HumanFlight
Latest
Distro Issue 75 arrives with a look at the history of human-powered flight
Ever wanted to take off and soar the friendly skies powered by nothing more than a little good old fashioned elbow grease? You're not alone. In the latest issue of our weekly, we survey the history of human-powered flight from 6th century China right up to Red Bull's Flugtag aerial leaps. Review houses our in-depth impressions of both the HP Envy x2 hybrid and the Pantech Discover while IRL returns with yet another look at our personal gadget habits. Eyes-On visually oogles Orange Amps' OPC, Weekly Stat tallies Instagram's user numbers and Adafruit's Limor Fried gets cozy with the Q&A. Strap yourself into your pedal-powered airship or comfy reading chair of choice and get to downloading via the usual sources that reside just below. Distro Issue 75 PDF Distro in the iTunes App Store Distro in the Google Play Store Distro in the Windows Store Distro APK (for sideloading) Like Distro on Facebook Follow Distro on Twitter
NAA verifies new US record for human-powered helicopter flight (video)
A team at the University of Maryland has been taking human powered flight to new heights. Or, rather, lengths, by setting a new US record for flight duration of 49.9 seconds with its Gamera II rotorcraft. The benchmark event actually took place in June, but only received the all important plaudits from the National Aeronautic Association on August 9. Gamera II builds on its predecessor (unsurprisingly, Gamera I) by featuring improved transmission, rotor design and a redesigned cockpit. Not content with smashing the previous craft's record of 11.4 seconds, the team plans to fly a further refined version of the copter with longer blades and other fine tuning later this month. The 49.9 second flight has also been submitted to the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale for World, rather than American-record verification. The guys at Maryland might want to keep an eye over their shoulders though, as it looks like someone else already has their eyes on that prize. Video evidence after the break.
