Giant aeroplanes

[steelpillow]

Permanent soaring city A giant flying wing, this craft has no engines, but soars in the updraft found along Southern mountain ranges such as found in South America and New Zealand. It has an almost indefinite span, being on this scale flexible rather like some of the experimental ultra-lightweight solar aircraft. One can fly a new wing section up to it, bolt it on and then remove the ferry power unit.

THIS I wanna see!!!

Some engineering details:

The wing has a static centre of lift, meaning that it is stable in pitch and does not need a tail or a computer to keep it level. This is achieved using reflex camber on the rear section, so that the mid-line of the chord is a gentle s-curve, rather like this tilde character here: ~

Rather than having the whole structure flex, which would create unnerving creaks, groans and bangs in turbulent winds, it is made in sections with articulated joints like a railway train.

Some sections are bigger than the rest, creating relatively large - but very expensive - internal spaces.

There are some electric engines and propellers, and also wind turbines. Most are retractable, typically used in combination to maintain shape in varying local conditions. For example if a helicopter drops in on one section, it will deploy a propeller to help it maintain speed and height, while the neighbouring sections will deploy wind turbines which both supply power to the propeller and slightly drag these sections back to help smooth out the mechanical stresses. You may not realise it but such pop-out turbines are, on a much smaller scale, fitted as an emergency power supply on many aircraft flying today.

Other turbines would be permanent, supplying power to the aircraft's systems and inhabitants. But only limited power can be extracted, as the turbines act as airbrakes and the plane would drift backwards. Most likely, the inhabitants' lifestyle would require microwave beams from the ground, etc. to meet their full needs.

Larger deliveries of supplies would be by airship, as flying speeds will just be the natural windspeed in order to remain more or less stationary over the ground. Discharge of waste would be very strictly regulated - no blue ice here on a cold winter morning! Most would in fact go back down in the delivery airship as ballast.

After some years, a new ecology begins to establish itself on the ground beneath the aircraft's shadow. First it's the microorganisms, then the creepy-crawlies, but surprisingly quickly the characteristics of small birds, mammals, lizards and amphibians all begin to adapt to the rebalanced food chain. As those who were born in the sky city begin to grow old, identifiable new species begin to emerge in the twilight beneath.

[martinbayer]

There has been a recent somewhat related discussion on Secretprojects regarding a supersonic mega-airliner referenced in passing in "2001":

http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,23978.0.html

https://www.facebook.com/2001Italia/photos/pcb.894967993867554/894967837200903/?type=1&theater

Martin

[martinbayer]

Actually, it just dawned on me that the mention of an air disaster with over 2300 victims in Space Odyssey might have been motivated by Kubrick's documented fear/aversion of flying, especially since it purportedly occurred en route between his two places of residence of New York and London...

Martin

[steelpillow]

Interesting reading, thanks for the links.

Ca. 200 passengers per engine is similar to the A380. I wonder how our biggest military supersonic engines compare. But 12 engines is a reliability nightmare, any civil jet - whether SST or no - with more than 4 would be exceptional.

Modern 3D modelling combined with GPS would make it dead easy to designate 3D flight paths and interlace them to avoid the mid-air collisions that take up a lot of the discussion.

But only 2,500 passengers? ptui!  

[steelpillow]

Anyway, my wrist forced me to open Inkscape and disengage sense of responsibility. Here is my 3,000-seat megaliner, fully certified for accident safety and evacuation:



My sense of self-preservation then took over and I realised that I did not have time to draw in the undercarriage before loading the dishwasher. Sorry about that.

[ericr]

 

[kitnut617]

So Stratolaunch flew for the first time today

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfUy21HHtME

[Captain Canada]

Cool ! Probably doesn't pull many G's tho lol

[NARSES2]

Yup, saw that this morning and immediately wondered what Kit would do to it if there were a model of her. I need to get out more 

[JayBee]

Yup, saw that this morning and immediately wondered what Kit would do to it if there were a model of her.

My thoughts entirely! 

[kitnut617]

Yup, saw that this morning and immediately wondered what Kit would do to it if there were a model of her.

My thoughts entirely! 

Well it is all wing already ----- 

[NARSES2]

Yup, saw that this morning and immediately wondered what Kit would do to it if there were a model of her.

My thoughts entirely! 

Well it is all wing already ----- 

Yup but by removing a fuselage the wingspan increases in proportion to the fuselage remaining. I swear that's one of Einstein's 

[PR19_Kit]

Yup, saw that this morning and immediately wondered what Kit would do to it if there were a model of her.

My thoughts entirely! 

Well it is all wing already ----- 

Yup but by removing a fuselage the wingspan increases in proportion to the fuselage remaining. I swear that's one of Einstein's 

Nah, that's not the point, just make the wings LONGER! 

How long before A Model have a kit of it?

[NARSES2]

How long before A Model have a kit of it?

Have to admit A Model were the first company my brain thought of when it came around to the "I wonder who ?" question