From an email that Rob just sent... Now I'm sure we all have ideas for what we would like in an airframe.

If you put it here I'll make sure he reads this thread.

The desert hawk is epp, and so are others being developed. We are producing airframes

for a major UK military contractor, its gone UAV crazy over here with a massive dedicated centre being built here in Bristol.

It would be good fun to create a package for amateur developers .

If you have a spec you would like, then let me know.

Regards Rob

Whilst flicking through the pages of a magazine, I came across....

The only down side for South Africa and in particular up here in the mountains is the size, probably can't lift a camera as well with a high density altitude.

I send an email off to Flying Wings asking for a bigger one and Robert Swynnerton very quickly replied that they were building one for our very purpose that would be available soon.

Called the Observer and I quote....

The Observer will be modular so you can have a conventional tail anddifferent payload configs, as you wish. It will look similar to the DessertHawk 1, seeRobert Swynnerton

Go here first. http://www.click2houston.com/investigates/14659066/detail.html

Is more being made of this than is necessary?? I wonder why the reporters spin did not point towards the environmental benefit of UAV's less gas than the helicopter. The newscopter that was chasing, is that not invading the privacy of some police officers on a private farm??

Newscopters falling from the sky constitute quite a danger to the public, as last years crash in Phoneix Arizona proved.

So is raising the privacy issue, the pot calling the kettle black. Whats newsroom rights for one, is police invasion for others.

But I certainly agree that since 911 many basic human rights and freedoms are being lost worldwide under the banner of anti terrorism. Many of them just plain dumb. If you have flown internationally recently you will know the pain that is the new liquids rule.

All liquids that can be picked up once your through the security gate in duty free. Perhaps the sale of clear plastic bags world wide has gone down, so something needed to be done to lift them.

What really worries me here is that UAV's are being shown in a sinister light. The ability of UAV's to do dangerous, dirty difficult jobs at a lower cost with less risk to life should be emphasized at every turn.

Otherwise everytime you take your Lego autopilot out to play in your black van wearing shades you might come under TV Helicopter scrutiny. Perhaps Lego should be banned, thats the answer. It clearly demonstrates an invasion of your neighbours privacy.

I don't care if I'm lost in the hills or out to sea and a UAV, blackhawk helicopter or Buck Rodgers in his space ship hove over the horizon to find me, just as long as I am found.

Its no secret that the UK CAA may impose restricts on aircraft less than 7KG in weight with UAV equipment onboard.

Heres an extract from a 2004 policy document.

This policy is applicable to all types of UAV

Systems, including those of novel design.

UAVs under 7kg mass fall within the Small

Aircraft definition of the Air Navigation

Order (ANO) [6] and are exempt from most

regulatory provisions. Such UAV Systems

are currently the subject of a further review.

by the UK-CAA and may be included within

this policy at a later date.

Civil Aviation Authorities are pulling standards together and the days of the amateur developer are probably numbered.

Newscopter pilots need not worry for their jobs as aviation grown ups have already spotted that the media would like UAV's and will probably close the loop before its even slightly opened.

Ho humm, suppose I must start my working day.

G

Well good old Google as ever comes up trumps...

http://www.rrcc.org/downloads.htm

http://pages.sbcglobal.net/limeybob/

http://www.ajdesigner.com/phpwinglift/wing_lift_equation_force.php

I'm sure there are many others that people know about.

Perhaps there should be a page of useful software here.

G

It would seem that being +30 at 4000' means something, which of course I already knew, but just what is the drop in performance on a 50 odd inch wing trainer??

What magic program or website could tell me that to lift lets say an extra 1KG of equipment at a density altitude of 7000' the aircraft would need to be X wingspan with Y power up front??

There must be something out there that will tell us such things.

As I walked into add this little bit, my wife said come and look at this, making its way across our dining room was a tiny mole snake, or thats what we think it was anyway.

I must be back in Africa!!!

Sorry if my blog posts are annoying some as they appear on the front page, very little hard core UAV and lots of off topic, but it should encourage some of the 270 other members to move me off the page ;-)

Gary Mortimer, now that the storm has passed.....