I've hand crafted quite a few RC planes just coming up with my own designs. But the most picky on CG mixed with the center of lift changing at different speeds due to the reflex needed for proper elevator trim, yet, when right, the delta is the most stable except for yaw. Nearly impossible to stall a wing. Kind of like a canard??? maybe but better???? I'm not sure that yaw scales up to the full size though. I doubt it because the wing loading of the smaller ones is much less. I've learned to appreciate a heavier wing loading for stability.
@@garrykennedy5484 RC planes scale up almost 1:1 to full size planes. If you can build RC version of something you can build a full size version of it, provided material science is right eg, you can easily build an RC ornathopter but a full size one is impossible to build due to lack of strong enough materials for 15ft flapping wings and the forces involved. IF an RC wing make 1KG of lift, then scaled up by 10x would more 10KG of lift or 100KG if 100x same with drag.
@@tbas8741 Thank you for your response. There has to be a way with recent CAD and such that could take these plans and optimize them? Seems to me that there's a LOT of over construction in the wing design limited by the lack of a spar! I don't know because I haven't looked into the full design. But I think this design should be revisited by someone that could make an honest attempt at doing this. I hope!
Wow! I remember that like it was "yesterday" (lol). So I was 9 and into the space program while you guys were trying to build the worlds best small plane. Too bad they didn't make these things the standard. They were #1 for a while and there has to be a reason why NASA chose the Delta Wing Configuration for the Space Shuttle. That should tell you everything you need to know. If you guys could have gotten the funding, materials and engineering needed behind you I think you could have developed this configuration all the way to a launchable space vehicle that could reenter and fly back to it's destination.
@@Kyanzes yes, for a while. In High School I took 8 hours dual from a friend of my Dad's. He had his instructors license and I was his first pupil, at no charge. I only paid for gas and oil. Then, he moved to San Diego and that was the end of that. Never went any further.
@@Kopie0830 maybe you're right, but he got 17 thumbs up so I don't know if those thumbs up are for being sarcastic or maybe people think 16 mi per gallon is "AMAZING ECONOMY". Of course what makes aircraft efficient is a slippery airframe and going point to point something that a car just doesn't have going for it. I've designed an LSA that gets over 30 miles per gallon at a cruise speed of 118 knots at 8000 ft. So good MPG is achievable, you just have to select the correct trade-offs. And yes back in 1966 I bet avgas was under $0.35 a gallon. 😆
I knew John when I lived in Ohio. Not only a great mechanic, but a truly great person. I'm glad to see him getting recognition for his awesome airplane design.
I used to see him and that Delta over at Greene County Airport. Also, he hopped on my bicycle and rode it by sitting backward on the handlebars and riding it around like that, lol.
if this thing has such impressive performance with 50 years old technology, I can only imagine what can be now with 3d printing, carbon composites materials, new engine and so on...
I was just thinking weld the cage up from aluminum, and frame and skin it in carbon and kevlar, and a nice single-piece polycarbonate frozen turkey resistant windscreen. The windscreen seems the hardest piece to engineer, with my current skill-set. I'm trying to figure out how to make one float without the prop going under water, aside from having the prop above the canopy... Just a thought, but I like small amphibious planes.
This aircraft would be very easy to design and build using modern composite construction. I would say you could get it done in less than 700 hours. Also with the use of CNC machining all the complicated bits can be easily replicated with a much higher accuracy of construction.
After spending tons of time reworking the designs for your new materials to meet the same stresses & strengths & programming the machines. If the plan is to build 1 plane, it's probably more timely to just get started with the hacksaw and welder.
@@davidkottman3440Well it's pretty obvious that the design is a failure as it is not very popular because of the long build time. The way to do this is to announce that it will be a quick build kit, and builder assist will be available. Make it clear that you will launch the project if you got 50 people to sign up for the kit. Once you have 50 pilots signed up, they will need to put down a $500 refundable deposit. If you get 50 pilots to sign up I'm sure you'll be able to sell a 10 to 25% equity investment position in order to start building tools and developing the required infrastructure.
