>>> Is there such a thing as a rocket opening parachute?
>>>
>>> In other words a rocket attached to a metal static line that pulls a
>>> parachute out of a bag and makes it open almost instantaneously?
>>>
>>>
>>> I am thinking of safe ways of testing a tilt rotor aircraft.
>>>
>>> Paul Lamar ...No rotor no motor.
>>
>> Paul... isn't that precisely what the BRS (ballistic recovery system)
>> is all about... a ballistic deployment, a slider ring to accommodate
>> fast vs. slow
>> speed filling of the chute. ???? am I missing something here???
>>
>> Gary Buster
>> N263GB
>> Tyler Texas
>>
>> I am not sure. I don't know how it works.
>>
>> I would not necessarily like to save the airplane. Just the pilot
>> from and open cockpit.
>>
>> --
>> Paul Lamar ...No rotor no motor.
>
> Paul
>
>
> Yep, I still have the rocket and switch from one of the first units
> BRS made for an ultralight I brought into Japan 25 years ago. Never
used
it.
> The solid propellant rocket is about shaped in an aluminum pipe is 1.5
> inches in dia and 6 inches long with a rubber nose cone. A kevlar
> strap attaches to the chute and to the rockets stainless wire bridle.
> You wouldn't not want to attach this to a person's harness for reasons
> of sudden stress and the fact that opening a parachute outside the
> plane with the person inside usually results in the person and plane
> being destroyed.
> Better to bring your whole plane down as the pilot has more protection
> from the structure.
>
> My brother was lucky last year when he was flying and one of his jump
> instructors let her pilot chute go out the open door. All of her
> students gracefully kicked her out of the plane and followed in mass
> shortly after.
> Airplane do not usually survive such an event. Her partially open
> chute took off the C-182'2 right stabilizer and elevator before she
> was able to cut away. Somehow he was able to land safely using a
> burst of throttle before contact.
>
>
> Doug Fir
>
> Wow.
>
> I'll have to think this thing through. The big problem is making sure
> the rocket points as straight up as possible with out fouling the
> rotor. Maybe I need a guidance system of some sort in the rocket.
>
> Paul Lamar ...No rotor no motor.
Hi Paul, didn't the Germans in WWII and later the Soviets tackle this
problem already with the rear prop fighter (DE) and the helicopters with
ejection seats (RU) ? I thought they both had explosive bolts on the
blades
for when the pilot bailed.
-dave
That sounds good.
--
Paul Lamar ...No rotor no motor.
This is a good article on ejection seats and systems. Having experienced
a
"controlled" ejection myself I can attest to their efficacy if not
comfort.
They are tricky animals since they have to deal with all kinds of aspects,
speeds altitudes and bodies. The current generation of ejection seats
have
their own sensors to determine ejection parameters since the new
generation
of fighters have such a large flight envelope.
I think the extraction systems are the best for single seat or tandem seat
configurations. They were never really developed since we shifted to
supersonic fighters about the time they were deployed. The reason I think
an extractor would work is because it would be easy to design an extractor
with the best of the BRS systems patent (slider ring) and the
Yankee/Ranger
system. As far as the part about disconnecting the pilot from the
aircraft
that can be done with pull pins on the harness just like the Martin Baker
seat does. As the static line stretches above you it releases the harness
just before it pulls out the pilot. As far as the shock of the motor is
concerned I can tell you from first hand experience it's not as bad as you
think because the rocket is working on a lot of things before it gets to
the
pilot's butt. It's a matter of sizing the motor for the job.
Here is a nice discussion
http://showcase.netins.net/web/herker/ejection/eject_paper.html
-Ben
I have not experienced an ejection, however, I can tell you from experience
that ejection seats have to be and are
*hard*. If they weren't, the seat,
when fired, would compress the foam cushion and slam into your butt with
great force and cause injury to your spine. Even when used correctly they
can injure the pilot - I know someone who was and I am sure Ben has heard of
others. There are live ejection seats in the civil realm - I know because I
took a ride in an L-39 a couple years ago, however, there is some difficulty
in storing a live ejection seat in a hangar. If you ever need to remove it
for any reason the BATF wants you to have it in a locked up facility among
other things. The seats are hard, heavy and expensive. And that was a
relatively unreliable Russian make. Martin Baker in the UK and Goodrich in
Colorado Springs, CO make the best IMHO. But be ready to pay some big $ -
that is, and this is crucial-
*if* they will sell you one.
I have not heard of an extraction system before this. It sounds
interesting - less expensive, and lighter. The question is, will it work??
Can you avoid the rotor blades? Just some thoughts on it...
Norm
Well there is another possible path and that is air bags. Big for the whole
airplane or small for just the pilot.
Paul Lamar
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