DreamBird Flies Out Of My Head!

 

 DreamBird didn’t exist until a couple weeks ago, and it’s really just an exercise in aeronautical fantasy.  I have these kinds of thoughts.  A lot.  And sometimes, a thought aches so bad that it has to crawl out of my head and be seen. 

 I think great aircraft design is really about stimulating the senses.  If all we really want is an airborne conveyance to quickly and/or cheaply move our body from point A to point B, then I think we’ve missed the wonder of machines that can fly.  Great airplanes get in your head and they don’t let go.  Truly great airplanes demand a response from you.  And they get it.

 So, DreamBird is meant to be a mix of the past with the present.  As I envision it, it’s a roomy two-seat side by side with a large baggage area.  I have specifically designed it with the pilot’s eyes forward of the leading edge of the wing for greater visibility.  There are challenges and trade-offs for sure to accomplish this, but the ultimate goal is not the maximum in efficiency, but rather the well-rounded, highly satisfying experience for the people inside.

 And speaking of well rounded… a radial engine is a must.  The Rotec 9 cylinder R3600 radial that makes 150hp would likely be well suited to the airframe.  Flat engines are dandy, but I have never ever heard a flat engine sound soul-stirringly beautiful.  Every round engine I’ve ever heard does sound that beautiful.  Again, it’s about exciting the senses.  Creating a machine and experience that you can’t take your mind off of. 

 I felt compelled to put this design out for others to see, largely cuz I’m interested to hear your response.  I don’t have any serious plans to bring DreamBird to life, but if I happen to get rich anytime soon, well then maybe!  So please, leave me a comment, tell me if it moves you like it moves me.  And keep in mind that this is really just a napkin drawing that was thrown together quickly, it’s not meant to represent a lot of deep thinking thus far : )

Caption Contest #28: Hang On! Ends Wednesday 2-3-10 At 9PM EST

 I just can’t imagine why some people think skydivers are a little messed up in the head… well ok, maybe I can find one or two reasons.  I’ve got 110 jumps myself, so I guess I can relate to the crazy guys in this pic : )

 I’m guessing this will be a pretty easy pic to come up with some funny captions for, and now’s the time to caption up my friends. The best caption will put the winner in line for $20 in AirPigz funny money.  (line forms wayyy over there : ) 

 You've got til Wednesday evening at 9pm EST to submit captions, then I’ll pick the 5 best captions and put ’em in a poll for everyone to vote on. 

 The Rules:

1) Max of 3 submissions per person

2) Submissions go in the 'comments' area 

3) Game ends Wednesday at 9pm EST 

4) Keep it clean!

 Anyone who wants to cast their vote will be able to after the poll goes up around an hour after the 9pm Wednesday submission deadline.

 We'll vote for 24 hours, til 9pm EST on Thursday. Then the winner will be posted  Friday morning 2-5-10.  Have fun, and hang in there!

CoolPix - Racers: Rare Bear In The Sunshine At Reno 2009

(click pic for hi-res)

 Another new CoolPix category, this time it’s ‘Racers’... and what a sweet racer this is!  This is a pic I took at Reno 2009 as the sun made the colors in the new paint come alive.  I’ve been a huge fan of this airplane for many years, and I think this new scheme takes the airplane to a whole new level.  Be sure to click the pic to see it big and up close.  This is definitely desktop material : )

 The clear air and bright sunshine make the Reno Air Races an excellent event to get perfect pictures of amazing airplanes.  This fact alone should be enough to convince you to make plans to be at the races in September.

 Rare Bear has had a long and interesting race history that began in 1969 as ‘Able Cat’, followed by the name ‘Phoenix l’ in 1971.  It didn’t pick up the current name until 1980.  I’m guessing she’ll be Rare Bear forever now.

 The airplane looked hot in the new paint, but the engine wasn’t quite up to the task in 2009.  The crew, along with John Penney as pilot were able to snag second place in the championship race, helped by the fact that VooDoo had to mayday before the end of the race.  In theory, 2010 should be a stellar year for unlimited racing with a stronger Bear, scorchin’ hot P-51’s in VooDoo and 2009 Gold winner Strega, and there might be several surprise contenders show up as well.  Awesome stuff indeed. 

 To learn more about the Bearcat with the cool paint, check out the official Rare Bear website, as well as this indepth article at AirSpaceMag.com.  The Bear is definitely back… watch out Reno 2010!

Video: Stunning, Life-Changing Ride To The Edge Of Space In The U-2

 I mean this in the nicest possible way… but if you don’t watch this video, you’re crazy.  I know it’s 11 minutes long, but it is sooo worth it.

 My interest in the 1950’s era Lockheed U-2 spy plane has been enhanced by my recent podcast interview with Jill Rutan Hoffman.  Her husband Lars Hoffman is a Colonel in the Air Force and has a lot of experience flying this unique, ultra high altitude aircraft.  That doesn’t mean he’s an old and crusty guy tho because the U-2 is still a totally operational aircraft to this day… well over 50 years after the first U-2 flew!  They’ve even updated the cockpit in the last 8 years to all glass with a range of additional upgrades that improve capability while also reducing pilot workload. 

 The current plan is for the airplane to remain operational til at least 2014.  As was mentioned in the podcast with Jill, I might get the chance to do an interview with Lars before long on what it’s like flying the Dragon Lady.  Hopefully that comes together as it will be very interesting to better understand, from the pilot’s perspective, the challenges that go with flying 15 miles high.

 This video is a segment from the program James May on the Moon that aired last year on BBC.  You might already know that James May is one of the guys from the crazy-cool car show Top Gear.  I didn’t know anything about this special program that looks back at the moon landings 40 years later, so this awesome segment was all a surprise to me.  This is the part of the program where James goes for a ride in a two-seat U-2.