@@christophergagliano2051 it's a long build time because there's no parts you don't have to make yourself. Maybe if you'd take it upon yourself to make the kit 😜
@@Aristocrafied Well I'm currently involved with a new LSA design and I have made master tooling to include plugs, molds and parts made from the molds. The first task would be to create of a computer model of the aircraft's OML (outside mold line). From that you could machine from tooling foam the three plugs. One for the left wing and left fuselage, one for the right wing and right fuselage and one for the vertical fin. From the three plugs, you would make two molds from each plug so you would have a total of six molds. Six molds would make six actual aircraft parts that will be bonded together. This process is well known throughout the model airplane and full scale sailplane manufacturing community. The new lancer aircraft being manufactured in uvalde Texas also uses this technique, but they use carbon fiber in their construction and that makes it horrifically expensive to do. This design would not need much carbon fiber maybe some around the cabin door for added stiffness.
totally agree with you. Get a modern computer program to calculate the needed stability and use modern material (Carbon and Aluminum-alloy) to redesign the internal structure. It might get lighter and safer. I totally want such a plane... 🤩
I've known of the design for decades, but until just now, didn't realize it had folding wings! As a five time kitplane builder, I have MUCH RESPECT for anyone who scratch builds, and one who scratchs builds a completely new design is on a whole nother level!
The 50's was in my opinion, one of the most interesting era for aviation, military aircraft had litarelly days of service before becoming outdated in US at least, loads of odd shapes and just different ideas, everybody just wanted to do something new. Crazy times lol
Crazy in the sense of danger too, so many pilots lost as they pushed the boundaries beyond what the plane was capable of doing. But I agree the 50s/60s were the most exciting times in aviation, both military and civilian.
Danger maybe, but that’s the FUN!! Otherwise it’s boring!! Pushing the envelope being the best crew chief in the USAF is how one of many reasons I got a ride in the backseat of my F4E Phantom flew in the Edwards AFB and China Lake ranges did a Mach run thru Death Valley and took the controls pulling 7.5 +Gs -4 Gs and did acrobatics that almost made my own F4 pilot sick!!!! Fun times indeed!! Oh but that was in 1992 just before they closed George AFB Ca!
No. It really doesn't. Modern CFD software vividly illustrates why so many delta-wing aircraft crashed. A delta-wing is extremely mushy to handle during any sort of stall recovery maneuver, very inefficient at sub-sonic velocities, and difficult to manage during the transonic realms. We can solve the instability issues with modern fly-by-wire, but physics still dictates a very inefficient aerofoil so we'll never see this sort of design in commercial small-body aircraft due to immense fuel consumption wrt available payload and, relatively-speaking, much longer take-off/landing runway requirements. At most, a revisit would yield a ramp-toy that's fun in a straight line speed-run, but horrid in any mandatory IFR conditions akin to a Rutan Long-EZ, but without its cruise efficiency.
@@liam3284 I want one half that size that's inflatable. And a detachable recombinant e-bike as the power supply. Nitinol wire bracing/morphing for control. Nvidia Jetson AI autopilot.
I am actually kind of mad at John for not allowing his aircraft to become mainstream. It's more efficient, comfortable, faster, lighter smaller, everything a small plane should be, but can't cause he won't let it.
I don't know enough to say that he "wouldn't allow anyone", all I know is he didn't pursue manufacturing nor kit-building, and quite possibly no one really approached him to buy out the design. Keeping in mind also that in the 60s there were practically no kit-built planes either, so what he was selling was the norm for those times.
Intellectual property and decades of work is difficult to transfer to production contracts with license agreements. If you've ever tried to do this, you can understand why this may have stalled production. It's a fact of inventor/developers.
