The Moving Axis AirCraft Simulator was our popular 2008 research project that combined a moving base flight simulator with a virtual reality headset. We learned a lot from the project, but MAACS may have one last experiment to perform.
During construction, we made about 20 video logs that detailed the designs and design changes along the way. It shows the gadgets and techniques we tried, the tests and the trials. I am considering publishing all the videos in a 20 episode YouTube series. This series will show the public the behind-the-scenes story of the MAACS project for the first time ever.
Things don't go smoothly all the time in this series. There is a lot of trial and error. A lot of ideas we were originally excited about, get tossed after they are found unworkable. My hope is that this series will inspire people to experiment, to try, to create and to accept the inevitable failures along the way. I want to show that it's ok to try a lot of things, keep what works and learn from the things that didn't work.
The Aviation Fun Zone will be totally deleted from the Internet on, say, April 21st or so. I just learned that the way I created those web pages is bad for our Google pagerank and other things. So if you need a paper airplane with pirate markings on it, or if you want to watch Battle of the X-Planes, or if you want to play Time Fighter, do it before 04/21/2009.
Each one of those pages is almost identical to the others except for slightly different content. For example, each paper airplane page is the same except for a link to a different paper airplane print out. Likewise, each movie page is the same, but with a different embedded movie. Same with the video games. You can read more here about why that's bad.
After North Korea's launch last week of the Taepodong-2 rocket, supreme leader Kim Jong-Il has announced plans to attach rockets to the Moon and tow it back to North Korea where it will be put on display. Video from The Onion:
Follow the crew of the massive aircraft carrier USS Nimitz during a grueling six month war-time deployment to the Persian Gulf. A team of documentary filmmakers embedded with the crew reveal the intimate and honest reality of the sailors, pilots and officers. CARRIER shows how these Americans navigate personal conflicts around their family, faith, duty, patriotism and individual roles in war.
The series was originally broadcast on Public Television Stations. You can see all 10 episodes online free at this link. Here is a short clip from Episode 5:
The summer air show season is fast approaching. Red Star vs. the Dragon is an entertaining air show act that adds a bit of melodrama and character to the summer skies. The show consists of the boldly painted L-29 Red Star and a BAC 167 Strikemaster painted up like a really pissed-off dragon. The best part is that one of the pilots plays up his part as a former-communist-block character.
There is an inevitable clash of ego and insults and the peaceful air show demonstration reverts to a staged jet dogfight to the delight of the audience. You know this is a heck of a lot better than hearing Bette Midler’s “Wing Beneath My Wings”……..again!
The here video shows some footage of the act, but no sound. Apparently, those naughty boys didn’t have permission to use their chosen music, and YouTube muted the video. Bad dragon!
The Easy Airliner Cockpit enclosure is a new Do-It-Yourself Flight Simulator project. People love to simulate airliners with their flight sims and the cockpit enclosure makes it a fun immersive experience. The project includes two modified keyboards with buttons that correspond to the Mode Control Panel and the overhead panel...you don't have to memorize a bunch of key commands, they're all labeled for you.
The keyboard mods also have new overlays that make the panels look like a CRJ700, a Boeing 737, or an Airbus A320...the default airliners in FSX.
Customers can instantly download the DIY videos and instruction manuals from DIYflightsims.com. Customers save money because the company doesn't manufacture or ship the products. The materials for this DIY project are already in most people's home town on the shelves at Home Depot, Lowe's or the local hardware store.
The DIY Easy Airliner Cockpit is made from plastic PVC pipe, Styrofoam insulation, a basement window well cover and a couple of standard computer keyboards. It can fit one, two or three monitors. The instructions show you how to adjust the enclosure to fit.
See more pictures and a video of the DIY Easy Airliner Cockpit and the gray modified keyboards here.
I never thought that a video of RC airplanes could be beautiful, but this one is. Both planes have tiny onboard cameras that show a pilots-eye view from the tiny aircraft. It’s called First Person Video (FPV).
But this video has much more than just FPV. It has air-to-air footage from an RC camera plane as it follows an RC seaplane. RC air-to-air video? Has that ever been done before?
