Ultralight trike
An ultralight trike or paratrike is a type of powered hang glider where flight control is by weight-shift.
[4] The history of the trike is traced back to the invention of Francis Rogallo's flexible wing and subsequent development by the Paresev engineering team's innovations and then others.
In 1957, Rogallo released his patent to the government and with his help at the wind tunnels, NASA began a series of experiments testing Rogallo's wing – which was renamed Para Wing – in order to evaluate it as a recovery system for the Gemini space capsules and recovery of used Saturn rocket stages.
This mainly involved stabilizing the leading edges with compressed air beams or rigid structures like aluminum tubes.
By 1967, all Para Wing projects were dropped by NASA in favor of using round parachutes without officially considering development of personal ultralight gliders, but the airfoil's simplicity of design and ease of construction, along with its capability of slow flight and its gentle landing characteristics, did not go unnoticed by hang glider enthusiasts.
Publicity from the Fleep[9] and the Paresev tests sparked interest in the design among several tinkerers, including Barry Palmer, and Sport Aviation of 1962 shown Jim Hobson of Experimental Aircraft Association (wing shown on US national TV in Lawrence Welk Show in 1962).
[12] Dickenson fashioned a water ski kite airframe to fit on a Rogallo airfoil[11][13][14][15] where the pilot sat on a swinging seat while the control frame and wire bracing distributed the load to the wing as well as gave a frame freedom to be pushed/pulled for weight-shift control.
Dickenson's adaptation and innovations eventually produced a foldable hang glider that dramatically reduced difficulty in control, storage, transport, assembly and repair.
[26] In 1964, Swiss inventor Pierre Aubert saw a photo of NASA's Fleep and completed construction of a similar trike.
It was powered by a 17 hp at 5000 RPM single-cylinder JLO L297 two-stroke engine, driving a composite propeller designed and built by Palmer himself and driven by a 2.1/1 reduction gearbox.
[30] The commercial availability of Dickenson's hang glider made the Rogallo wing very popular, and prompted several builders during the 1970s to attempt motorization of their flexible-wing aircraft[31] but unlike Barry Palmer – who placed the center of gravity well below the keel – most builders were mounting the engine to the wing, where a fine balance existed between applying too much power, causing the aircraft to overtake the pilot, or not enough power for flight.
The prototype had flown with a McCulloch MC-101A motor of 125 cc, delivering 10 hp at 8000 RPM to a direct-drive prop with ground-adjustable pitch.
[37] Brian Milton flew from London to Sydney in 1987 in the Dalgety flyer which at the time was the longest recorded microlight flight taking 59 days.
