Article on landing wingsuit w/o parachute

[gottabefunky 0]

I'm writing an article for a major science magazine about the science of wingsuits.

One angle it's going to touch on is the recent efforts to land one without a parachute.

I'm trying to get an idea of what the most recent efforts have been in this direction.

So far, my list includes:

1. Jeb Corliss' ramp idea (stalled?)
2. Maria von Egidy's suit design (in progress)

Is there anyone else out there that is seriously pursuing this?

Thanks a lot,

Julian Smith
www.juliansmith.com

[DON321 0]

the science part of wingsuiting is great, but the landing a wingsuit without a parachute is not!!!

Im honestly hoping that Jeb DOSENT attempt it (He said he'd have a base rig on incase the approach wasent right if he decides to try it...) Its stupid! and I don't want to read or hear about how he went in trying... an idea that shouldnt be published in any magazine... we have parachutes on our back for a reason, they are proven to work!!

people go to airshows to see planes crash
people go to car races to see cars crash.....

people will watch a person try to land a wingsuit, why?
to see him crash!!

sorry if im coming off wrong but im just sick of hearing about landing the wingsuit we dont need anymore bad publicity, Im a very current wingsuiter (not saying im the best or anything), so i feel like I can give my 2 cents.... I understand what your trying to do with your article, and can respect it, but think the landing idea should be left out...

[notsane 0]

And it starts again ....

Why not try writing an article about the joy and beauty of wingsuit flight and the great people that pursue it, instead of being used by some wanna-be celebrities?

Landing a wingsuit makes as much sense as landing a refrigerator. (search this forum for all sorts of reasons why landing a wingsuit is bullshit). If people are telling you that it can be done, they are only trying to get you to print their names so they can transform fame into cash.

If someone really wants to land a wingsuit, let us know so we can start a flower fund for the funeral and make sure there are witnesses to post the aftermath. So far, good sense has stopped everyone else from carving a trough in the ground on purpose.

Wake up, gottabefunky and write a good article instead ...

[mnskydiver688 0]

Perhaps writing an article on how impossible it is to write an article on the joy and beauty of wingsuit flight unless you have taken part in it.

Sky Canyon Wingsuiters

[lego 0]

Wingsuit has already been landed without a parachute: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZizIbSpI-g

lego

[JohanW 0]

James Boole nearly tried it. But it wasn't such a good idea after all.

A reasonable approach towards an article on landing a wingsuit is explaining what makes it damn near impossible. Yet, thousands of people thoroughly enjoy flying one at altitude. A related topic is flying very small parachutes BTW, on the order of 21, 25 or 27 sq ft. It's about as dangerous and they haven't been landed either, if for different reasons. But the science is fascinating. (Well, it is to me.)

Johan.
I am. I think.

[xwind 0]

Landing a wingsuit will never be a repeatable feat.
Even if pulled off by using a ramp etc it will not be an ‘unassisted’ landing so in my opinion counts for nothing.

Please consider alternative topics:
- Planned 100 way in Elsinore (progression of wingsuit bigways)
- Evolution of suit design (progression of glide etc)
- Windsuit base and object proximity flying

Wingsuit South Africa

[Skwrl 56]

The ski ramp landing is really cool, but we're all forgetting that Ray ("Stoney") Stone landed a wingsuit after exiting an aircraft in flight at Flock & Dock 4.0.

Stoney did it without a BASE rig - or anything else other than a wingsuit - for that matter, and ended up with nothing worse than a bloody nose.

Skwrl Productions - Wingsuit Photography

Northeast Bird School - Chief Logistics Guy and Video Dork

[Butters 0]

I'm not sure if I should call this lame or ignorant ...

"That looks dangerous." Leopold Stotch

[fasted3 0]

OK, I'll be different. I think a water landing is possible.

But what do I know?

[DSE 5]

Stoney also proved that a water landing without a rig is possible. He didn't exit from a moving aircraft, but he did exit from a high speed truck, flew farther than expected, and landed in water. No injuries.

[MarkM 0]

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Is there anyone else out there that is seriously pursuing this?

There's no one seriously trying this. What would be interesting to see in a science article would be the mathmatics involved. Is it even theoretically possible to land a wingsuit in a non-gimmick fashion.

I mean, does the human body have the frame for the aerodynamic surface area required for a repeatable safe landing.

[Bodhisattva420 0]

Why are people still talking about this? James Boole already beat Jeb . . . and he didn't even need a ramp!

[fasted3 0]

Nope. The parachute didn't do much, but it did cause him to hit feet first, and was a factor in his survival.
To count it should be without any parachute at all. A ramp is OK, but my method doesn't use one. I'm thinking a kevlar chest shield with an inch or two of padding, a big floaty wingsuit, and a well timed flair over water, would make this a realistic way to do it. Either a flair to stall, then dive it in, or my preferance, a seaplane type landing. I can see this happening every weekend when somebody gets it.

