Author Topic: wedge shaped plane (Read 9865 times)

spreadeagle · « **on:** March 30, 2016, 05:59:21 PM »

I was prepping the Guzzi for a maiden voyage when I heard what sounded like a single engine plane , a little louder than normal and was not terribly high. It was wedge shaped. Reminded me of a manta ray. It was as slow as any small plane , and was not that big. It was black in color. I pulled out the trusty pocket camera, and presto! Battery dead! WTH!! I searched the net trying to find a photo of something similar? No luck. I know there are some plane guys here . any ideas. This was sawyer county Wisconsin.

RayB · « **Reply #1 on:** March 30, 2016, 06:06:03 PM »

Maybe a carnard type?
Google ViperEZ and see if resembles what you saw.

RinkRat II · « **Reply #2 on:** March 30, 2016, 06:08:27 PM »

NSA. they traded in their helicopters

Paul

lucian · « **Reply #3 on:** March 30, 2016, 06:12:44 PM »

flying cheese?

Guzzistajohn · « **Reply #4 on:** March 30, 2016, 06:16:56 PM »

chhhhhhhhhhhhhiiiii iiiickkkkkkkkkkkkkk kkkkkkkeeeeeeeeeeee eennnnnnnnnnnnn maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaann nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!

Sasquatch Jim · « **Reply #5 on:** March 30, 2016, 06:32:22 PM »

Just another UFO. Pay it no mind. Seriously, unidentified flying object. It meets the description on all counts. You don't know what it was, it was apparently flying when you saw it. Therefore it is a UFO.

RayB · « **Reply #6 on:** March 30, 2016, 06:35:41 PM »

Run and don your tinfoil hat.

acogoff · « **Reply #7 on:** March 30, 2016, 07:24:21 PM »

Dyke Delta, possibly?

smdl · « **Reply #8 on:** March 30, 2016, 09:19:26 PM »

Quote from: Guzzistajohn on March 30, 2016, 06:16:56 PM

chhhhhhhhhhhhhiiiiiiiiickkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkeeeeeeeeeeeeeennnnnnnnnnnnn maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaann nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!

He's everywhere! He's everywhere!!

charlie b · « **Reply #9 on:** March 30, 2016, 09:27:38 PM »

Quote from: acogoff on March 30, 2016, 07:24:21 PM

Dyke Delta, possibly?

That's what I would guess, unless someone is still flying an F117.

rboe · « **Reply #10 on:** March 30, 2016, 10:16:26 PM »

Rutan VariViggen perhaps?

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=3142040

rboe · « **Reply #11 on:** March 30, 2016, 10:20:24 PM »

Or a variation of it. http://stargazer2006.online.fr/derivatives/pages/viggenite.htm

cruzziguzzi · « **Reply #12 on:** March 30, 2016, 10:26:27 PM »

Quote from: smdl on March 30, 2016, 09:19:26 PM

He's everywhere! He's everywhere!!

Bwaaaak...... bwaaakaaaaaaaaaaaah hhhhh!!!!!!

Todd.

Chuck in Indiana · « **Reply #13 on:** March 31, 2016, 06:27:27 AM »

Black, huh? If it sounded fairly normal, that rules out the Vari Viggen. They have a unique sound signature from the pusher prop. Black rules out the composites.. it's forbidden because of UV deterioration.
That pretty much leaves the Dyke Delta, a fabric covered ship. Stable almost to a fault, but a weird configuration of pilot in front, 3 side by side behind him. Fast, too. A double handful have been built, AFAIK. Too lazy to look it up.
As an aside, we used to camp at Rockford with John and Jenny Dyke. He told a story of a couple of air force types stopping at his house near the Dayton Air force base to warn him that his double delta configuration wouldn't work. They had done a fair amount of research on a similar configuration. Just wanted to give him a heads up so he didn't kill himself on the test flight.
He said, "I have 180 hours on it.."

rocker59 · « **Reply #14 on:** March 31, 2016, 07:23:50 AM »

Quote from: Chuck in Indiana on March 31, 2016, 06:27:27 AM

Dyke Delta,

Chuck in Indiana · « **Reply #15 on:** March 31, 2016, 07:51:26 AM »

As you can see from Rocker's 3 view, the wings are removable/foldable. That was one of John's design considerations so he could take it home to work on it.

rocker59 · « **Reply #16 on:** March 31, 2016, 07:56:27 AM »

That thing looks pretty neat. I've never seen one in person...

Chuck in Indiana · « **Reply #17 on:** March 31, 2016, 08:10:06 AM »

Quote from: rocker59 on March 31, 2016, 07:56:27 AM

That thing looks pretty neat. I've never seen one in person...

I've seen several, of course. It is just a little too weird to catch on with the general flying public, I think. A very talented engineer friend and I brainstormed building something in the same general configuration with a mid mounted V8 slowly turning a "big" controllable prop. The math said cruise well north of 200 along with the stability of the Dyke. Could have been a killer cross country ship, but we never followed through. So many projects, so little time.

