Draftbook / Flying wings

The drafts (not in chronic order)

Using the same wing. But getting the pilot more enclosed. In the lower drawing, the dark areas are fabric. The clear areas are hard composites.

Trying to make a minimum cockpit for a footlaunched glider. The lower part could also be a skid for landing.

Same idea but pilot is seated lower to create more ground clearance for wing. Yes, it has become a duck shape.

I used a rather low aspect ratio wing here. Click picture to get the larger edition.

I made a lot of draft of pilots as much as possible in the wing. Here he is just under the spar. I am using the same landing skid here as being used in the South-African flying wing design Exulans. At this moment now i realise it will be a rather drag generating idea.

This idea evolved quickly on this page as a single tube to sit on (top left) with a side armrest with stick system in it to a double arm rest system and a hammock as seat or a harness and carry the glider like a backpack. I really like this idea. I do think i was inspired by the Monarch glider of Jim Marske. This glider is even more basic now. I repeat ... i like it!!!

My fear is always in that seated position that pilot will tripple over obstacle and fall with his legs being pulled under his body. If he has a backpackharness, this might lead to great injury. I guess now that a hammock would avoid that problem. But at the time of the drafts, i tried to create a more leg and spine saving system by placing the pilot on his belly. 

Here i work a bit more on that idea. The draft at the bottom of that page has a cover that drops and serves as a landing skid.

Same idea but with a more basic hanggliderwing. Double surface.

Now this design was only mentioned once in my draftbook. But ... it has maybe a future. Soooo basic. Love it! The pilot is seated with his eye line just under the wing. Just like in the SWIFT. The structure around him is also inspired by the cage of the SWIFT. A small engine at the front with folding prop might be enough to get this glider airborne and soar once at height. I was during drawing this draft concerned about how to get in the cockpit. Now i would say: EASY! The uuupersurface of the wing between front spar and rear spar is transparent and removable. You slide in from the top. Shoudl be possible. MAN, THIS THING IS SUPER BASIC. Just a central wheel to make it take off. During roll out you can use feet to keep wings level a bit. If canopy is totally enclosed, the panels next to feet can be bombbaydoors to make it possible to get legs outside. I have seen systems like that on totally enclosed recumbent bikes. So ... it should be possible to make that light weight.

Similar idea. But even easier to make. Woorden construction. Fuselage is a bit like HM14 of Henri Mignet. Rudders at wingtips. The height of the wingribs are running as a fin towards the rudder. Engine mounted just like HM14. On top of the fuselage in front of pilot.

Just trying to see how a pilot can be placed in different low aspect ratio's. Also keeping ground clearance in mind. The angles line is ground at a certain angle. Click picture to get the larger edition.

Haha, forget the upper draft in thsi page. Was working on a low aspect ratio idea. Hangglider low aspect ratio is not such a good idea. Other drafts use the wing that is drawn at left side. One seated, one prone pilot. Click picture to get the larger edition.

Here i try to combine a Dragontail (see my other Few Of My Thoughts pages). That tail should get in the turbulence when stall is near. It would loose its function as elevator because of the turbulence and nose will drop. Stall free in other words. Would it work???

Just before i drafted these i saw the Nurflugel book by Peter Selinger. The Horten HXa had the pilots running with the glider on their back. Here i try to make rolling editions. Not the same wing. I think it was a forward sweep wing with rudders at the wingtips. The draft at the right has two tubes and the pilot lays on hammock in between. Draft at left has a central tube and bended tube that connect to wing. I guess the right draft has more rigidity. But ... the right draft has that front wheel fork pointing at the pilots heart. Hmmm ... maybe better not a central wheel there.

In the previous draft i use a inverted U-steering stick. Here i say two ways of steering that stick. Top one is not ideal. Might trigger bad steering when rolling over bumpy hill downwards or when in turbulent air. It is easy to let one side go down during turbulence or bumps in rolling downhill. So i prefer the use of a different hinge to steer. See lower draft.

Using these skids i cannot roll of a hill, i can only land. Take off is by running. But ... it is a really very basic structure to house the pilot.

A variant to the same idea but with a composite frame. It are two tubes with the pilot in between. Pilot will lay in hammock or hangglider-sack.

Idea to use skid as tube to house stick system. Skid is U shaped like in Exulans hangglider project in South-Africa.

Exulans. A hangglider project from South-Africa.

For the next drafts, you first need to look at the Mitchellwing U2. The control-surfaces are seperate and hang under the trailing edge.

The Mitchellwing U-2 and B-10 uses stabilators for control. They have the function as elevons, but are mounted like a Junkers flap. I thought it might be possible that way to raise the stabilator for transport and get a rather short airplane which might fit sideways on trailers or in garageboxes. I know they are a bit of a drag generating devise, but ... they are good tools to avoid stall, i read.

Sideview of the same idea with stabilators. I placed prop in between wing and sabilators. It is a footlaunched airplane but when prop is stopped in horizontal way, you can land on skid and "tailwheel". While being footlaunched two supports hold the weight of the engine. Just like they do with the motorized harness Mosquito.

This idea has about the same wing, but here the pilot is recumbent in a pod which has been made as small as possible. It is a central nearly oval tube. Behind the pilot are struts to create rigidity and just in front of the buttocks of the pilot too. If you dismount stabilators and rudder, you get a veeery short structure. Transportable sideways and able to fit in garagebox, i guess. 

Similar idea but with a bit more fuselage. No longer a central tube. Click picture to get the larger edition. I noted here that it might have to much span to fit in garagebox.