"Alan Baker" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Tom De Moor wrote:


Alan, thanks for the links provided. This craft's claimn is to have
maintained altitude and airspeed for 19.3 seconds, as the videos show, and
that is certianly a notable step. Auto-tow for them versus a rail and
falling weight for the Wrights, fairenough. Good baby-steps, and nothing at
all to be discounted. This is not a finished projec is it?

I think that the "Figure eight around two pylons one-half mile apart,
starting and finishing at 3 meters altitude" that the Gossamer Condor did
for the Kremer prize they won in 1977 would be a good measure of flight, and
it will take a lot of engineering and experimentation to achieve that for an
ornithopter , as it did for the Gossamer bunch. What a goal ! But I'll bet
some ingenious soul is already working at that.

Flash