Project X
Sep 5, 2023 06:20:10 #
During my last vacation we had our home renovated and whilst rummaging on boxed stuffs i found a bunch of old and damaged photos.
Some may remember, our previous home was damaged by fire. Among the loss were photos below.
I've always wanted to be pilot, but with barrel scraping resources, I could only study to be an Aircraft Mechanic.
No intention to brag, but I did quite well, grabbing a scholarship, won the Student Council Presidency and graduated with high honors.
Even then, the next path took me so way off, that aside from the On the Job Training, I never got a shot into the aviation career.
These photos are memories of that hopeful past. A reminder of a dream that was never realized.
Vaguely visible in the background is Project X, an aircraft I designed and part of my team/classmates who built it.
The material cost was financed by solicitation, the school and our own pockets. initially it was way off scale & off proportion but the cockpit was life size, fully instrumented and with complete and working flight controls. It was a study project for a control surface simulator which received a full go ahead support because it got piggybacked as the main element/decoration of the schools parade float. It took 2 weeks to build, several days of which were 24hr sessions. After the parade, one wing was removed and the project exhibited in the library as a learning aid.
At the end of the school year, the academy moved to a bigger place. The wing was reinstalled and the aircraft was bolted on top of the roof of the academy's gate. It became a marker & decoration of the aviation school.
The gates' roof is a cement canopy. Being accessible thru an open fire escape window, daring dreamers would often sneak out and sit inside the cockpit during breaks. Admittingly, even I had pretentious moments sitting there contemplating the day or being snoopy, hunting the Red Baron.
A year later, for the same event we were tasked to revise the aircraft. Now dubbed "Project X-tended" and with added team members we brought the decoration down and into an empty classroom. The new students was having discussions on how to cut it up to bring it inside. They were amazed when I disassembled the aircraft into 5 large pieces that exactly fit through the door. As its project name, the aircraft was extended in all directions making its proportions correct and look similar a half scale model of an F-20 Tigershark.
I modified the design to have a small gasoline engine whose power is sent to the rear wheel, steerable front wheel and brakes, because it was now redesigned to be the parade float, moving on its own instead of being carried like it once was.
In foresight of crowded streets, the wings fold and all navigation & warning lights work. During the parade, these feature proved very useful. Lastly it carried a fire extinguishing system, firewall to separate the gasoline engine from the cockpit. We rebuilt the sliding acrylic canopy and as coup de gras, a cockpit triggered fireworks show was also installed.
The whole shebang, was completed, painted and decaled in 2 weeks and as before, some of those are 24 hr sessions. I remember it well as in the middle of the night on the final rush to finish, we heard the news of the twin tower attack.
Project X-tended was a success and for a while it was parked, where this picture was taken. Afterwards, it was reinstalled, bigger and better looking above the gate.
I left the Academy finding work abroad as a librarian. During those times, the Academy grew and once more it moved to a bigger place.
Our instructors converted the aircraft into a huge weathervane. They built a concrete & steel plint to which it was attached and displayed in front of the aviation school. Unfortunately, a powerful storm came and they forgot to tie it down and install spoilers as should be.
Project X-tended flew.
It uprooted and lifted itself on a gust of wind.
I was not there. I only heard the story when I returned 3 years later.
I can still hear my instructors comment;"No one thought it was a real plane, just missing an engine".
With that I always smile for in my mind I see that brief but glorious flight.
Although it ended with a crash and probably the storms thunders, Project X and X-tended was journey well worth.
No, i did not became an aviator, but I flew.
... I flew
If only it is possible to print from memory.
Would it be possible to rebuild this with AI?
Some may remember, our previous home was damaged by fire. Among the loss were photos below.
I've always wanted to be pilot, but with barrel scraping resources, I could only study to be an Aircraft Mechanic.
No intention to brag, but I did quite well, grabbing a scholarship, won the Student Council Presidency and graduated with high honors.
Even then, the next path took me so way off, that aside from the On the Job Training, I never got a shot into the aviation career.