The RC seaplane is a scale replica of a Blohm & Voss BV 138. Its on-board camera is inside its tiny cockpit and the camera moves as a pilot would move his head during flight.
Bonus: the seaplane takes off from a pristine lake in the early morning hours. The sun is glinting off the water and the surrounding landscape is green and beautiful.
You can see the Space Shuttle Discovery's launch tonight at 8:20 pm CDT (01:20 UTC). We are streaming live online video from NASA TV: watch it here free.
This important mission will complete construction of the large solar panel array on the International Space Station (ISS) and make it the second brightest object in the evening sky. The ISS will be even brighter than Venus. After completion of this mission, the ISS will be even easier to see with the naked eye. Look here for a live graphic of the ISS's position and instructions on how to see it.
Are people more interested in Microsoft's Flight Simulator X for home computers or actual, real flight training?
I am fascinated with Google Trends, I think it's a thought-provoking resource. Type in two or three or more search terms and see how the number of searches varies over time. For example, type in "air shows" and you will see a seasonal peak in the summer flying months, and little in the off-season. Type the search term"online" and you see that people are increasingly looking for more and more things online.
Is this a good measure of a population's interest level in different topics?
Try "flight school" or any variation of that phrase. The results show a waning interest over time. That's no surprise if you are familiar with the FAA civil pilot statistics. Also try the search term "FSX" for Flight Simulator X. We see FSX was non-existant until mid-2006 when it was unveiled. At that time, interest in it skyrockets. For about a year the search volume for FSX is close to the search volume for flight school. Then, in 2008, FSX pulls ahead. More people are searching for a home flight simulator game than they are real flight training.
Some hoaxes never die, especially if they are accompanied with good photographs and are delivered in an email from your friends. Here’s an example:
The plane in these pictures is still officially the 'Air Vehicle Number 1', a prototype, on board the USS GeorgeWashington CVN-73 for catapult fit checks. Not exactly still Top Secret but certainly not yet made public.
It will be known as the F/A-37. Although specs are classified, it is believed to be Mach 3.5 (top speed in the Mach 4 range), super-cruise stealth fighter/bomber/interceptor with approximately a 4,000nmrange. Awesome!
Check out the Navy test pilot in the cockpit of the F/A-37...LT. Kara Wade... Go girl!
Our compliments to Lt. Kara Wade, she looks so much like Jessica Biel. Well, it is Jessica Biel. The F/A-37 is the fictitious airplane from the 2005 movie “Stealth.” The US Navy allowed director Rob Cohen to film on board the USS Abraham Lincoln. Here’s a press release from the Navy, and here's the movie trailer:
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The Navy’s cooperation in the making of this film may remind you of the Top Gun effect we mentioned in a previous post. Heroic military movies have a positive effect on recruitment numbers.
Jay and Megan are living their childhood dreams of becoming F-14 Tomcat fighter pilots in the Navy. This film follows their harrowing two year journey through pilot training and simulated dogfights, night landings on aircraft carriers and finally, active duty combat in Iraq.
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I just can't stop thinking about this thing. Combine the uber-tech mystique of a jet pack with a relaxing day at the lake, and toss in a little overdose of AWESOME. I would love to “fly” one of these things.
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For one moment, NASA had the attention of the entire world. That moment was in 1969 when Neil Armstrong set foot on the Moon. Today, space travel to low Earth orbit is relatively routine and NASA finds itself in a confounding Catch-22: if an organization’s goal is to make an activity safe and routine, then the organization will attract the most attention only when there’s a terrible accident.
As of this writing, the Space Shuttle has successfully flown to space 123 times. It has failed twice. Many people can tell you about the failures of the Space Shuttles Challenger and Columbia, but they know little about NASA’s other successful missions. That’s not good when you’re a government agency competing for scarce funding.
Why did space travel capture the imaginations of so many people during the 1960’s, but not in the first decade of the 21st century? What would help?
