New Personal Mono-Wing 263
geekRECON writes to tell us that a new lightweight mono-wing is being tested by special forces as an aid to parachute deployment. From the article: "Fitted with oxygen supply, stabilization and navigation aides, troops wearing the wings will jump from a high-altitude transport aircraft which can stay far away from enemy territory - or on secret peacetime missions could avoid detection or suspicion by staying close to commercial airliner flight paths."
Bad ass!! (Score:2, Funny)
Here come the "I'm Batman" jokes :)
http://psychicfreaks.com/ [psychicfreaks.com]Re:Bad ass!! (Score:2)
I'm the goddamn Batman!
Age twelve.
Re:Bad ass!! (Score:2, Informative)
Died when his parachute fouled up. Famous last words:"I feel as safe as you would in your grandmother's kitchen."
Re:Bad ass!! (Score:3, Funny)
I mean, wouldn't it be better to write it in C? Or maybe even use Java?
What's a wing, anyway? Is that a new framework with which I'm unfamiliar, or is it some new DoD language? Is Wing Ada.net?
Special forces to use strap-on... (Score:5, Funny)
Hyuck hyuck hyuck.
Seriously, looks like a hell of a lot of fun.
Re:Special forces to use strap-on... (Score:3, Funny)
Yeah some things pretty much write themselves;-)
Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:4, Insightful)
Truly, war is peace.
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:5, Interesting)
President George Washington
first annual address to Congress, January 8, 1790
In pace, ut sapiens, aptarit idonea bello.
"In peace, as a wise man, he should make suitable preparation for war."
Horace
Qui desiderat pacem, preparet bellum.
"Who desires peace should prepare for war."
Vegetius De Rei Militari III
Funny how these quotes rarely are posted or modded up on slashdot, yet Orwell here has been beaten to a bloody pulp.
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:3, Insightful)
Because they're obvious. How many times have you heard someone on Slashdot say we should disband the military? I'm sure some very deep things have been said by some scholarly men about how delicious peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are, but unless someone takes the position that they're bad, it doesn't make a ton of sense to quote them.
The complaints are generally about how the US has hist
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:2)
I agree entirely.
And BTW, this story is not about the US's toy, it's a German toy being used by the Brits.
I'm aware. I said "generally." Or some word like "generally", I don't feel like going back and checking my exact phrasing. The GP spoke in terms of slashdot tendencies, and I followed suit.
the predictable US-bashing c
Peace from strength (Score:2, Flamebait)
With two regimes, like in the cold war, a show of strength on both si
Re:Peace from strength (Score:2)
YEs, just like Saddam, pol pot, idi amin, stalin etc.
"Only supernatural intervention can turn around the human condition."
That certainly seems like a defeatist attitude to me. I for one think it's possible for humans to reason with each other and I think God (I am pretending he does exist and is the god of the christians) did too. He ga
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:2)
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:4, Funny)
Extraordinary rendition (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:2)
Espionage, spying, extracting a turncoat....
As for other peaceful missions. The US military helped out after the south east asia earthquake, Hurricane Katrina and other times simply because they are capable of getting many places and moving supplies quicker than most others. Something like this could be useful for first responders heading into an area just to find out what the status is. At least for areas where a helicopter couldn't necessarily land, anyway.
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:3, Interesting)
One of the jobs of the CIA is basically peacetime war activities. As simple like that. Trying to stop a war. Trying to start a war. It really all depends on the time of day.
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:2, Funny)
Special Forces quasi-mission statement (Score:2, Informative)
"Special Forces have the ability to be virtually everywhere at once; this guarantees that they are the first on the ground or already at a crisis location when trouble starts.
Their missions include direct action operations, unconventional warfare, special recon, and counter terrorism. Their skills and training give them a thorough knowledge of foreign languages, customs and cultures. In addition, they are the masters of training and organizing insurgents, surrogate fight
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:2)
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:3, Insightful)
Don't worry though. Whenever I despair about nukes I do the following exersize which helps
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:2)
In the UK we'd be moaning about what it will cost.
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:3, Interesting)
Taking out Saddams nuclear fuel processing plants before he has nukes (1982?). That required a lot of co-ordination between Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia to turn their heads as Israeli jets flew over those countries to/from the bombing mission in Iraq. No one wanted Saddam to have nukes.
Basic dirty tricks stuff you gotta do so that you don't end up like Sri Lanka.
