Could solar powered passenger planes replace Zeppelin type air ships in the future ?

Topspeed ,in this thread alone ,you have gone from one type of plane use to another [military-passenger ] ,solar panel,batteries,human power and now rockets .Non of the aircraft you have shown could even sit on a runway in the weather conditions we are having now.
In 16 years you really ought to have alot more to show for it than you have,in 16 years time technology SHOULD make your designs obsolete,in 16 years time the majority of us on here will be dead or too old to pedal.

Well I got this spesific craft idea on the drawing board at around..3 days ago ( post # 98 )..the first pedal/solar powered passenger craft around 2011/2012 winter. I think this rocket ship using the first tank/stage could take off at any given weather…and get above clouds pretty quickly..to fly on solar alone.

Military ship came when someone said this is boring….there seems to be more people in the military thread…..:: )

Hydrogen tanks ? Are you serious ?

As for a Mach 1.5 plane with props, forget it, that will not work. Even if I forget aerodynamic questions, structurally, the props will not survive.

If all this was so simple, you can be sure that Boeing, Airbus and the others would have done it already.

I’ll repeat myself, go back to RC planes. There you will have interesting applications, some of which that you even might be able to market.

Yes okay Frank..I think I got the point here made.

No the props fold after the solar powered climb to 25-30 km has been done..and after that the hydrogen-oksidizer rocket will be used…at pretty morderate thrust..but in really thin air it might reach Mach 2+ at 50-60 km altitude…from there it can glide 2000-3000 km easily. Don’t have to since it can switch to prop powered flight at 40 km onwards to lower altitudes at close to mach 1 “glide” decent to about 20 km…and slower and slower from there.

Hydrogen tanks ? Are you serious ?

As for a Mach 1.5 plane with props, forget it, that will not work. Even if I forget aerodynamic questions, structurally, the props will not survive.

If all this was so simple, you can be sure that Boeing, Airbus and the others would have done it already.

I’ll repeat myself, go back to RC planes. There you will have interesting applications, some of which that you even might be able to market.

Topspeed ,in this thread alone ,you have gone from one type of plane use to another [military-passenger ] ,solar panel,batteries,human power and now rockets .Non of the aircraft you have shown could even sit on a runway in the weather conditions we are having now.
In 16 years you really ought to have alot more to show for it than you have,in 16 years time technology SHOULD make your designs obsolete,in 16 years time the majority of us on here will be dead or too old to pedal.

Sorry Charlie..I didn’t understand that moving your feet is so arduous. I have cycled 327 km at best ( 2003 )…and last summer few 80 km legs…it really feels good. I myself would enjoy cycling if knew it might also be beneficial for the flight. Both..pedal power and solar energy have had many aircrafts flying in the past.

Musculair II is the most efficient of the pedal powered crafts;

http://www.skytec-engineering.de/musculair.htm

You simply do not get the point, which I and others have made, do you? And your catalogue of improbable proposals adds nothing to your efforts.

And that’s my last word here, Topspeed. Keep trolling or posting, whichever it is……I’ll leave others to continue the dialogue.

Sorry, Topspeed, when you resort to ludicrous suggestions such as passenger pedal power I just cannot take you seriously – 16 years nor not. In any case if your proposals had any validity someone would have joined you on the road to realising the project. So I regard it is a fantasy pie in the sky and wish you well – another 16 years perhaps – but cannot be bothered to follow your progress – or lack of it!

Sorry Charlie..I didn’t understand that moving your feet is so arduous. I have cycled 327 km at best ( 2003 )…and last summer few 80 km legs…it really feels good. I myself would enjoy cycling if knew it might also be beneficial for the flight. Both..pedal power and solar energy have had many aircrafts flying in the past.

Musculair II is the most efficient of the pedal powered crafts;

http://www.skytec-engineering.de/musculair.htm

Needs only 280 watts to move…and has been flown with one passenger onboard too.

Sunseeker II on the other hand produces almost 10 fold power over pedal power;

Pure electric aircrafts have flown at fairly tramendous speed so far like the MC-15E;

Also a 4 engine Cri-Cri was made by EADS;

Sorry, Topspeed, when you resort to ludicrous suggestions such as passenger pedal power I just cannot take you seriously – 16 years nor not. In any case if your proposals had any validity someone would have joined you on the road to realising the project. So I regard it is a fantasy pie in the sky and wish you well – another 16 years perhaps – but cannot be bothered to follow your progress – or lack of it!

No, not a visionary. A visionary is one who bases his dreams on a sure foundation whereas a fantasist’s dreams have little basis in reality.

Charlie can you answer my question above ? I appreciate you critique a lot ( I have only concentrated on this efficient flite for the last 16 years or so ). There is still lot to do to make this real…I confess that.

No, not a visionary. A visionary is one who bases his dreams on a sure foundation whereas a fantasist’s dreams have little basis in reality.

How about now ?

Having rocket power and accu/solar power could make this versatile and fast.

I see a possibility to sorta catch the sun…even if you take off late or too early to fly with solar power alone ?

Glideratio of 50 alone gives a distance of 2500 km if the glide is initiated at 50 km altitude ( at mach 1.5 for instance ).

Is this feasible ?

Troller or fantasist??:rolleyes:

I hope none of those. How about a visionary ?

Troller or fantasist??:rolleyes:

Ok more accu power it is then !

I’m sure topspeed knows what happens if he’s trolling… a month long ban.

And he’s getting very close to it being applied.

Topspeed – now I know this is all an immaculate wind-up!!:highly_amused:

No paying passenger will ever pedal…that is a certainty.

What if it is disguised as a GYM…and everyone pedalling there would pay extra..without knowing that they actually run the ships vital systems by pedalling ? :confused:

I don’t think our friend is convinced or at least claims that it wouldn’t matter because battery power would replace leg power!!

No paying passenger will ever pedal…that is a certainty.

Don’t give a certain Irish owned airline company any more ideas!! :highly_amused:

I heard this one before….: )

Firstly what you care to do when sailing with friends is totally irrelevant and secondly that assumption is just as likely to be wholly flawed as not, so hardly the basis for the viability of a serious project. I would suggest you test it before venturing much further, since it appears to stand or fall on passenger power.

It is possible..the pedal power is only 4.7 % of the total solar power…easily to be made with just extra batteries.