These photos are memories of that hopeful past. A reminder of a dream that was never realized.
Vaguely visible in the background is Project X, an aircraft I designed and part of my team/classmates who built it.
The material cost was financed by solicitation, the school and our own pockets. initially it was way off scale & off proportion but the cockpit was life size, fully instrumented and with complete and working flight controls. It was a study project for a control surface simulator which received a full go ahead support because it got piggybacked as the main element/decoration of the schools parade float. It took 2 weeks to build, several days of which were 24hr sessions. After the parade, one wing was removed and the project exhibited in the library as a learning aid.
At the end of the school year, the academy moved to a bigger place. The wing was reinstalled and the aircraft was bolted on top of the roof of the academy's gate. It became a marker & decoration of the aviation school.
The gates' roof is a cement canopy. Being accessible thru an open fire escape window, daring dreamers would often sneak out and sit inside the cockpit during breaks. Admittingly, even I had pretentious moments sitting there contemplating the day or being snoopy, hunting the Red Baron.
A year later, for the same event we were tasked to revise the aircraft. Now dubbed "Project X-tended" and with added team members we brought the decoration down and into an empty classroom. The new students was having discussions on how to cut it up to bring it inside. They were amazed when I disassembled the aircraft into 5 large pieces that exactly fit through the door. As its project name, the aircraft was extended in all directions making its proportions correct and look similar a half scale model of an F-20 Tigershark.
I modified the design to have a small gasoline engine whose power is sent to the rear wheel, steerable front wheel and brakes, because it was now redesigned to be the parade float, moving on its own instead of being carried like it once was.
In foresight of crowded streets, the wings fold and all navigation & warning lights work. During the parade, these feature proved very useful. Lastly it carried a fire extinguishing system, firewall to separate the gasoline engine from the cockpit. We rebuilt the sliding acrylic canopy and as coup de gras, a cockpit triggered fireworks show was also installed.
The whole shebang, was completed, painted and decaled in 2 weeks and as before, some of those are 24 hr sessions. I remember it well as in the middle of the night on the final rush to finish, we heard the news of the twin tower attack.
Project X-tended was a success and for a while it was parked, where this picture was taken. Afterwards, it was reinstalled, bigger and better looking above the gate.
I left the Academy finding work abroad as a librarian. During those times, the Academy grew and once more it moved to a bigger place.
Our instructors converted the aircraft into a huge weathervane. They built a concrete & steel plint to which it was attached and displayed in front of the aviation school. Unfortunately, a powerful storm came and they forgot to tie it down and install spoilers as should be.
Project X-tended flew.
It uprooted and lifted itself on a gust of wind.
I was not there. I only heard the story when I returned 3 years later.
I can still hear my instructors comment;"No one thought it was a real plane, just missing an engine".
With that I always smile for in my mind I see that brief but glorious flight.
Although it ended with a crash and probably the storms thunders, Project X and X-tended was journey well worth.
No, i did not became an aviator, but I flew.
... I flew
If only it is possible to print from memory.
Would it be possible to rebuild this with AI?
Would it be possible to recreate this with AI?
Sep 5, 2023 11:10:41 #
That project would be a worthy and appropriate task for AI. Restoration I can understand, even if it is not 100% accurate, would be a noble and useful task for AI. To create something that resembles (very accurately approaches) reality via AI is not a proper method of creating a scene or image of a person that does not actually exist, in my mind.
Sep 5, 2023 13:15:51 #
PhotogHobbyist wrote:
That project would be a worthy and appropriate task for AI. Restoration I can understand, even if it is not 100% accurate, would be a noble and useful task for AI. To create something that resembles (very accurately approaches) reality via AI is not a proper method of creating a scene or image of a person that does not actually exist, in my mind.
I was actually on the first picture, that got washed out because my colleague opened the back of the camera, exposing the film at the ready and most of the previously exposed frame.
I doubt the AI would be able to restore that, but the second picture might be promising.
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