The kind of plane that is heirloom. Some lucky family member is bequeathed as pilot gets to old to fly. An amazing success story of a very talented gentleman! Thanx😊
I built 9 Experimentals before Agent Orange took over my body in '08. The first was of wood - the Taylor Titch. Very fast on a VW engine. The last was a Bakeng Duce, which I named Deuces Wild. That one was featured in Sport Aviation in about June, 2008. Extremely fun to fly. Then, couldn't pass the flight physical - taking opioids for pain is a no-no. And the AO had caused a blowout in my left atrium. Thank the Lord for the VA! But that old bug is at it again, whispering in my ear to "just build one more..." And this delta-wing beauty just might be the one.
Sorry to hear what you're going through! But you sound like you've got the stuff to get it done! Contact John's daughter Linda, her email is in the video description and she can hook you up with plans.
I'm not a pilot but my dad was. He owned a Cessna 172 back in the mid 70's. Having spent many an afternoon at the airport washing and waxing, helping with the annuals, etc., I realized flying wasn't for me. Growing up in S Florida, boats were where I really wanted to spend my time, so much so that I ended up repairing and building boats for a living. When I saw that steel tube frame and the quoted number of hours to build, I thought about how much easier it would be to build in composites. Based on some of the comments I've read here, I guess others have the same thought. I'm kind of surprised nobody has tackled that project. As an aside, I wonder how many people really want or care about folding wings? I mean, would that be the deciding factor that would make or break the deal? Not having folding wings would probably knock off a significant cost in both time and money.
Hey, I'm from Fort Lauderdale, happen to love boating myself (own a Robalo 227). Agree on the composites comment, of course keeping in context that there were no composite aircraft back in the early 60s. But I agree it could be done today. Also agree the ability to tow is probably exclusive to a very small group of owners, by leaving that out it should simplify it quite a bit.
I’d never heard of the Delta before. What a fascinating video! It seems like it was ‘half way’ between the Nasa lifting bodies from the 1960s and a conventional aircraft.
Yes it had inspiration from the NASA H10 lifting body. I remember seeing the kit ads and articles in various mags as a kid and dreamed of building one, since my older brother was a certified Master Welder and both of us mechanically inclined unfortunately life got it the way as I was an USAF aircraft crew chief on Phantoms and he had his welding business. He is now working with the US Navy and Edison Welding Institute creating a new welding university to train and certify 300,000 new welders desperately needed over the next 5 years!! So if people want a very lucrative career opportunity they need to keep their ears open searching as this program is ramping up fast!!
I am surprised that there is not a small aircraft manufacturer company not purchase the rights to build these. Imagine them with modern materials, powerplants, and avionics. I cannot imagine that there would not be a market for this.
There are HUGE legal/ government hurdles to certify a non-orthodox aircraft like this. No company would touch it. Look up the story of the Beechcraft Starship and what happened to that plane.
As a boy i Sweden I grew up seeing the deltawinged interceptor fighter SAAB Draken fly many times. So I know this is an awesome idea of an airplane concept.
Great video showcasing a really innovative and groundbreaking design. You’ve got to wonder if someone could take the concept but use composite or carbon fibre to make a new delta-wing homebuilt.
Thanks for the inspiring video! As someone who is stubbornly persistent with trying to bring my own innovations to the world, it's encouraging to see a story about someone who never gave up and built something that was well loved. Even if he chose not to make it into a commercial success, he still saw it through and made his dream reality. A lovely story.
He also had a wife who was into it and tolerated him living in the garage when he wasn't working. Those are far and few between unless they are pilots themselves. I have the skills and equipment/money to build one of these, but 2,000 hours is one full year of 40 hour weeks in addition to your regular life, so for most people, the time required is prohibitive unless you can hire help. I think they quoted 6,000 hours to build this one.
I just wanted to drop in a comment to apologize for my lack of clarity in defining what the "wing stubs" were, those were part of the folding wing mechanism. I guess I glossed that over so it's seems reasonable that many wouldn't have got that part.