 I actually found the link to the video this morning on Jill’s twitter page (@LookingSkyward) and thought that it might be interesting to watch since I had this increased interest in the U-2.  OMGosh… it’s way more than interesting!  I realize it might not touch you the way it did me, but watching this was a very powerful experience.  The view of earth from 70,000+ feet, at the edge of space, isn’t just beautiful and awesome - it has the ability to change you.  You are so far removed from the tiny, meaningless details of everyday life and so thoroughly confronted with thoughts of what it means to exist.  It can boggle the mind and challenge the heart.

 I know it’s not just me that feels it, as it’s clear that the ride had a real impact on James to be sure.  I chose this version of the video on YouTube because it includes the very Top Gear-like intro which I think adds to the experience.  It ends as James is exiting the airplane, but stops just before he says some very powerful words that can be found in the last 30 seconds on the versions that don’t include the cool intro… he says, as he’s walking down the portable stairway, “it’s just incredible… if everybody could do that once, you’d completely change the face of global politics... religion... education.  Everything.”

 This amazing video of a U-2 ride is truly a fabulous experience, and I hope it touches you in some special way.  It moves me to add this line from the poem High flight:

 And, while with silent lifting mind I've trod

The high untresspassed sanctity of space,

Put out my hand and touched the face of God.

Caption Contest #27 Winner: Tunnel Vision?

 The winning caption for this extremely odd circular wing thingy (apparently from Belarus) was submitted by 'Tony' - great job!  You're now officially on the AirPigz funny money list - hopefully that will really mean something some day : )

 I did a little research but couldn't find any info to confirm if this thing actually flew.  If anyones knows more about it, I think we'd all be interested to know.

 Watch for a new wacky pic for contesting captions coming next Monday morning!

Ultimate Flying Machines! Peregrine Falcon & Goshawk Onboard Video

 Sometimes we think we're pretty hot pilots... or that maybe we've seen (or maybe even flown) the ultimate flying machine, but I've felt for years that the birds God has created make even the best of man and machine look like rookies.  Have you ever really thought thru what it takes for even a common everyday bird to land on a swaying tree branch when the winds are gusting to 30mph?  The mastery of aerodynamics and the processing power required are nothing short of a miracle!

 This video from the BBC goes way beyond your common everyday birds for sure. Absolutely awesome images from a camera mounted on the back of a Peregrine Falcon and a Goshawk that give you a bird's eye view of some very extreme flying.  All I can say is: Wow!

AirPigz Podcast #6: Interview With 'First Flights' Author Jill Rutan Hoffman

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 Jill Rutan Hoffman's dad is test pilot Dick Rutan, her uncle is aircraft designer Burt Rutan, and her husband Lars Hoffman is an Air Force Colonel with lots of experience in the U-2 spy plane... Jill is very well connected to the world of aviation!  In this interview, we talk a lot about her recent book, 'First Flights' - available at Amazon, and how all of the proceeds from it go to scholarships to send young people to aviation or space camps.  We also talk briefly about her first book ‘Oshkosh Memories’ - also available at Amazon. 

 It’s a fun interview that also looks at what it was like for Jill ‘growing up Rutan’.  We talk some about the early days of the Rutan brothers work with experimental aircraft, including the world record setting Voyager from the 80’s, which began like many other great projects… as a napkin drawing at a small restaurant!  There’s also a little talk about the current space project that Burt has been working on, including an interesting behind-the-scenes detail about the beginning of it all.

 In the intro before the interview, I explain a little about why AirPigz was on hold thru the fall, and how things are going now that the site has been rebuilt and re-launched on the squarespace.com platform. 

 I also give a quick update on the building of my updated Volksplane experimental airplane that I call Project VP.  If you’re interested in supporting the project by buying a special PVP t-shirt, check out the recent post ’Project VP Hibernation To End Soon’.

 And, I should have another podcast out real soon : )

Red Bull Stratos: Supersonic Skydive!

 Watch this video and then go check out RedBullStratos.com.  Upcoming 'supersonic skydive' from 120,000 feet.  It's kind of a big deal.  More coming soon.

Caption Contest #27: Tipless Wing - Ends Wednesday 1-27-10 At 9PM EST

 Just like the wing on this odd airplane, the caption contest just keeps on going and going : )

 That means it's time for you to come up with some wild and wacky captions to see if you can get in on winning some of that (still mythical) $20 in AirPigz funny money.  It should be pretty fun to see what y'all come up with on this one!  

 You’ve got til Wednesday evening at 9pm EST to submit captions, then I’ll pick the 5 best captions and put ’em in a poll for everyone to vote on. 

 The Rules:

1) Max of 3 submissions per person

2) Submissions go in the 'comments' area 

3) Game ends Wednesday at 9pm EST 

4) Keep it clean!

 Anyone who wants to cast their vote will be able to after the poll goes up around an hour after the 9pm Wednesday submission deadline.

 We'll vote for 24 hours, til 9pm EST on Thursday. Then (unless we have to have another tie-breaker!) the winner will be posted Friday morning 1-29-10.  Have fun!

Caption Contest #26 Has A Winner - After A Special Tie-Breaker Vote!

 Lynda from @GirlsWithWings is really starting to find the sweet spot in Caption Contest writing... she's won 2 of the last 3!  It's hard to tell tho if that comes from having a sharp and clever wit, or if she simply has too much time on her hands.  Just kidding!  Great job Lynda : )

 More fun and crazy Caption Contesting will rise from the deep on Monday Morning - don't miss it!