Re:Secret Peacetime Missions? (Score:3, Informative)
Just one question (Score:2, Interesting)
Just thought I'd ask.
Re:Just one question (Score:5, Insightful)
Who said anything about legitimate?
Re:Just one question (Score:4, Insightful)
Helping Americans find a cheap tank of gas??
Re:Just one question (Score:2)
Re:Just one question (Score:2)
You live in Cuba?
Re:Just one question (Score:2)
Re:Just one question (Score:2)
The Brits do HALO jumps in Norway/Sweden. It's a High Altitude/Low Opening jump. Basically they free fall below the terrain high points before opening! I think thy refer to it as character building. The interesting part is how they exit the plane, as the plane performs a high load turn they jump and are catapultated many miles away from their jump point. The idea being they dis-embark in friendly air space but land in occupied territory. Sort of makes you wonder why they chose Norway/
Re:Just one question (Score:5, Funny)
Let's see... After a long, cold free fall, would you rather land:
a.) in a country of ubiquitous saunas and beautiful women
b.) in England
Re:Just one question (Score:3, Insightful)
You do that, and expect to have your leader assassinated too. It's happened before.
Not too close now (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Not too close now (Score:2)
*splork*
*crackle* Mayday Mayday United 354 Heavy, we just hit a UFO and we're going down!
Hope that places your finger
-nB
I for one... (Score:4, Funny)
From ACME! (Score:5, Funny)
Acme! [rr.com] The only Batman outfit worn by bats!
Re:From ACME! (Score:2)
Re:From ACME! (Score:2)
Book (Score:3, Informative)
For full disclosure, I work for the publishing company, but this is a really fun read.
Obligatory (Score:2, Insightful)
Won't somebody think of the birds? (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Won't somebody think of the birds? (Score:2)
Up in the Air, Junior Birdmen... (Score:3, Funny)
Fuck hazard pay, is there "OMG I look like a dork!" pay?
k.
Re:Up in the Air, Junior Birdmen... (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Up in the Air, Junior Birdmen... (Score:2)
I think if he got his suit chromed, he'd be the spitting image of "Hawk" Masterson from the old Captain Power TV series, and be able to fight off a few Bio-Dreads.
It might look a little clunky, but especially with some miniature turbines a la the "Birdman" video, this would be *really* cool to try out.
Where's the fighter version? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Where's the fighter version? (Score:2)
Re:Where's the fighter version? (Score:2)
Why not? After all if some dumb grunt can fly it...
Why this will never be used (Score:3, Insightful)
This sounds a lot like one of the things that eggheads who never go to the front lines think would be super-cool or a "killer app".
First and formost, this would add surprisingly little in the way of capabilities to the units that already insert from high altitude aircraft. A HAHO (High Altitude, High Opening) jump has nearly this glide range anyway, and uses tried and true, proven technology. The standard "killer app" of HAHO is the ability to fly the plane in or near commercial lanes in the airspace of another country and glide across the border into the place where we aren't supposed to be. You might be able to guess how often this is actually used outside Tom Clancy novels.
Second and probably most damning, the major problem with HALO and HAHO insertions is the fact the you can't bring very much gear with you on the jump; extra gear screws up the aerodynamics something fierce. You can jump some gear, but the more you jump the more trouble you'll have. Now take a look at the guy in the picture in TFA. This guy could jump in with a sidearm and a first aid kit, maybe adding a cell phone if he wanted to get froggy.
Do you know the average weight of the gear carried on insertion by SF teams in the opening days of Afghanistan? Including weapons, ammo, body armor, hundreds of thousands of dollars cash, water, food, and clothing, it often exceeds the operator's body weight until the team has a chance to cache some of their gear. The things that make an SF team useful in a modern warfare environment are heavy and bulky.
Do you wonder at all why most units insert on helicopters almost exclusively now?
These wings will be used often in movies and books, and almost never in real life by real soldiers who have to deal with their limitations.
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2)
Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2)
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2)
200 lbs, Where? Real equipment wouldn't fit. (Score:2)
Real equipment is bulky, not just heavy. Being able to carry a 200 lb brick of gold put directly in the center of gravity of the wing is very different from being able to carry a mission capable rucksack, laser target designator, and any
Re:200 lbs, Where? Real equipment wouldn't fit. (Score:3, Insightful)
You give your extra equipment its own set of wings with UAV electronics and let it follow you.
> And parachutes have almost nil radar signature.
But they leave you hanging up there all night instead of gliding to your target at aircraft speeds.
