That's right. I don't think Jim Bede ever envisioned a jet-powered version of his design. That was done later by others. The original aircraft was intended to operate with an inexpensive 40-horsepower piston engine to keep the overall cost very low, so a small turbofan or turbojet would have been out of the question.
Are you not familiar with the dismal safety record of the BD-5, even after they increased the wingspan? The Pitts is a decent airplane, but the BD-5 is a widowmaker.
Jim Bede chose to take customer money for his 5000$ kits to develop the jet, hoping to get rich with the US military buying the jet for a much cheaper jet fighter trainer. He even sent out nice newsletters to my Dad who was so excited to finally build his own aerobatic airplane. When the US military branches rejected the BD5 Jet, Jim Bede filed bankruptcy and certainly never delivered the purchased BD5 kits! My Dad was so very disappointed! He never got an airplane.
Original aircraft kit sold for 2695 dollars, back in 1972, featured in popular mechanics, (cover) in that year eronca re introduced the champ factory built for $4995.00 two seats tandem ragwing
I always liked the auto gyros, my favourite being the xeon executive with it's luxurious interior and options plus with a 140 hp Rotax it cruses at around 125mph and it's actually cheaper to fly than it's less expensive models with smaller engines. But I like them all because they have a zero stall speed and they like bad weather. It's also pretty easy to make your own.
Much like the word ‘sheep,’ the term “aircraft” builds its plural without an -s. The etymology of ‘aircraft’ is not derived from an old word, but it does have a documented (modern) convention. It is because craft is a collective term and Old English Dictionary (OED) mentions that it might be originated as an elliptical expression (that includes nautical vessels). ‘Craft’ itself is used as ‘aircraft’ as well. OED includes the following explanation for the fifth definition of “craft”: V. Applied to boats, ships, and fishing requisites. These uses were probably colloquial with watermen, fishers, and seamen some time before they appeared in print, so that the history is not evidenced; but the expression is probably elliptical. The want in English of any general collective term for all sorts of ‘vessels for water carriage’ naturally made ‘craft’ a useful stop-gap term. For reference [OED]: ‘Craft’ Sense 9. a. collect. (const. as pl.) Vessels or boats. (a) originally only in small craft n. (b) Hence, without small, in same sense; later, in the general sense of vessels of all kinds for water carriage and transport. b. (with a and pl.) A small vessel or boat; any sailing or floating vessel. c. An aircraft or spacecraft. Sense 10. a. collect. Implements used in catching or killing fish; in mod. use chiefly in whale-fishery. ‘Craft’, is a nautical (sea going) word signifying all manner of lines, nets, hooks, &c. which serve for fishing; and because those that use the fishing trade use small vessels, they call all such little vessels ‘small craft’. The harpoons, hand-lances, and boat-spades, are usually called ‘craft’, and the other implements ‘gear’. However, OED mentions that the plural form ‘aircrafts’ is rare and there is one citation where ‘aircrafts’ is used: HIS WORLD-FAMED AIRCRAFTS 1903 Aeronautical Journal 7 81/1 OED also adds that the word can be understood, especially when used in the plural, to include other kinds of heavier-than-air machine, such as helicopters. The word was/in often preferred to the term ‘aeroplane’ or ‘airplane’ in official and military contexts. Ref. this military correspondence directive from WWII: Will you please make the following terminology effective in all British official correspondence: For ‘aeroplane’ the word ‘aircraft’ should be used. 1943 W. S. Churchill Telegram 15 June in Second World War (1952) V. 566
IIRC the Bumble Bee was named because it looks like its wings are too small to fly with. (There's an urban myth that a bumble bee's wings are scientifically too small to fly but it flies anyway.) When you actually look at it though, it's a biplane, so imagine it as a monoplane with wings twice as long... and as well as that, its wings are broad (front to back) so it actually has a lot more wing area than it looks like. Still, I bet it takes a helluva takeoff run to get up.
That Lewis and Clark BD-5 jet came to our airport for our yearly airshow several years back. Very small jet. The pilot was a very nice man. I talked with him for a good while.
I once built a model of the bumblebee and it flew best on its side about a 45 degree angle. Seemed to want to bite itself in the tail. Didn't have any problems landing though it still had the wiggles.
My F in law used part out airplanes. One he had was a super little plane called Teeny Steeny. It was probably a homebuilt one. But not by him. He was even too afraid to fly it. I've tried to find more info on it. But there isn't anything out there. Wingspan was like 8 feet tops.
Not trying to nitpick here as it was a great video but the word "airship" equates a rigid framed structure. For reference a Rigid Airship has a full frame, a semi-rigid has a partial frame (Bottom is trussed, top is soft) and a blimp is completely devoid of a frame whereas a balloon is, well, a balloon. So the first would be a balloon, or more specifically, a powered balloon alongside a blimp. Like the video a lot.
You missed the '80s "Little Bird" by Milt Hatfield. Based on the '30s Arup from Indiana, like them it was stall-proof with good speed on little power and 45 degree climb.
I was actually in on the build of a BD5 in Canada circa 1971. A company still in business had the dealership. The only difference was we constructed the aircraft using solid rivets vs pop rivets that the plans called for. The project was never completed and was sold to a private concern.
To: Jim Blalock, The Flyboard has a pair of boots very much like ski-boots that are bolted to it and the pilot secures himself into those boots, so he cannot "Fall off".
If this is a top ten list, why doesn't it go from small to smallest? And why were the Stits Baby Bird and Sky Baby left out? They should have been grouped near the Bumblebee. That said, the Leopard is one nice looking plane that sounds like it had some good numbers backing it up. It's a wonder it didn't make it to production.
Mosguito XE @ 2:40 "It depends on where you live but there are some variants that do not need a license to fly." And where might that be? I live in one of the highest rated places in the world so if I can take flight licenses and get flight hours elsewhere it's always a win win situation.
And not the end of WWII but after Korea. We didn't have B-36's in WWII and America barely had jet engined aircraft none of which seeing action until the Korean war.
Dear EAA Presenter, As you're voice-overing a specialist aircraft video, would it be too much to expect you to know that the plural of "aircraft" is "aircraft" and not "aircrafts"? REPLY
Are you mad? The Cavalon Aotu-Gyro is not small. We had one at our local airfield and with its 100hp Rotax engine it was one heavy, underpowerded piece of expensive junk that didn't manage to lift off on a warm day. In the same conditions I could easily take off in my 120kg SD1 Minisport, powered with a 28 hp Briggs&Stratton lawnmower-engine that propells this aircraft close to 100mph cruise speed. Look at it on my channel if you don't believe it.
The Goblin was designed during WW2, err no it wasn't, these aircrafts weren't even thought about until the B-36 was in service and the B-36 didn't fly until after the war, thou they did start designing the B-36 during the war as they needed aircrafts that could bomb Jerry from the US in case Britain, or airstrip 1 as it was know during WW2, fell and then they couldn't flies their aircafts no more, from Britains.
Would a Triplane version of 'Bumble Bee', 249 cm wingspan, be able to takeoff and land at 'regular' speeds, and be allowed to run on roads? Blessings +
I think the Cri Cri jet is probably the smallest twin jet engine plane. I believe the Bede BD5j is being built by someone else under a different name. www.bd-micro.com/
lots of reasons. Price tag, size make it able to be towed to the airport from home which is kept/ maintained in your garage. saves lots of money that way. probably really fun to fly too.
