History of flexible wing hang gliding

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This history of flexible wing hang gliding applies to a glider that:

  • A wing that is controlled during flight by the shifted weight of the pilot.
  • Can be foot launched and landed in nil wind.
Hang glider soaring over Mount Tamalpais
Hang glider soaring over Mount Tamalpais

The history of this type of glider shares a history with:

Although detail relating to those histories can be found elsewhere there will be the need for some crossover bellow.

Contents

[edit] Key

Includes both design and flight milestones. When. What. Where. Who. Further Information with References.

[edit] Pre Powered Flight Era

The first hang glider (especially Otto Lilienthal's) had many features in common with a modern flexible wing hang glider. For example they may have been foot-launched and weight shift controlled. The wing, although made from cloth, was "rigid" in the sense of having its shape (as far as was intended) to be held in place by spars and struts.

1853. First uncontrolled flight in heavier-than-air aircraft. UK, Yorkshire, Brompton Dale. George Caley's coachman. Timeline of aviation - 19th century

Otto Lilienthal flying.
Otto Lilienthal flying.

1891. First controlled foot-launched and land flights. Germany, near Berlin at Gross Lichterfelde. Otto Lilienthal.

-the final result on this practice area was that it was possible to carry out a jump of 20-25 metres from a jumping height of 5-6 metres in calm as well as stronger winds.

– (Lilienthal 1891)

1891 - 1896. Soaring foot-launched and landed flight. Germany, near Berlin at Gross Lichterfelde. Otto Lilienthal.

-often reach positions in the air which are much higher than my starting-point.

– (Lilienthal 1895)

[edit] Pre Rogallo Era

The following wings were like Rogallo's in that their shape was maintained by the passage of the craft through the air.

1904? Lavezzari at Plage De Berck. [1]

Like a rogallo wing split in the middle of the keel. Two wings shaped by the air surrounding the pilot.

1923. Platz Glider.

The Platz glider was not foot-launched (by the pilot alone). It was controlled by the pilot directly deforming the wing. In this sense it is not like a modern flexible wing hang glider.

It was simple enough to be folded into a single length to be carried by Platz while riding a bicycle. Although mainstream modern flexible wing hang gliders did not directly evolve from the unusual design of the Platz glider; Some, for instance, Tony Prentice in the 1960's and 1970's, have based modern experiments on it. [2]

[edit] Rogallo Era

[edit] Firsts

The Rogallo flexible Para-wing is a self-inflating system that was tested for Gemini space capsule recovery.
The Rogallo flexible Para-wing is a self-inflating system that was tested for Gemini space capsule recovery.

1948. Flexible kite patent filed by Francis Rogallo and Gertrude Rogallo. USA.

Patent allowed march, 20 1951. [3]

1955. Rogallo flights. Indonesia. Unverified. Cross Country Magazine, #45 (June or July 1996)?

1958. Candidate for first foot-launch in a Rogallo flex wing hang glider. Dick Cheney. Kaysville, Utah, USA. Off 150 ft hill. Further evidence required. [4]

1960-1962. First foot-launch in a Rogallo flex wing hang glider. Barry Palmer. Latrobe, Sierra foothills, east of Sacramento, California, USA.

First flights in December, of 1960,... this is possibly the predecessor of the earliest example of a modern hang glider. It is one of 7 or 8 or so gliders built by the designer. The first, which was built of salvaged aluminum tubing, polyethylene sheeting and drafting tape, had an out of pocket expense of $10.89. The spars and keel were 22 feet in length, so launches of the 40 Lb aircraft could be accomplished easily even in no wind. Flights got up to 600 feet in length and as high as 80 feet. The last of the series flew in the summer of 1962, and had a swinging seat, which expanded the flying capability well beyond the "true hang" armpit supports.

– [5]

During the period from 1960 to 1963 Barry Palmer and friends made tens of flights using the Rogallo concept. Those flights ranged in length up to 180 meters, at altitudes up to 80 feet, and an overall glide ratio of 4.5 to 1.[6]

See also (HGPAMag 2005).

1963. A-frame added to Rogallo wing. John Dickenson. Australia, NSW, Grafton. [7]

1963 Sep. A Dickenson wing (Rogallo wing plus A-frame) ski boat towed. Piloted by Rod Fuller. Australia, NSW, Grafton. [8][9]

Did one of the growing Australian "Delta" club members try the Dickenson system on land with foot launch before Moyes' later significant foot takeoffs? Deep discussion in OZ REPORT forum and group HangGliderHistory: keyword search: Dickenson.

1967. First Dickenson Wing (Rogallo wing plus A-frame) foot-launched. Bill Moyes. Australia, NSW, Mt Crackenback. [10] [11]

1969 Initial teather into headwind then released onto ridge to soar (32 minutes). Bill Moyes. Australia, NSW, Sydney, La Perouse. [12] Footage. [13]

1971 Sep. Foot-launch and soar in ridge and thermal (1 hour). Dave Kilbourne. USA, California, Fremont, Mission Peak.

1976 Rudy Kishazy, an American living in France, performs the first loop and a series of loops. Location: Grands Montets, France.[1]

?. First Cross Country Flight.