Many things could help. One example may come from the Mars Society. The society operates two remote locations known as the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) and the Flashline Mars Analog Research Station (FMARS). Each one looks like a space landing vehicle on the barren Mars landscape (actually the Utah desert and Canadian Arctic). Volunteer crews run week-long missions at the stations and do the things that Mars astronauts would do. They even have faux space-suits for extra-vehicular activities (EVA) to explore the landscape around the lander.
They also blog and post videos on YouTube. I found one of these YouTube videos, contacted the author, Ryan Kobrick, who was on a 100 day tour of duty at the FMARS hab in 2007. As the weeks went by, I checked the crew blogs to see what they had been researching, and to see new pictures and videos of their adventure. Occasionally I sent a message or question about the mission to Ryan, and he always responded.
This is Ryan’s video tour of the FMARS habitat:
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Later, the Space Shuttle Endeavor blasted off to complete mission STS 119, and I found myself more interested in the FMARS crew than the real astronauts on the Shuttle and the International Space Station. I felt connected to the FMARS crew because of the two-way communication I had with them.
What if there were more than two Mars analog research stations? What if there were hundreds all over the world and sending kids to Mars camp was as common as summer camp? Imagine the parents attending a mock space launch, and then keeping in touch with their kids via webcam, then attending a simulated landing and graduation. How many people would start to really get interested in NASA? How many voters and legislators would start thinking about NASA again?
This game is frantic, but a lot of fun. It's like too much caffeine and sugar. Use arrows to control your 'space-plane' Z and X are for guns and missiles
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This video provides an inside look at how pilots and crew plan and execute a flyover for NFL football games. One of the goals is to time the flyover to occur at the final note of the national anthem.
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We experimented with virtual reality technology for flight simulator. We ended up with a beautiful virtual reality helmet that works pretty well. The idea of virtual reality (VR) is quite tempting. Imagine being immersed in a different world with realism rivaling our own. Is today’s technology good enough to transport you to that other world? We investigated.
We started with a stock VR headset, the Vuzix VR920 which includes the display, the view tracker and speakers. We hacked and modified the headset until it became the finished VR helmet you see in the video. The video shows the evolution of the project.
A full transcript of the video and more info on the Vuzix VR920 is at this page on our website.
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We investigated a video that apparently shows an airplane successfully landing after losing a wing. The video was a hoax. A clothing company attempted a viral marketing campaign, and this video was the result.
The video was fake, but the question remains – is such a thing physically possible? We’ve all seen aerobatic planes making knife-edge passes at air shows. Is it possible for an airplane to make a knife-edge landing after losing a wing? Well, kind of.
The airplane would have to fly at a slower speed for its landing approach. Therefore, it would need much more engine thrust. Is such a thrust-to-weight ratio available in today’s aerobatic planes? I’m not sure, but I do know it exists in the world of radio-controlled aircraft. Keep in mind, some of these RC planes are one-third the scale of the planes they replicate.
We have three example videos that show one-wing landings by large-scale RC planes. All three videos are genuine, and demonstrate amazing skill. The three videos have a total of 214,000 views on YouTube as of this writing. Are you entertained?
BONUS: The discussion of the one-wing landing caught the attention of the traditional aviation media, even though the talk is still theoretical. Peter Garrison wrote about it in the March 2009 issue of Flying magazine.
It’s so much better than NASCAR or even the Red Bull Air Races. Rocket-powered airplanes will race against each other in real time for live audiences. Folks at home can watch too on TV or streaming internet. This will be a lot more entertaining than the Red Bull Air Races in which the planes take turns, one at a time, through a timed race course.
The airplanes of choice for the Rocket Racing League are heavily modified Velocities from Velocity Aircraft. The Velocity already has a futuristic appearance due to the pusher engine and the composite construction. The rocket racer teams replace the standard piston engine with a 2000-pound thrust rocket engine that gulps liquid oxygen and kerosene (or ethanol).
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The competitions are unique in that they will not need a lot of infrastructure like sports stadiums or race tracks. A Rocket Race can be hosted by any existing medium-sized airport. The Federal Aviation Administration has approved 20 locations so far.
