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The speed to fly is the optimum speed through sinking or rising air mass to achieve either the furthest glide, or fastest average cross-country speed. [1] Most speed to fly setups use units of either airspeed in kilometers per hour (km/h) and climb rate in meters per second (m/s), or airspeed in knots (kn) and climb rate in feet per minute (ft ...
Paul Beattie MacCready Jr. (September 25, 1925 – August 28, 2007) was an American aeronautical engineer. He was the founder of AeroVironment and the designer of the human-powered aircraft that won the first Kremer prize .
The aircraft was designed and built by a team led by Paul B. MacCready, a noted American aeronautics engineer, designer, and world soaring champion. Gossamer Albatross was his second human-powered aircraft, the first being the Gossamer Condor, which had won the first Kremer prize on August 23, 1977, by completing a 1-mile (1.6 km)-long figure-eight course.
The first Kremer prize of £50,000 was won on 23 August 1977 by Dr. Paul MacCready when his Gossamer Condor, piloted by Bryan Allen, was the first human-powered aircraft to fly a figure eight around two markers one half mile apart, starting and ending the course at least 10 feet (3.0 m) above the ground. [3]
Although slow, cruising at only 11 mph (18 km/h), it achieved that speed with only 0.35 hp (0.26 kW). [20] The second Kremer prize of £100,000 was won on June 12, 1979, again by Paul MacCready, when Bryan Allen flew MacCready's Gossamer Albatross from England to France: a straight distance of 35.82 km (22 miles 453 yards) in 2 hours, 49 minutes.
Paul MacCready Jr. Two Kremer speed challenges won, doing 1500 m in 163.28 seconds on 18 July 1984 and 143.08 seconds on 2 December 1984. Bird Ornithopter: UK: Ornithopter: Bryn Bird: Two prototypes built, but no record of any flights. Bliesner 1 to 3: USA: 1978: Wayne T. Bliesner: Unsuccessful precursors to Bliesners more successful efforts.
The first version, known by MacCready as the Pasadena version, was a proof-of-concept aircraft which flew only once, in the parking lot of the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. The first aircraft carrying the name Gossamer Condor was known as the Mojave version , without pilot fairings and other niceties, flown at Mojave airport by MacCready's sons on 26 ...
In 1954, Paul MacCready wrote about a sinking speed correction for a total energy venturi. MacCready stated, "In still air...a glider has a different sinking speed at each airspeed...it would be nicer if the variometer automatically added the sink rate, and thus showed the vertical air motion instead of the vertical glider motion.