[edit] Parallel or Significant development milestones

Parasev by NASA, 1962
Parasev by NASA, 1962

1962-01-25. Dry lake towing tests of Rogallo wing. NASA-Dryden "Paraglider" Research Vehicle (Parasev). Milton O Thompson. [14]

1966-01-16. Early Rogallo flex wing foot-launch in USA. Richard Miller. Keywords: Batso. Bamboo Butterfly. USA, California, DockWeiler State Park, Beach at Imperial Blv. Vista Del Mar.

the Rogallo finally flew.

– (Miller 1968)

1969. First Rogallo flex wing foot-launch in the United Kingdom. Tony Prentice.

[edit] Production Era

The following generations follow the classification from the British Hang Gliding Museum's Hang Gliding History: Development in Britain of the Flexwing hang glider [15]

"Standard-Rogallo", 1975
"Standard-Rogallo", 1975

1971 - 1975. First Generation. Basic Rogallo wing.

With the development of hang gliders on a commercial scale interest in the sport grew worldwide. Third world enthusiasts and travelling adventurers explored first flights in remote locations such as flying from Mt. Kilamanjaro and the first flight in India.

In 1974 Indian aviation enthusiasts were pushing for a successful "human flight". At that time, balloon and soaring enthusiast Vishwa Bandhu Gupta built India’s first hang glider and with the sponsorship of his newspaper[citation needed]. Vishwa designed and constructed India’s first hang glider making several unsuccessful flights from mounds in the area of New Delhi[citation needed].

Later, in December of 1974, American pilot Caril "The Human Bird" Ridley conducted some high altitude flights. Caril flew from one of the maharaja's hill-towers near Sonar Hot Springs where spectators witnessed a butterfly-shaped wing soaring from the cliff high above[citation needed]. The third flight crashed into a thorn bush destroying the glider[citation needed].

Modern hang gliding in India remained dormant for years[citation needed].

1974 - 1976. Second Generation. Increased Nose Angle, Deflexors.

1977 - 1979. Third Generation Multiple Deflexors.

1978 - 1980. Fourth Generation. Buried Keel and Tip rods.

In 1978, the Atlas (La Mouette) entered the market. It resembled Icarus V but had a flexible wing and no rudders. The pilot also flew in a prone position as with the Rogallo wing hang gliders. The Atlas had all of the safety elements that can still be found today.

1980 - 1997. Fifth Generation. Preformed Battens. Floating Cross Bar. Cross Bar buried in double surface.

Hang glider performance then increased rapidly. The first truly successful "double surface" hang glider was the UP "Comet" designed by Roy Haggard (1980). Virtually all hang gliders over the next decade were refinements of the Comet. The first fifth generation hang gliders to dispense with a raised keel pocket were the Wills Wing "HP" in the USA and Enterprise Wings "Foil" in Australia (1984). Bob Trampenau of Seedwings introduced the VG (variable geometry), which was copied on most other hang gliders.

1997 - Present. Sixth Generation. Topless.

While kingpost-less gliders had been experimented with in the past using struts or cantilever noseplates, in the late 1990's the use of strong carbon fibre crossbars allowed the kingpost on top of the wing to be more conveniently removed to further increase the performance by reducing drag. These hang gliders are now called "topless gliders".

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] Forum Threads

[edit] Web Portal

[edit] Articles

[edit] Books

  • Martin Hunt and David Hunn, Contribution by Dan Poynter (1977), Hang Gliding
  • Stéphane Malbos and Noel Whittall (2005 ?), And the World Could Fly, FAI Hang Gliding and Paragliding Commission (CIVL)

[edit] Video

[edit] References

[edit] Web and News

Links follow article order.

  1. Rogallos of old. The Oz Report, Volume 6, Number 218 8 PM Monday, October 22nd, 2002. Retrieved on 2006-10-24. Picture of Lavezzari Glider.
  2. The Flying Prentice's. Homepage Stephan Nitsch > Links > Tony Prentice > Pictures. Retrieved on 2006-01-01.
  3. Patent of Rogallos Flexible Kite (1948). Retrieved on 2005-12-27.
  4. Dick Cheney, Aircraft Designer/Builder. Published in October 1993 HANG GLIDING Magazine by John Heiney (1993). Retrieved on 2007-03-24.
  5. Hang Gliding and the Ultralight Trike. Barry Palmer's Web Site. Retrieved on 2006-10-17.
  6. Barry Palmer - Hang gliding pioneer. The Oz Report Forum. Retrieved on 2006-10-28.
  7. "Unknown Article Title", The Daily Examiner, 1963-10-21.
  8. Work Citied.
  9. The Coming of the Birdmen. www.moyes.com.au (1985-01-01). Retrieved on 2005-12-17.
  10. George, Negus. "Hang Gliders", Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 2004-10-25 18:30.
  11. The Coming of the Birdmen. www.moyes.com.au (1985-01-01). Retrieved on 2005-12-17.
  12. Work Cited.
  13. Video of Francis Rogallo, John Dickenson, and Bill Moyes together. ? (?). Retrieved on 2006-10-28. 88 MB.
  14. Paresev (Paraglider Research Vehicle). NASA Dryden Photo Collections. Retrieved on 2005-12-27.
  15. Hang Gliding History: Development in Britain of the Flexwing hang glider. British Hang Gliding Museum. Retrieved on 2005-12-26.

[edit] Print

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