Hey all, this is really cool.
NASA's flying telescope SOFIA chases down a moon shadow - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
NASA's flying telescope SOFIA chases down a moon shadow - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Yes that's a very impressive modification to the fuselage. Only NASA would think this stuff up!!!I showed this article to a Aerospace Engineer friend of mine. I think he is still drooling over it. He was really impressed with the design of the lens automatic hatch.
I would love to see a real one do a barrel roll. IMO the 747 has been the greatest commercial plane to ever come out and it's tech from the 50s.From airforce one to giving the space shuttle a piggy back ride to a flying telescope, there seems to be no limit to what the mighty 747 is capable of. Btw, in Microsoft's Flight simulator, It's actually possible to do a barrel roll with a 747. I've done it!!!
I wonder if that's real. It was very hard to do and I only believe it was possible in the simulator as the simulator doesnt take into account stress factors on the AC. Took me 3 tries at almost an hour long each to get high enough and do a full throttle dive to get enough speed to keep her airborne thru the roll. I seriously doubt a 747 could handle that stress in the real world. That looked way too easy and way too low lol.Can't go wrong with this video. a 747 doing a barrel roll and pretty girls dancing.
It's fake, but amazing to look at.I wonder if that's real. It was very hard to do and I only believe it was possible in the simulator as the simulator doesnt take into account stress factors on the AC. Took me 3 tries at almost an hour long each to get high enough and do a full throttle dive to get enough speed to keep her airborne thru the roll. I seriously doubt a 747 could handle that stress in the real world. That looked way too easy and way too low lol.
I wonder if that's real. It was very hard to do and I only believe it was possible in the simulator as the simulator doesnt take into account stress factors on the AC. Took me 3 tries at almost an hour long each to get high enough and do a full throttle dive to get enough speed to keep her airborne thru the roll. I seriously doubt a 747 could handle that stress in the real world. That looked way too easy and way too low lol.
Ironically the exact same 747 model as is in my OP. And it landed!!! Tough birdIt has, on occasion, performed a roll, however as mentioned, the airframe stress was too great. Chinese plane had an engine failure and the plane dived almost 30,000 feet while rolling. Pilots were able to right the stricken plane once they got a bearing on the horizon below the clouds, but the process ripped several control surfaces from the plane. Not recommended by any means, especially with most planes today being over 30 years old at the least. Here is the wiki on it with pics: China Airlines Flight 006 - Wikipedia
Imo best barrel roll passenger plane was the concorde. Due to speed, most passengers didn’t even notice the roll.
That is crazy!!!It was done with a B707.
60 years ago: The famous Boeing 707 prototype barrel roll over Lake Washington
It has, on occasion, performed a roll, however as mentioned, the airframe stress was too great. Chinese plane had an engine failure and the plane dived almost 30,000 feet while rolling. Pilots were able to right the stricken plane once they got a bearing on the horizon below the clouds, but the process ripped several control surfaces from the plane, permanently bent the wings upward 2 inches, and damaged the landing gear (that was stowed at the time) while causing 2 passenger injuries. Not recommended by any means, especially with most planes today being over 30 years old at the least. Here is the wiki on it with pics: China Airlines Flight 006 - Wikipedia
Imo best barrel roll passenger plane was the concorde. Due to speed, most passengers didn’t even notice the roll.
Hence why it likely successfully landed. I'm no aeronautical engineering expert, but I'd think a 747 being so heavy would strictly be engineered for maximum lift and have almost no engineering to fly inverted (unlike other planes). I'm amazed a 707 did it twice successfully with no damage but, empty test flight and much lighter AC. I'll tell ya, in the simulator with a 747, inverted you are losing altitude fast even at waaay overspeed with stick full forward. It was intense even when there were no stress factors to worry about.Not quite a roll, not quite a spin, but an upset accident.
It was never inverted longitudinally.
Watch it here