The league expects 10 rocket racers to be ready for the 2010 season.
The Rocket Racing League was founded by Indy 500 champion team owner Granger Whitelaw and Dr. Peter Diamandis who founded the X Prize foundation. The X Prize paved the way for Burt Rutan’s SpaceShipOne team to blast two civilian astronauts into space.
We got a chance to talk briefly with Dr. Diamandis at AirVenture. What a thrill!
Two immediate notes about this classic: it’s a black and white movie, and the B-52 bombers are still flying today!!
The US Library of Congress considered Stanley Kubrick’s dark comedy about the Cold War as culturally significant and preserved it in the National Film Registry…just about the time the Cold War ended.
Much of the movie takes place in the War Room and an Air Force Base, but it also follows the flight of a B-52 crew led by Slim Pickens as Major T.J. “King” Kong. You can even see a young James Earl Jones as the bombardier.
Many of the exterior flying sequences show a primitive shot of a simple model airplane. It’s a little annoying that such a great movie uses a trite little toy in its special effects. Or maybe that’s the point. Maybe we’re supposed to see this one toy airplane as the fulcrum between peace and mutually assured destruction.
Anyway, it would have been cool if Kubrick could have ordered the B-52 exterior to be re-shot with modern special effects as George Lucas did with the original Star Wars series.
On the other hand, the bomb-drop scene could not be any better. It’s hilarious and horrific and impossible to forget.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Peter Seller’s stellar performance in three different roles: a British officer, the American president and Dr. Strangelove. George C. Scott is awesome, as always.
Also known as, "How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb."
The people that developed the world’s oldest and most successful flight simulator franchise abruptly lost their jobs this week. Microsoft cut the entire flight simulator game development staff (Aces Studio) in layoffs that will leave 5000 employees jobless over the next 18 months. More about the layoffs here and here.
We extend our encouragement to those talented people that put so much creativity and effort into this software and brought fun and learning to so many pilots and would-be pilots all over the world. So now what? We would hope that our fallen comrades at the Aces Studio are looking ahead with optimism. Many comments on various flight sim forums and blogs are gloomy and short-sided. Some readers assume this is the end of the hobby. They’re wrong. Man has been fascinated with flight for at least 5000 years, according to Egyptian hieroglyphs. The fascination will live and so will this hobby.
I imagine that many of the energetic and clever former Microsoft employees will continue to be energetic and clever for someone else, or go into business for themselves creating excellent add-ons for flight simulator. The add-on industry for flight simulator is huge. Many companies build excellent aircraft that the purchaser downloads and installs into their existing flight simulator program.
Aircraft are not the only add-ons for flight simulator. Other ex-Microsoft employees may work to develop enhanced ground scenery, water textures, roads, bridges, animation, improved flight dynamics and improved Artificial Intelligence traffic in the air and on the ground. Others may script new elaborate missions and multi-player competitions.
How many more great add-ons will be available as freeware in the future as ex-developers become part of the flight sim fan base? How will the Virtual Airlines benefit?
FSX will still be a hearty piece of software for a long time. Let’s not forget that most of us do not have fast enough computers to run FSX in its full glory will all the options turned on and detail sliders at maximum. Mark Avey has some great observations about this.
This is not the end of Flight Simulator. I believe it is a de-centralization of its continued evolution. The Aces Studio developers still love Flight Simulator as much as we do, but now they’ve joined the fan base. The gene pool of flight sim enthusiasts just got richer.
Today we "honor" one craptastic turd-sandwich of a flying move, Iron Eagle. It stars Jason Gedrick as the one-dimensional cocky youth and Academy Award winner Louis Gossett Jr. who was mis-cast as the one decent actor in the film.
There are some good flying sequences, but not much of a plot or decent actors to hold this movie together. Basically, the kid’s dad is kidnapped by terrorists. Gedrick and Gossett’s characters steal a couple of F-16’s, then blow up some stuff and somehow that helps.
Iron Eagle was released today, 23 years ago, and somehow spawned three humdrum sequels. Louis Gossett Jr. is in EVERY SINGLE SEQUEL. Why does he afflict himself with this series?
