DLG Aero-towing using the "Velcro method"

[pixeldixel]

[VinCopter]

cool ... must try

[pixeldixel]

cool ... must try

join us at ohr. we can tow each other and have more dlgs in the sky at one time

[sherchoo]

pixeldixel,

When is normally your DLG session at OHR?

[pixeldixel]

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pixeldixel,

When is normally your DLG session at OHR?

We are there most saturdays n Sundays 3pm onwards. Most of us will have arrived by 4pm.

[sherchoo]

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We are there most saturdays n Sundays 3pm onwards. Most of us will have arrived by 4pm.

May dropby this sat around 4pm+

[rt9]

eh..
how come the tow pilot became the dlg pilot at the end ah? :p

[pixeldixel]

eh..
how come the tow pilot became the dlg pilot at the end ah? :p

Because the dlg pilot was kind enough to let the tow pilot fly his dlg lo... :smile3:

they swapped "seats" while the camera was aimed at the sky

[joe yap]

Aerotowing is a really fun thing to do, although a little challenging. Velcro method is the easiest way to setup for aerotowing. However, it is does not have very positive way to stay attached and be detached. To prevent premature release, try not to let the glider fly too high above the tug. However, if the tug plane climbs too steeply above the glider and slows down, it can lead the glider to a stall, which is very dangerous for both planes.

To release the glider positively, it'll be easier to put the tug plane into a shallow dive and pick up some additional airspeed. Once airspeed is increased, the glider pilot just need to pull up elevator to seperate the velcro. Having said that, saying is easier than done. Recently, I did aerotowing with my students with a foam flying wing. The velcro used apparently is too strong and the flying wing glider refuse to detach from the tow line even after a shallow dive. When I put the tug into a steeper dive, the next thing that happened was that the flying wing literally blew itself apart in the air. It's quite funny to see a 80 gram foam wing turned into confetti though.

[pixeldixel]

Aerotowing is a really fun thing to do, although a little challenging. Velcro method is the easiest way to setup for aerotowing. However, it is does not have very positive way to stay attached and be detached. To prevent premature release, try not to let the glider fly too high above the tug. However, if the tug plane climbs too steeply above the glider and slows down, it can lead the glider to a stall, which is very dangerous for both planes.

To release the glider positively, it'll be easier to put the tug plane into a shallow dive and pick up some additional airspeed. Once airspeed is increased, the glider pilot just need to pull up elevator to seperate the velcro. Having said that, saying is easier than done. Recently, I did aerotowing with my students with a foam flying wing. The velcro used apparently is too strong and the flying wing glider refuse to detach from the tow line even after a shallow dive. When I put the tug into a steeper dive, the next thing that happened was that the flying wing literally blew itself apart in the air. It's quite funny to see a 80 gram foam wing turned into confetti though.

It was a lot of fun indeed. Got to know of the Velcro method when Sunstorm told me that you and Dennis Chia did some aero-towing using that method. I managed to find some information on that method on RCG and found it quite simple to do. http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1003420

In the video, Ronnie?s Blaster got prematurely released because he had forgotten to tape his nose cone to the fuse. We have had a number of successful releases (when the nose cone was taped of course) when the dlg pilot abruptly pulls up when there is enough airspeed.

In order to ease the release process, I guess it also depends on the amount of overlap you give on the Velcro surfaces. We found that an overlap of about 1cm X 1.5cm to 2cm was quite ideal ? where the bond was strong enough to tug the plane along; but yet allows for an easier separation. However, there were some occasions where we experienced prematurely releases due to sudden jerking of the line (especially during the launch). In addition, to aid the separation, a ?pyramid looking thing? (for the lack of a better term) was used to help keep the tow line in place as the glider pulls up. I saw a video of some guys using a shuttle cork for that purpose when using the Velcro method to tow an easy glider.

[joe yap]

The amount of velcro overlap is dependant on the size of the glider. For Dennis's big flying wing, we overlap the velcro about 2". For the tiny foam flying wing, I only overlap the velcro by 1cm x 1cm and yet it refused to seperate.