The Flight of the Gossamer Condor tells the inspiring true story of history’s first successful human-powered flight. Renowned inventor Dr. Paul MacCready and his team were filmed creating the world-famous pedal-powered airplane as it happened.
Q. Why does MacCready make a model and take it to the swimming pool?
[MacCready] went so far as to make a mini model of the Condor, which he flew around in a swimming pool in order to better understand the effects of air mass on the square wing with respect to making turns.
Table of Contents
- Q. Why does MacCready make a model and take it to the swimming pool?
- Q. What was the design statement for the Gossamer Condor?
- Q. What were the main components materials of the Gossamer Condor?
- Q. How long did it take for the Gossamer Condor to be built?
- Q. Where was the Gossamer Albatross made?
- Q. When did the Gossamer Condor complete the Figure 8 mile long course successfully?
- Q. Who flew the Gossamer Albatross?
- Q. What was special about the Gossamer Albatross?
- Q. Who was the aerospace engineer behind the Gossamer Condor?
- Q. Who makes the albatross?
- Q. What is the smallest plane in the world?
- Q. Why is the albatross bad luck?
- Q. Can an albatross fly for a year without landing?
Q. What was the design statement for the Gossamer Condor?
Design Statement: To design an aircraft that is human powered which can sustain flight for a certain amount of time. Constraints: It must be human powered so other power source can be used to aid the pilot.
Q. What were the main components materials of the Gossamer Condor?
The Gossamer Condor is built around a large wing with a gondola for the pilot underneath and a canard control surface on a fuselage extension in front, and is mostly built of lightweight plastics with aluminum spars.
Q. How long did it take for the Gossamer Condor to be built?
A human-powered airplane. That was the challenge set forth by Henry Kremer in 1959. For 18 years, nobody could do it. But within six months of trying, Paul MacCready built and flew his Gossamer Condor (below).
Q. Where was the Gossamer Albatross made?
MacCready Gossamer Albatross
| Gossamer Albatross | |
|---|---|
| First flight | 1979 |
| Status | Gossamer Albatross I – Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, Virginia, USA Gossamer Albatross II – Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington, USA |
| Number built | 2 |
| Developed from | Gossamer Condor |
Q. When did the Gossamer Condor complete the Figure 8 mile long course successfully?
MacCready’s design went through 12 major prototypes and over 400 test flights before finally culminating on August 23, 1977 when Bryan Allen flew the Gossamer Condor into aviation history by completing the mile-long Kremer Prize figure-8 course in 6 minutes, 22 seconds.
Q. Who flew the Gossamer Albatross?
MacCready “Gossamer Albatross” On June 12, 1979, the Gossamer Albatross, with Bryan Allen as pilot, became the first human-powered aircraft to fly across the English Channel. The flight lasted 2 hours and 49 minutes and covered 36.2 kilometers (22.5 miles) between Folkestone, England, and Cap Gris Nez, France.
Q. What was special about the Gossamer Albatross?
On June 12, 1979, the Gossamer Albatross became the first fully human-powered aircraft to cross the English Channel. The 70-lb aircraft completed the 26-mile flight in 2 hours, 49 minutes, clinching the second prestigious Kremer Prize for Dr. Paul MacCready. Albatross test-flights began in the summer of 1978.
Q. Who was the aerospace engineer behind the Gossamer Condor?
Paul B. MacCready
Q. Who makes the albatross?
Grumman
Q. What is the smallest plane in the world?
The Starr Bumble Bee
Q. Why is the albatross bad luck?
An albatross flying around a ship in the middle of the ocean was an omen of storms, wind and bad weather to come. It was also very unlucky to kill it because sailors thought that the souls of deceased sailors inhabited the albatross.
Q. Can an albatross fly for a year without landing?
Albatrosses are masters of soaring flight, able to glide over vast tracts of ocean without flapping their wings. So fully have they adapted to their oceanic existence that they spend the first six or more years of their long lives (which last upwards of 50 years) without ever touching land.