Re:200 lbs, Where? Real equipment wouldn't fit. (Score:2)
That's the one benefit of this technology over HAHO as I see it, assuming you can actually pack as much equipment as the developers say you can. I just know military equipment designers and I sincerely doubt that the amount they claim at this point in development is going to be the amount usable in practice.
Actually thinking about it, I think your radar signature would be bigger with this apparatus than w
Re:200 lbs, Where? Real equipment wouldn't fit. (Score:2)
Re:200 lbs, Where? Real equipment wouldn't fit. (Score:2)
The one in the picture looks like it might be a bit small, depending on what you want to carry. It's probably the crossing-the-channel-as-a-publicity-stunt model though.
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:3, Informative)
You might want to read the article instead of just looking at the pretty pictures.
They claim that up to 200lbs of gear can be stowed in the wing itself.
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2)
You did note that they land on a regular parachute, right? Sticking the landing at 200 mph might be a bit tricky. Also, 200 mph forward glide speed at a 6:1 glide ratio means you're going DOWN at 30 mph.
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2)
But my main disagreement is this: they will also be used at air shows.
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2)
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2)
There's a reason why plane-shaped bricks refuse to fly.
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2)
Given sufficient thrust, even a brick can fly.
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2)
Given the right control law, even a brick can glide. Consider the Space Shuttle.
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2)
Re:Why this will never be used (Score:2, Informative)
Though i agree with you that they probably won't be used much, if at all in real world applications, I disagree totally with your reasons.
The article disgrees with your reasons as well, maybe you should have read it.
Comment removed (Score:5, Funny)
Re:All They Need To Invent Now... (Score:2)
Re:All They Need To Invent Now... (Score:2)
Seriously: With the turbo add-on mentioned in the article, a launcher to accellerate the trooper up 200 MPH and launch him angled slightly upward would mean he could take off from a ground site rather than jump from a plane.
Re:All They Need To Invent Now... (Score:2)
ThinkGeek link please ? (Score:3, Funny)
Screw airdiving (Score:2)
Re:Screw airdiving (Score:2)
Wing Suits (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Wing Suits (Score:2)
Da Vinci (Score:2, Insightful)
I GOTTA GET ME ONE OF THESE!!! (Score:2)
I can't wait... (Score:2)
starship troopers (Score:2)
Deja vu. (Score:2)
Not good enough. (Score:2)
We were definitely promised jet packs.
*Personal* jet packs.
You scientists can't fob us off with a pair of unpowered plastic wings - even if they are painted black and worn with a cool black suit and helmet.
It's just NOT good enough.
I clearly remember being PROMISED personal jet packs.
Bah.
Don't forget the flying cars! (Score:2)
I've seen this before (Score:4, Funny)
Bond, James(greenscreen) Bond (Score:2)
on at a moments notice zoom for 23 seconds, land lightly on
the balcony of a magnificent mountainside stronghold/resort,
toss off the wings, strip down to his tux, slip inside and
kiss some bimbo. Damn I want that job.
Details on this and info on next version (Score:2)
From: ESG gives you wings - the parachute system for special operations [www.esg.de]
In the future, high-tech wings will make it possible for parachutists to quickly cover a distance of up to 200 kilometres. (Berlin, 15 May 2006)
ESG Elektroniksystem- und Logistik-GmbH and Dräger (both part of the SPELCO Consortium) have designed a parachute system for the special operations units of the German Bundeswehr.
Air speed... (Score:2)
An airliner might typically fly at around 900km/h, but will this glider be able to match an airline signature? Speed, return signature alluding to size and transponders will be required to look like an airliner. Also, the spec-ops guy might get sucked into the engine of one of those airliners or actually be eye-balled by airline pilots.
I think the spec-ops guys should be dropped from space, in something that looks like a big ro
Flying home from work, anyone? (Score:2)
Anyone to cross the Hudson from, say, the top of the Empire State building? Getting permission to do that from the building's owners might be difficult, but if that weren't a problem, would you do it?
KAMIKAZI terrorists (Score:3, Insightful)
Now wait for the legislation banning these from sale to the general public for "anti terrorist" reasons.
Some politician will read this and think
What a world we live in!
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re:No Anime Fans (Score:2)
Re:Is it a bird? Is it a plane? (Score:2)
I can see the movie now, some Afghani version of Rambo, parachuting into Guantanamo to free the POWs. Oh how history repeats itself...
Re:What About Gyroplane? (Score:2)