This has been an ongoing project at out local airfield for over 7 years. The creator and builder, first saw the plane in the movie, " Those magnificent men and their flying machines" and decided he wanted to build and fly one. The only existing models, are the ones from the movie, and I believe they are still in England. The plane from the movie, and the original would only carry a 90 lb. pilot. A lady stunt pilot flew the one in the movie.
From pictures they obtained measurements and started from there. It had to be redesigned to carry a 180 lb. man.
Long story short, it was inspected by the FAA and signed off May 19th 2015. Waiting on a perfect day(clear and less than 5 mph wind) has been a test of patience. It happened June 24th. Not knowing how the plane would handle or fly, the pilot let the plane become airborne and reach about 25 ft. and then gently land. This was repeated 5 times until he reached the breath taking altitude of 45 ft. and about 150 yards of sustained flight. The pilot said it was stable and predictable. Here are a few shots of that first flight!
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