@@JL-tm3rc There was contact information for the plans in the description under the video. Hope that helps. I got to fly in one of these, maybe even with the guy that invented it. I was a radio personality in Dayton, OH in the 80s. The station did a remote at an airshow somewhere near Dayton. I got to interview the man who built the plane, which was red, white and blue and looked just like one of the planes in the video. He offered to take me for a ride. It was fabulous. A Thank You God! moment.
In the early 2000s I was at Briscoe Field in Lawrenceville,Ga to take a flight in the B17 named Aluminum Overcast. Several GA planes flew in for an EAA event. One of the planes was a delta. It was likely one of these. The pilot said his father built it.
I'm sure it was, there's really nothing else like it. I've seen them at Oshkosh too a couple years back, the design was always in my mind (hence the video)
@@wickedcabinboy Very cool!!! Thank you for the no doubt many life saving and life changing things you've done for people in need!! I appreciate you!!! 😊
So glad to see this video 😅 I really really like how it gets 50% of its lift from the fusilage, cause that's the high bit😮 a very long and tall curve, would love to build a RC model of this awesome plane😅every horizontal surface creates lift
The stuff true artists are capable of... With enough creativity you can overcome any hurdle, and build something as beautiful and competitive like the JD... Mr. John, you are an Artist of magnificent qualities... Thank you for this inspiring video...
The subject reminds me of the days when people just did things, DIY, like Popular Mechanics and Popular Science showed us. You know, the 70s. Also, I enjoy your delivery very much. This video has the best mix of A-roll and B-roll footage I have seen in a very, very long time. I would be quite surprised if you auto-produced this video with AI. Thank you (and your team?) for the serious work that went into this. Couldn't help but subscribe.
Hey Chip, thanks! Means a lot to me. I put a ton of time in production, and honestly I kept tweaking the thing to death over the past few weeks, so obviously still wasn't 100% happy with the final product (but I never am, lol). My "team" is me and myself, I'm self-taught in production and still learning (the curve is super steep too). Really no ai involved, just old fashioned research and writing. Guess I'm a relic in that way.
What an innovative new design! To quote Tony Stark, "I want one." And I've never even piloted a plane! But some close friends of mine have. They'd love to fly it.
Great presentation. When I first saw the design decades ago, it looked really beautiful. But one additional downside is that is requires a long runway. Some pilots got into trouble because they weren't expecting that.
@@Primus54 Maybe that’s pilot and a light fuel load? Seems like fully loaded that wing would have a relatively high stall speed and the angle of attack on retake off means a lot of drag trying to gain speed.
Wonder what would be needed to reduce the take off requirement, increase range and performance and maybe make it easier to build. If I had the resources I'd love to see this replace modern small planes.
@@tcav3556 Some carbon fiber or other composites might help. As the video mentioned, the builder would have to weld, weld, and weld. About the only ways to reduce stall speed would be to increase the wing area, but that might detract from the elegantly beautiful design, or reduce weight. Great idea though. What a marvelous design for the early 1960s.
Never seen this plane before. I love it! I can see many ways it can be updated, and most of the welding eliminated, probably even save some weight by using composites.
What an awesome little plane, that's some good old fashioned American ingenuity right there! Modern design, manufacturing & materials could make it a lot more accessible nowadays.👍👍
@@aircraftadventures-vids I had to do a double take as we have an airforce base near us as well. Seeing a deltawing aircraft, but hearing a propeller had me very confused at first!
I have no idea about aircraft design but to conceive of an experimental home built plane that can fly your family around the country is mind boggling. This is the same guy who put a propeller on the back of a bicycle!! He must have been a very unique individual.
Thank you for this video, I really appreciated the effort put on history telling! This reminds me of the WainFan Facetmobile, Stout Batwing Limousine, Arup S4, Westland Dreadnought, Baker Delta Kitten, Verhees Deltaplane, Vought 173 Flying Pancake, and let's not forget about the Nemeth Parasol!
