On Thu, 20 Nov 2003 01:08:30 GMT, Kyler Laird
wrote in Message-Id: :

Larry Dighera writes:

I can't imagine being exposed to a 300 mph slipstream.

I can. It's not a pretty thought. Half that speed for brief
periods is enough to wear me out for the day.

I suppose, if one takes advantage of a powerful enough turbine, with
so little weight, the thrust to weight ratio would be remarkably high
in comparison to most other aircraft. That could enable a vectored
lift design with remarkable specifications. Such a design would be
neutral to unstable, and a computerized stability/control system could
provide intuitive user input for pilot control. I would expect the
operation time to be limited though.

I'm trying to figure out the advantage of the motorcycle-style
seating. There certainly appears to be plenty of aircraft
ahead of the rider. 'seems like a good place for the pilot's
feet.

So you would agree, that the astride-a-rocket external seating design
is unworkable? Perhaps a fully reclining, well faired, form fitting,
deeply impressed, operator's position would work if a matching,
faired, flight suit and helmet design were employed.

Also, since it's "fully aerobatic", it seems foolish to
have a "sit-on" design. Maybe it's only rated for negative
Gs to the limit of the handlebars.

Ha ha.

I would expect that a suitable harness could be fabricated to retain
the pilot.

My favorite part is "Military versions can carry 500 lbs of
ordinance". Are they planning to carry paper versions of all
of the new laws allowing military aircraft to shoot civilians?
(Yes, I suspect it's just a dumb spelling mistake like "can go
anywhere on a moments' notice".)

It looks like a fast buck artist looking a NASA development grant to
me. If you go to the home page, there is no way to navigate to the
personal VTOL vehicles page. Who knows...?

'course I'd sign up in a heartbeat for a real, usable version
at that price.

--kyler

The OP says that's possible now. I'm sure ProtoScience will gladly
accept your deposit, just like Bede did with the BD-5 in the mid '70s.