Chuck in Indiana · « **Reply #18 on:** March 31, 2016, 12:32:56 PM »

Quote from: kirby1923 on March 31, 2016, 10:59:40 AM

We had one of those at the Mojave ca airport sometime ago. The fellow that owned it worked at the skunk works in PMD. He used to fly it to the EAA shindig in Wisconsin every year.

Right next to his hangar there was another odd AC that the guy called a "Skyjacker". It was very low aspect ratio around 18' span with a 13' cord! Powered by an I0360 with a constant speed 3 blade prop (pusher). He (the builder) had a "novelty" patent on the thing!

I became the only one other pilot than the builder that ever flew it.
My company installed CPTs on the control surfaces and accelerometers and I did a stability test card on the thing.

It actually was a good flying AC with huge ailerons it had a great roll rate and was quite stable. The trailing edges were 3" thick! (2% of cord) VERY under powered! Low aspect generally requires very low loading or very high power. (F 4's come to mind.)

Don't know what happened to it.
Like the double delta those in the know, including bert said it would never get off the ground. I think it had about 300 hours TT when I flew it.

Lots of mad scientist's on that airdrome.

:-)

Interesting. As you've said, if it looks like an airplane it'll fly like an airplane. That doesn't sound like it fills the bill.

Chuck in Indiana · « **Reply #19 on:** March 31, 2016, 12:56:10 PM »

The AAA museum at Blakesburg has one of Dr. Lippisch's ground effects watercraft. Interesting concept.

Penderic · « **Reply #20 on:** March 31, 2016, 03:48:10 PM »

Chuck in Indiana · « **Reply #21 on:** March 31, 2016, 04:39:27 PM »

Ahh, the Facetmobile. I loved that when they flew it into Oshkosh from the west coast. Talked to the pilot a fair amount. Not a round surface on it. So much for Bernoulli.

Mostly Oshkosh is just a big trade show with people building cookie cutter <insert Tab A into slot B and drive a rivet> airplanes and an airshow where you just know the pilot's gonna die stuff

that it's lost it's allure to me.
<snapping suspenders> Back in the day, experimental airplanes were experimental. And...get off my lawn.

steven c · « **Reply #22 on:** March 31, 2016, 06:56:43 PM »

Here you go.
https://www.google.com/search?q=delta+wing+homebuilt+aircraft&client=safari&rls=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwib_e3_j-zLAhVEKWMKHV_sAHcQsAQIHA&biw=1664&bih=889

rboe · « **Reply #23 on:** March 31, 2016, 07:28:40 PM »

Wow! I have not seen pictures of the Facetmobile in years! Thanks! Sounds like it was splash in the pan.

One of my aviation mags did an article on articulated wings AC. Funky things, supposedy stupid easy to fly and impossible to stall. I'd need to see a working model to wrap my head around it, still pictures didn't do it for me. I'm not even sure I'm using the right term. (shuffles off to google again).

redrider · « **Reply #24 on:** March 31, 2016, 08:01:56 PM »

My dream home built is Molt Taylor's Mini-Imp. Of course if some one were to give me a Glass Goose....

Penderic · « **Reply #25 on:** April 01, 2016, 01:18:31 AM »

Yeah those magazine kit planes ads are too tempting for many big dreamers, who more often than not, bite off more than they can chew......

E for effort.....

... and cut a few corners, make a few changes, improvements ..... Yoiks!

cruzziguzzi · « **Reply #26 on:** April 01, 2016, 10:54:27 AM »

Quote from: rocker59 on March 31, 2016, 07:23:50 AM

That is very cool... is it LSA rated?

Todd.

cruzziguzzi · « **Reply #27 on:** April 01, 2016, 12:18:34 PM »

Quote from: kirby1923 on April 01, 2016, 11:44:08 AM

No
As I remember the constant speed prop and retractable gear pulse top speed would disqualify from LSA.

This is not a kit plane either its scratch built.

:-)

Didn't notice that - the prop is a killer but I think wheels are OK, no?

We were looking at the ICON which has retractables but maybe it gets some kind of extra pass for being amphibian?

I'll have to make another pass at the rules.

Todd.

Chuck in Indiana · « **Reply #28 on:** April 01, 2016, 12:30:10 PM »

Quote from: cruzziguzzi on April 01, 2016, 12:18:34 PM

Didn't notice that - the prop is a killer but I think wheels are OK, no?

We were looking at the ICON which has retractables but maybe it gets some kind of extra pass for being amphibian?

I'll have to make another pass at the rules.

Todd.

First, it's a pretty big airplane. Seats pilot and 3 passengers. It would be over the weight limit before even looking at anything else. I seriously doubt it would pass the 45 mph stall speed reg. I don't know what it stalls at, but it's pretty nose high and moving along at a pretty good clip when touching down.

It's too fast on the top end, too. Not to mention the constant speed prop and retractable gear.
Nope, not even close.

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Author Topic: wedge shaped plane (Read 9865 times)

spreadeagle

Penderic

redrider

Penderic