Thank you! And that list brought to mind another crazy looking postwar twin but the name eludes me. It was an odd design built from a Cessna Bobcat, that Howard Hughes tried and failed to buy, so he sued the designer. Ugh, can't remember the name now.
I never really liked light commercial airplanes, I was always in love with military aircraft, with the exception of this aircraft. I always wanted one of these
I got my first piece of a.... tail... under one of these in my dad's barn/hanger. It was a lot of fun to fly too... maybe that's what got that young lady interested. Like any delta wing, it has some interesting stall behavior. That's how my father got ahold of it... it was stalled on threshold final and pancaked into the runway hard enough to drive the nose wheel straight up into the airframe. I helped him rebuild it. Lots of fun.
If it was the yellow Delta with black stripes, that would've been Dave Williams' Delta, N18DW. It was never for sale. Dave built that Delta and kept it up until he passed away in July 2021. His family donated his Delta to the Florida Air Museum in Lakeland, Florida, in Sept. that year.
FYI CANADA HAD BUILT THE AVRO ARROW IN THE 1956 BUT WAS TOLD BY US MILITARY TO STOP FOR NATIONAL SECURITY REASONS. IT WAS THE FASTEST JET OF IT'S TIME!
The “ National Security” issue was American aircraft manufacturers wanted no competition - apart from Kelly Johnson, most aircraft of the 40ies to 90ies successful technology and design was stolen from the UK manufacturers , killing their businesses.
find it and let me know, I am willing to have a look into it and re engineer it for modern tools like TIG, 3D printing and similar, and yes, I am old too... lol
@@severpop8699 I have reached out to the family in hopes of purchasing the plans. Not sure where you are located but check my earlier post in here. I would enjoy collaborating on such a project as I will be building one... in one form or another.
Wow. I've been an aviation enthusiast for over half a century, yet I have never seen this before. Perhaps this video will renew interest in this fascinating machine. Imagine such a design as a kit but using high-tech materials such as carbon composites, CNC, glass cockpit, etc.
@@HarmonRAB-hp4nk You would indeed need modern materials to increase the speed, but that's simple to do as this was designed in a garage way before the era of even personal computers. A monocoque body would easily be doable with modern materials, as would simulating a wind tunnel and various ways to strengthen the design. CNC milling and fabrication could result in assembly times for a kit in the order of a few hundred hours, if that. I'm personally intrigued by a modern re-design of this idea.
The older I get, the more I realize that the generation before us was not only full of pilots, but full of private plane owners… This fills me with regret, and a deep sadness that I cannot convey. Why was my generation denied the skies? I've wanted to fly my entire life… And to suddenly find out, that it was such a real, and tangible thing for the generation before me… Honestly is heartbreaking. I wish this world had told me that I was capable of more, when I was a younger man... but I am very thankful that the generation before me got to experience what they did. God bless them all-
Great job, these are fantastic 'little personal planes', we should all have one of these babies in our home garage right next to our car or truck, I would own one myself for great personal convenience.
Some would say it's more of a flying diamond wing, than a typical delta wing. Typical delta aircraft have a longer root chord, and a more distinct fuselage.
While I do think it would have been a nice homage, I don't think the connection is more than the word Delta. The writers probably took delta from the series itself as Voyager was stuck in the Delta Quadrant.
@@aircraftadventures-vids Thanks. Still, twenty years later they should be in the same company. I can't believe nobody took him aboard, give him access to good wind tunnels and computers. Was Skunk Works discovered yet? Why did he have no help at all? Tying a model on a car, that is wasting his time. Why did the industry not help him far earlier? That is weird, all that tinkering for sooooo long.
An amazing story of shear determination showing real intelligent from experience than from having a sheep skin denoting intelligence. Such a wonderful aircraft! Certainly one that would be heirloom quality bequeathed thru family. This gentleman was far ahead of his time. Agree with other posts regarding use of modern materials & CNC equipment the construction could be significantly reduced. Yet not to many home builders have CNC at their finger tips...would enjoy a much simpler version built for 2...smaller scale....
