[QuienesSuPa]

Has anyone every heard of someone launching an HG from a building? Seems like a "cliff launch" off something reeeealy high could be AWESOME!

flying weather skunked us today...

BJ

[Windlord]

Wow! This thread brings back memories.
Back in the mid 70's, I launched off the roof of one of the super market chains
I was working for, as a Grand Opening stunt.
Of course then, it was like using a beach umbrella with just a short glide/float down into the parking lot.
Had the store logo on the wing and streamers from the tips. The kids loved it.
Had to run like a biatch to get airborne.

[DanTuck]

Living in Charlotte, I think about that a lot. The Bank of America building is over 800' tall.
Somehow I think the authorities would frown upon it though.
Whatever, I'm just gonna bandito the muthaf**ka.

[Imaposer]

I’m assuming you mean like a skyscraper? I know base jumpers do it so I'd be surprised if no one had ever launched a glider from one. The difference being that with base jumpers they can gather up their chute, jump in a car and skedaddle before the cops arrive and tote them off to jail. Our break down times would definitely be a detriment unless of course you could catch some lift and fly far enough that it was too much trouble for them to bother tracking you down. Of course you could get a glider like from the other thread for cheap, land and leave it. Or just pony up and pay the fines. Of course there may be places without laws against it in the first place, IDK.

Then there is the problem of getting the glider to the roof in the first place. Won’t fit in an elevator or make the turns in most stairwells unless it short packs.

This would probably be one area where a PG would have an advantage.

[xerxes]

Atlanta would be a great place for this. Olympic park is about a block away from the Westin:

[SlopeSkimmer]

Take your pick and call me if you got room for one more crazy pilot, cause I'll do it.

[QuienesSuPa]

Windlord, you are now my idol.

Those buildings are some beaut's! I'm guessing you could get a shortpacked falcon or something up a skyscraper w/o too much trouble. Hopefully a cheap falcon. I'd love to see peoples faces, drinking their morning coffee working on TPS reports and seeing a wingtip scratching by the window.

Anyone else launched off a building?!! Even a 3 story would be so dang fun!

I've also thought about how a nice a roof could be for landing. Uphill and into the wind. Anybody heard of that happening?

Wow.
BJ

ps. We had a TV station or someone with some big equipment come video a bunch of us launching my local site Saturday. I'll let ya'll know if anything hits the big screen!

[QuienesSuPa]

The Shanghia finance center (4th from the left) looks perfect with the "worlds highest observation deck". BOOOYAH? Think they'd pay to get one of us out there for an advertising stunt??

Now we're talking..

BJ

[axo]

What about rotors and turbulence because of the buildings around?

[peanuts]

been there,etc. some considerations: due to the flat roofs of most buildings, your wing ain't gonna be flying when you cross the edge. solution: sloped and elevated ramp. if your keel don't clear, you'll get to experience nose dive from hell. solution: ramp. if you stall your launch, you will again experience dive along with surface suck as in bernoulli. you will only get one chance for landing spot/approach, and more than likely, obstacles won't be small bushes or anything soft

our speriment was only 8 stories, so we were able to use stairwell.

good luck, you better have all bases covered

[QuienesSuPa]

Axo,
Buildings and wind are for sure a consideration. Something like that, if I was serious, would be a no-wind morning thing to avoid funny air b/c those big things would make for interesting flying... However, in no wind, it sure looks like that big hole in the Shanghai building would be AWESOME to fly through!.

Interesting Peanut. Someday I'll get an opportunity to do more cliff launches with some experienced guys. Makapuu was one, but that's in wind. No wind would be totally different I"m sure. There's guys around here that huck off Dead Horse Point in Utah in no-wind. I'm hoping to get out there some day with them... Seems like once you get comfy with no-wind cliff launches, then Utah could be a playground of cliff launches!!! And Downtown...

Later,
BJ

[Paul H]

I have always thought that hangar 2 at Moffett Field is the right size and shape to provide some good ridge lift. That's the wooden hangar that is closest to the runways, on the east side of the airfield. There is a lot of open space up wind of it so the air should be pretty smooth kind of like at the coast. The Navy would never have allowed it, but I wonder what NASA would say to it now that it controls the field.

[Alan]

Most skyscrapers have a service elevator with a removable ceiling -- you could load several HGs no problem standing on end. Even on the top floor there is usually plenty of clearance to the shaft's ceiling.

The bigger hurdles are insurance indemnity, local ordinances, etc etc. Not only for the launch but the LZ, which will almost certainly be a public park.

If this is going to happen it would almost have to be in cooperation with the building owners, and unless they were themselves HG enthusiasts they would have to have some sort of PR value for them.

At one point I thought that the top of the Stratosphere tower in Las Vegas would be a good launch, but having looked at their floor plan it is too crapped up with barriers and other attractions to be workable. No room to set up a glider much less launch one. However a tandem-ride operation would be a big attraction for them.

[jjcote]

And then there's FAR part 103.15

[MorphFX]

Didn't someone launch from the CN Tower in Toronto? I think I saw a video of someone doing it from a ramp built on top of the tower when I visited some years ago.

EDIT: I thought so....
http://www.efootage.com/play-stock-footage-clip/58103/aerialaerialsrecreationhanggliderglidershanggliderhanggliders

[mapjim]

[RPBC Flight Division]

[psilyguy]

[RPBC Flight Division]

I'm trying like mad to find this pepsi commercial online. If anyone else has any luck, post it here!

[HangDog]

Look at the building on your left