aviation

Centuries of cranks vindicated by human-powered ornithopter flight

Centuries of cranks vindicated by human-powered ornithopter flight

Although the Snowbird, made of carbon fiber and balsa wood and with a 105-foot wingspan, could hardly be described as “practical,” to me this seems like a major aviation milestone: Somebody, specifically University of Toronto PhD student Todd Reichert and co-workers, finally did it. All those old black and white “wacky inventor” blooper reels set to goofy music can eat it. [via Toronto Star]

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China’s DIY aviation community

China’s DIY aviation community

From Wired’s Autopia blog: China is home to a widespread DIY culture fed by necessity (the mother of all invention) and innovation. These garage builders and innovators are, like their products, often called shanzhai. Literally translated, it means “mountain strongholds,” but it has come to mean nonprofessional or clandestine manufacturers turning out products from the […]

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Bar from airline drink cart

Bar from airline drink cart

Todd Lappin, of Telstar Logistics, made this sweet mobile home bar from an old SAS airline galley cart he got in an aircraft boneyard. The Beautiful Utility of Airline Galley Carts

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New audio for Soviet aviation helmet

New audio for Soviet aviation helmet

In this Instructable, the author shows how he put modern haedphones into a Soviet-era SHZ-84 flight helmet. Hacking a SHZ-84 Soviet aviation helmet

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