles per hour (550 km/h) set the world record for the fastest nonstop non-refueled circumnavigation, beating the mark set by the previous Rutan-designed Voyager aircraft at 9 days 3 minutes with an average speed of 116 miles per hour (187 km/h).
The Advanced Soaring Concepts Falcon, also called the Advanced Soaring Concepts American Falcon, is an American mid-wing, T-tailed, single-seat, FAI 15-Metre Class glider that was designed by Tor Jensen and produced by Advanced Soaring Concepts, and first flew in 1993. The aircraft was produced as a kit for amateur construction.
Perlan Project Inc. is a not-for-profit aeronautical exploration and atmospheric science research organization that utilizes sailplanes (gliders) designed to fly at extremely high altitudes.
Einar K. Enevoldson was the director of the Perlan Project. He was a civilian research pilot for NASA's Hugh L. Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, from 1968 until 1986. He was involved in many research programs, including those with experimental wings, propulsion and digital computer flight control systems.
A radio-controlled glider is a type of radio-controlled aircraft that normally does not have any form of propulsion. They are able to sustain continuous flight by exploiting the lift produced by slopes and thermals, controlled remotely from the ground with a transmitter. They can be constructed from a variety of materials, including wood, plastic, polymer foams, and composites, and can vary in wing loading from very light to relatively heavy, depending on their intended use.
An electric aircraft is an aircraft powered by electricity. Electric aircraft are seen as a way to reduce the environmental effects of aviation, providing zero emissions and quieter flights. Electricity may be supplied by a variety of methods, the most common being batteries. Most have electric motors driving propellers or turbines.
This listing of flight altitude records are the records set for the highest aeronautical flights conducted in the atmosphere, set since the age of ballooning.
Paul F. Bikle was director of the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Dryden Flight Research Facility from 1959 until 1971, and author of more than 40 technical publications. He was associated with major aeronautical research programs including the hypersonic X-15 rocket plane, and was a world record-setting glider pilot.
The Silent 2 Targa is a single seater sailplane of Italian manufacture. It is of the FAI DU Class glider. It is sold by Alisport ready-to-fly or kit-built as pure glider or self-launching glider. The self-launching version can be fitted with a single-blade propeller belt-driven by a two-stroke engine or with a double-blade folding propeller directly driven by an electric motor.
The Glaser-Dirks DG-500, and later the DG-505, is a two-seat glider of glass-reinforced plastic and carbon fiber reinforced plastic construction, manufactured in the DG Flugzeugbau GmbH in Bruchsal, Germany. It first flew in 1987.
Windward Performance is an aircraft design house and manufacturer located in Bend, Oregon. The company is owned and led by Greg Cole. Windward Performance has helped numerous companies with technical expertise and in house they designed and developed the SparrowHawk ultralight sailplane and the DuckHawk high strength, high performance 15m sailplane.
The Grob G 520 ‘EGRETT’ is a turboprop-powered long-endurance, high-altitude reconnaissance and surveillance aircraft designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Grob Aircraft. Since September 1988, it has been the holder of several world records relating to altitude and time to climb.
The Schweizer SGS 2-32 is an American two-seat, mid-wing, two or three-place glider built by Schweizer Aircraft of Elmira, New York.
The Glasflügel BS-1, sometimes called the Björn Stender BS-1 or the Stender BS-1, is a West German, high-wing, single seat, T-tailed, FAI Open Class glider that was designed by Björn Stender and produced by Glasflügel.
Lift is a meteorological phenomenon used as an energy source by soaring aircraft and soaring birds. The most common human application of lift is in sport and recreation. The three air sports that use soaring flight are: gliding, hang gliding and paragliding.
A glider or sailplane is a type of glider aircraft used in the leisure activity and sport of gliding. This unpowered aircraft can use naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to gain altitude. Sailplanes are aerodynamically streamlined and so can fly a significant distance forward for a small decrease in altitude.
The Lamson L-106 Alcor is an American, high-wing, experimental, pressurized research glider that was designed and built by Bob Lamson. The Alcor was the first pressurized sailplane ever built.