Spectacular design; considering it was nearly 50 years ahead of it's time! Love these planes, and yes, John was right...they DO fly the way an airplane should fly; just ask the F-22 pilots today! :)
Didn't know this existed. Supercool, like a bat. Sleek and stealthy. Love it. Thanks for the education. Would love to see this updated with a small jet engine and get 1500 miles of range.
Very good, I'm very fortunate to have my Delta. And its nice to see them get the attention they deserve as well as John and the builders
Hoping this video provides them the exposure they deserve! Thanks for your time in sharing the info on your plane.
I've hand crafted quite a few RC planes just coming up with my own designs. But the most picky on CG mixed with the center of lift changing at different speeds due to the reflex needed for proper elevator trim, yet, when right, the delta is the most stable except for yaw. Nearly impossible to stall a wing. Kind of like a canard??? maybe but better???? I'm not sure that yaw scales up to the full size though. I doubt it because the wing loading of the smaller ones is much less. I've learned to appreciate a heavier wing loading for stability.
@@garrykennedy5484 RC planes scale up almost 1:1 to full size planes.
If you can build RC version of something you can build a full size version of it, provided material science is right eg, you can easily build an RC ornathopter but a full size one is impossible to build due to lack of strong enough materials for 15ft flapping wings and the forces involved.
IF an RC wing make 1KG of lift, then scaled up by 10x would more 10KG of lift or 100KG if 100x same with drag.
@@tbas8741what about 'the cube rule'?!!
@@tbas8741 Thank you for your response. There has to be a way with recent CAD and such that could take these plans and optimize them? Seems to me that there's a LOT of over construction in the wing design limited by the lack of a spar! I don't know because I haven't looked into the full design. But I think this design should be revisited by someone that could make an honest attempt at doing this. I hope!
What an absolute beauty! Carries 4 people, goes like stink, tows behind your car and fits in the garage. Wow.
fisher price fighter jet! lol
Too bad you gotten spend thousands on the pilots license....more than the cost of the delta
@@gregdowd939 - It's an "experimental" aircraft. You don't need a license to fly it.
@@AweHeckNah that is incorrect. Part 103 ultralights are the only aircraft that I know of that do not require a license in the US
@@gregdowd939 Funny thing, a medical degree is more expensive than a stethoscope!
That's a young me, at 10:00 mark, giving my U-control JD-2 model to John at Rockford in 1967.
That's cool!
Wow! I remember that like it was "yesterday" (lol). So I was 9 and into the space program while you guys were trying to build the worlds best small plane. Too bad they didn't make these things the standard. They were #1 for a while and there has to be a reason why NASA chose the Delta Wing Configuration for the Space Shuttle. That should tell you everything you need to know. If you guys could have gotten the funding, materials and engineering needed behind you I think you could have developed this configuration all the way to a launchable space vehicle that could reenter and fly back to it's destination.
Something special about that time , same age and also into design and build of planes and speedboats.
Those were the days.
Great! Did you pursue flying at all?
@@Kyanzes yes, for a while. In High School I took 8 hours dual from a friend of my Dad's. He had his instructors license and I was his first pupil, at no charge. I only paid for gas and oil. Then, he moved to San Diego and that was the end of that. Never went any further.
bro 45 gallons for 740 miles is actually AMMAAAZZING ECONOMY for a flight!!
Well I don't think 16 mi per gallon is very good. But apparently if your time is more valuable than fuel savings it could be considered acceptable.
@@christophergagliano2051 I think he was being sarcastic, I'm not sure though lol
@@Kopie0830 maybe you're right, but he got 17 thumbs up so I don't know if those thumbs up are for being sarcastic or maybe people think 16 mi per gallon is "AMAZING ECONOMY". Of course what makes aircraft efficient is a slippery airframe and going point to point something that a car just doesn't have going for it. I've designed an LSA that gets over 30 miles per gallon at a cruise speed of 118 knots at 8000 ft. So good MPG is achievable, you just have to select the correct trade-offs. And yes back in 1966 I bet avgas was under $0.35 a gallon. 😆
@@christophergagliano2051 Crazy how time flies.