But what do I know?

[LetsGoOutside 0]

Quote

I'm writing an article for a major science magazine about the science of wingsuits.

One angle it's going to touch on is the recent efforts to land one without a parachute.

I'm trying to get an idea of what the most recent efforts have been in this direction.

So far, my list includes:

1. Jeb Corliss' ramp idea (stalled?)
2. Maria von Egidy's suit design (in progress)

Is there anyone else out there that is seriously pursuing this?

Thanks a lot,

Julian Smith
www.juliansmith.com

Anyone can land a wingsuit without a parachute... once.

[fasted3 0]

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Anyone can land a wingsuit without a parachute... once.

So you think my plan wouldn't work?
I bet we see this happen successfully within 2 years.

But what do I know?

[JohanW 0]

I have no problems with ramps (you don't blame a swooper for needing the ground to set out the course, do you Bernard?
With accuracy possibly difficult as well, you might need quite a large surface. Quite deep, too. Your average swoop pond would not suffice in my estimation.

One more tiny detail: I seem to remember something about landing in water in various suits' manuals. Something like, "don't."

Johan.
I am. I think.

[TVPB 0]

Gotta love the inventiveness and creativity of people.

He was a little too vertical to relative wind. Could do better if closer to horizontal.

Stay Safe - Have Fun - Good Luck

The above could be crap, thought provoking, useful, or . . But not personal. You decide.

[Costyn 1]

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With accuracy possibly difficult as well, you might need quite a large surface. Quite deep, too. Your average swoop pond would not suffice in my estimation.

Above certains contact speeds, water is like concrete. I don't see it as a viable landing surface, unless you want to skip across it... Water isn't compressible so doesn't have a very good cushioning effect.

A huge aircushion would be best...

Costyn van Dongen - http://www.flylikebrick.com/ - World Wide Wingsuit News

[DSE 5]

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A huge aircushion would be best...

I like the idea of a huuuuuuuuuugggggggggggeeeeeeee box of styrofoam peanut pack. Not only would it make the landing more spectacular, but think of the fun digging through it to get out.

[JohanW 0]

How deep would you have to dig the stuff out of your nose if you went in feet first? I like the way you think though .. Spot on!

Johan.
I am. I think.

[cloudtramp 0]

WOW! How's that half empty glass workin' out for you people?

There was a time in recent history that people laughed at those who believed we could acheive flight at all. Now we are all skydivers and we are blasting on people attempting to progress to the next level. They may very well die trying just as many many pilots and skydivers in the past have passed while developing technology that we take for granted today.
We can put people on the moon and we have humans living in space for months at a time but you say that it is impossible to land a wingsuit? sad, sad, sad.

It will happen.

[JohanW 0]

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With accuracy possibly difficult as well, you might need quite a large surface. Quite deep, too. Your average swoop pond would not suffice in my estimation.

Above certain contact speeds, water is like concrete. I don't see it as a viable landing surface, unless you want to skip across it... Water isn't compressible so doesn't have a very good cushioning effect.

I know. Nobody ever mentions what speed that is though. Would body position and/or surface area presented affect that speed? If it's possible to get total airspeed under that value after a flare, you could just flare over the water, then stall into it. More options for body position as well.

Skipping landings are not as appealing to me, need to get flare height right a little too precisely.

Either way, I am not a volunteer. Don't want to land less than 117 sq ft. It may take a while before that gets made as a wingsuit.

Johan.
I am. I think.

[JohanW 0]

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It will happen.

It may.

But there is a reason the biggest bird is only so big. Our build restricts us to a certain maximum wing area. That area, and our weight, restrict us to a certain minimum wingload. That wingload restricts us to a certain minimum stall speed. We are not built to meet the earth at anywhere near that speed. We were not built to fly in the first place, of course, we build planes and parachutes for that.

We can land wings, but not wingsuits. The wingsuit that might one day be landed needs to look very different from today's wingsuits. Will that still be a wingsuit landing as we speak of it now?

So it may not.

(Thoroughly enjoying the half glass that is here, now. )

Johan.
I am. I think.

[fasted3 0]

Vertical impact speed less than 30 mph is survivable, and attainable. I suggest a lot of training to maximize flairing and learning just how much air you need to come out at the rtght place. Modern gadgets would help. Properly timed, a flair could pretty much bring vertical speed to zero, and kill a lot of forward speed too. I admit that base jumpers would have a better feel for this, and I'm talking out of my ass. I still think it can be done.

But what do I know?