Fly with the mouse, left click to shoot. Press Space Bar to drop bombs. Bonus: you start off flying a Davinci-style ornithopter!!
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Carl Fredricksen is a grumpy old guy that spent his life dreaming of exploring the world, but never managed to make it happen. Enter Russell, an 8 year old Cub Scout and an unlikely twist of fate that launches them both skyward to encounter far-away lands, jungle creatures and sneaky villains. Release date: May 29, 2009
This reminds me of a true story that my grade-school principal told me about a man who attached helium balloons to his lawn chair and went flying. After a harrowing descent and landing, he emerged unhurt, but was later fined by the Federal Aviation Administration.
I wonder if the FAA will fine our heros in the Disney version.
Dave and Val Powers experiment with radio-controlled airplanes and post videos of their test flights. Now they’ve achieved rock-star status in the world of RC aviation, and here's the proof:
Their YouTube videos have over 10 million views. Their videos are viewed over 70,000 times per day. Their channel ranks at #83 of the most watched channels of all time. Those are serious numbers.
Why so popular? It helps that Dave and Val are attractive and live in a fashionable part of the world: Southern California. More importantly, Dave tirelessly experiments with the aerodynamics and control systems of his creations. Dave answers questions about his RC planes on live webcam once per week. ~Matt Thomas
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Every once in a while I meet someone who will ask if I fly into the "Danger Zone" as Kenny Loggins apparently does. Like many pilots I cringe at being associated with the movie due to its factual inaccuracies and shlocky melodrama.
Some examples that come to mind: * Top Gun is a training school for advanced fighter weapons deployment and tactics. It is not an ego-charged contest to best the instructors or each other. * The Navy does not actually employ leggy civilian contractors to teach pilots about enemy fighters. * There is no MiG-28. * Maverick's record of rule-breaking would result in a dismissal, not a simple tongue-lashing. * Leather flying jackets are really hot in the summer. * Rubber dog poop is not transported by air from Hong Kong. It is probably shipped cheaply via ocean container vessel.
And what about the deadly "flat spin?" Interestingly, the early years of the F-14 program were blemished by the aircraft's inability to recover from a flat spin. Subsequent modifications to the F-14 made the flat spin less likely. Score one for the facts.
Did Top Gun have any redeeming qualities? For many it was simply a fun movie with a catchy soundtrack that felt comfortably at home in the year 1986. But there was something much more. The movie did have a real-world influence on aviation.
Consider the "Top Gun Effect" as excerpted from http://www.opendemocracy.net/arts-Film/article_369.jsp
But by the middle of the 1980s, public hostility to the military was thawing. “Top Gun was a watershed picture,” remembers Strub. Dr Suid goes further. “Top Gun completed the rehabilitation of the military and made the Gulf War possible,” he insists. “Without it, I don’t think most Americans would have thought that we could win in the Gulf.”
For the Navy as well as at the box office, the film enjoyed phenomenal success. Recruitment figures went up 500%. “So now there are all these poor kids stuck on aircraft carriers in the Indian Ocean who hate me,” jokes Tony Scott, Top Gun’s British Director. The film marked a new entente between the Hollywood industry and the Department of Defense. Top Gun’s production costs would have doubled without naval assistance.
So what is the state of aviation 20 years later? What does all this mean to us? If a movie can inspire youths to flock to military aviation, can a movie help bolster the ranks of General Aviation pilots? Do we need another Top Gun but with a GA twist to it? Some kind of movie just as schlocky, sexy, corny and factually inaccurate as Top Gun - but popular. It would have to be popular. Top Gun was a "blockbuster" as it is defined in the modern world.
Would that help? "I could tell you, but I'd hafta kill you."
During construction, we made about 20 video logs that detailed the designs and design changes along the way. It shows the gadgets and techniques we tried, the tests and the trials. I am considering publishing all the videos in a 20 episode YouTube series. This series will show the public the behind-the-scenes story of the MAACS project for the first time ever.
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