MarcS: Ah. Explains a lot, like why the stall out with the first heavy prototype was a controlled one etc :) I think the reason they did not add the vertical stabilizer in the first plance, is that they where aiming for as close to the original as possible. And last time I checked seagulls don't have a rudder.. :) If you look at the tail it is shaped like a inverted v tail, to give you some directional stability. But a real seagull controls it's flight my using the whole body, so I guess there is not enough movement available to recreate that in this model.
Good video. On the first takeoff at 11:38 I gasped over the realism.
Even the best video flights seemed like it was a little over weight. Li-Poly and CF still isn't good enough to beat nature? Just barely though... I've heard good things are on the horizon for batteries. The future is bright.
The person with the radio is an R/C pilot full time :-) (He is not a FESTO employee) He was the inventor of indoor flight nearly 15 years back, in the time before brushless and lipo... And has made a business out of that...
And by the way, when they say they are experts in aerodynamics and stuff, why are they surprised that an airplane without a vertical stabilizer does not fly straight?
The person with the radio controller is definitively a R/C pilot in his spare time. Who else would have a tube of UHU poor and a sheet of depron at hand to quickly improvise a tail surface. :)
The only difference between guys who get paid to do it & hobbyists is these guys dress up & sit in a conference room & have German accents. Disappointing that the V tail wasn't enough.
Comments
Good video. On the first takeoff at 11:38 I gasped over the realism.
Even the best video flights seemed like it was a little over weight. Li-Poly and CF still isn't good enough to beat nature? Just barely though... I've heard good things are on the horizon for batteries. The future is bright.
John,
The person with the radio is an R/C pilot full time :-) (He is not a FESTO employee)
He was the inventor of indoor flight nearly 15 years back, in the time before brushless and lipo... And has made a business out of that...
And by the way, when they say they are experts in aerodynamics and stuff, why are they surprised that an airplane without a vertical stabilizer does not fly straight?
....but its 3D CG!
That is a really neat video.
CG looks to be a little too far back....