Hey fellow pilots, I am thinking about an aircraft that could be flown lying prone. It's already been done (e.g. youtube weebee aircraft prone - sorry, too new to paste links), but there's no such contemporary GA aircraft. If there were one, would you fly it ? Do you see benefits to flying prone ? If you have thought about it, I would be delighted to have a chat with you. With my apologies if the topic is not posted where it should be or if there already is an extensive thread (I haven't found it myself). Blue skies, Jeremy
The only benefit I can see is the feeling you'd get. I think it would be less comfortable, more difficult to control, and a whole lot more dangerous.
<<<<<<< Look left. It's a lot more birdlike. I'd not be thrilled to fly that way with an engine though.
The large benefit, of course, is reduced frontal area, thereby lower drag and therefore either higher speed or greater efficiency for a given engine size. That's the only benefit I can possibly see. Would I fly it? Maybe once around the pattern or something, but I can only imagine the neck pain that would result from a longer flight.
A properly placed inspection port would eliminate the #1 problem pilots have on long flights. Engineer it with inverted oil and fuel, and you could eliminate the #2 problem as well.
Lars Giertz's Vmax Probe is the most recent one I'm familiar with. It did not end well. Prone is good for frontal area reduction (and the associated drag if done well) but the survivability of something as simple as a hard landing becomes a much bigger issue than seated, even reclining. Nauga, laid back
Prone probably not, maybe laying down at an angle that would give you enough visibility. Seat configuration would be important, hard landings may hurt you.
Actually, not that you mention it, the Rutan experimentals are mostly prone. Technically you're sitting in a seat, but the seat is very reclined.
From the Wikipedia.com: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_prone-pilot_aircraft The Beecraft Wee Bee seems to be unique in that the pilot’s pants form much of the monocoque.
Or sometimes called "suprone", adopted by some older PG/HG pilots as it's almost as efficient as prone but a lot more comfortable. Biggest problem with the prone position is the stiff neck you'll have after anything but a short flight...
The only way I'm flying prone is in a wide body commercial jet with a flat bed seat on a trans-oceanic flight. Wine, dinner, cognac, camomile tea, blanket, pillow, sleep...
Hi all, First, thanks a lot for your many messages ! Some made me laugh, others shed some light, all were useful ! @asicer, no a hang glider is no GA aircraft. An aircraft, but not a GA one - I fly them by the way, that's what gave me the idea of reducing the drag and getting an even better feeling while flying, I admit. And no, the jetman even with 4 rockets is not a GA aircraft )) @nauga, thanks for the reference to VMaxProbe, outstanding aircraft, so sad its creator passed away, it could have been a blast ! Reminds me a bit of the Opal facett, same outcome, revolutionary machine. So if I get it right, none of you would actually fly such an aircraft, right ? Kind regards, Jeremy
The only way a prone aircraft would work is if you have a video display of the forward view below your head. No way would I would to be trying to look out in front of me while laying on my stomach for more than 48.6 seconds.
Supine for me, not prone. My back would kill me. Maybe supine would too, if it’s a long flight that puts me to asleep.
Back in the 1970s there was a guy who built a plane with the intention of flying like a bird... his arms reached into the wings to operate the ailerons, and he worked the elevator and rudder with his feet. He did not survive the test flight. Unless you absolutely NEED to lay prone for minimum drag or other reasons it sounds like a solution in search of a problem.
If you look at the hard core competition gliders - where no cost is too high when it comes to drag reduction...
Concur. Spreading the pilot out in a prone position might be the answer, but only if it’s a really weird question.
Hi Dana, Thanks for your message. Objective would indeed be to reduce drag. Do you recall by any chance this project ? I would be glad to read about it. Thanks & Regards, Jeremy
Sorry, I don't recall any more about it. It was just a short thing in Air Progress or maybe Flying magazine, IIRC, sometime between 1976-78. I don't think drag reduction was a factor there, the guy just wanted to fly like a bird. If you're going for drag reduction it's unlikely you'd save enough compared to a supine pilot to be worth the disadvantages (comfort, visibility, g-tolerance, crashworthiness, etc.)