@@Kopie0830 i dont think he's being sarcastic guys. Boeing 747 is 5 gallons per mile! A Chevy Tahoe is 15mpg and Cessna all get 11-15 mpg.
I knew John when I lived in Ohio. Not only a great mechanic, but a truly great person. I'm glad to see him getting recognition for his awesome airplane design.
Wow he built a tiny delta wing plane with a 180hp engine from scratch. Absolutely amazing.
Right?!
Lift to drag must be great, almost looked more diamond shape kinda ...
I used to see him and that Delta over at Greene County Airport. Also, he hopped on my bicycle and rode it by sitting backward on the handlebars and riding it around like that, lol.
if this thing has such impressive performance with 50 years old technology, I can only imagine what can be now with 3d printing, carbon composites materials, new engine and so on...
W O W ‼️‼️‼️YEAH‼️‼️‼️want the UP GRADED plans🥰
You don't have to imagine: Airbus Maveric
I was just thinking weld the cage up from aluminum, and frame and skin it in carbon and kevlar, and a nice single-piece polycarbonate frozen turkey resistant windscreen. The windscreen seems the hardest piece to engineer, with my current skill-set.
I'm trying to figure out how to make one float without the prop going under water, aside from having the prop above the canopy... Just a thought, but I like small amphibious planes.
@@cave.dweller.mediocrates As for the polycarbonate windscreen, heat up sheet until malmble then vacuum form over old.
I noticed another, probably the real reason, why the plane is slanted upwards. Not for take off, but to give ground clearance for the prop.
This aircraft would be very easy to design and build using modern composite construction. I would say you could get it done in less than 700 hours. Also with the use of CNC machining all the complicated bits can be easily replicated with a much higher accuracy of construction.
After spending tons of time reworking the designs for your new materials to meet the same stresses & strengths & programming the machines. If the plan is to build 1 plane, it's probably more timely to just get started with the hacksaw and welder.
@@davidkottman3440Well it's pretty obvious that the design is a failure as it is not very popular because of the long build time. The way to do this is to announce that it will be a quick build kit, and builder assist will be available. Make it clear that you will launch the project if you got 50 people to sign up for the kit. Once you have 50 pilots signed up, they will need to put down a $500 refundable deposit. If you get 50 pilots to sign up I'm sure you'll be able to sell a 10 to 25% equity investment position in order to start building tools and developing the required infrastructure.
@@christophergagliano2051 it's a long build time because there's no parts you don't have to make yourself. Maybe if you'd take it upon yourself to make the kit 😜
@@Aristocrafied Well I'm currently involved with a new LSA design and I have made master tooling to include plugs, molds and parts made from the molds.
The first task would be to create of a computer model of the aircraft's OML (outside mold line). From that you could machine from tooling foam the three plugs. One for the left wing and left fuselage, one for the right wing and right fuselage and one for the vertical fin.
From the three plugs, you would make two molds from each plug so you would have a total of six molds.
Six molds would make six actual aircraft parts that will be bonded together.
This process is well known throughout the model airplane and full scale sailplane manufacturing community. The new lancer aircraft being manufactured in uvalde Texas also uses this technique, but they use carbon fiber in their construction and that makes it horrifically expensive to do. This design would not need much carbon fiber maybe some around the cabin door for added stiffness.
totally agree with you. Get a modern computer program to calculate the needed stability and use modern material (Carbon and Aluminum-alloy) to redesign the internal structure. It might get lighter and safer. I totally want such a plane... 🤩
I've known of the design for decades, but until just now, didn't realize it had folding wings! As a five time kitplane builder, I have MUCH RESPECT for anyone who scratch builds, and one who scratchs builds a completely new design is on a whole nother level!
The 50's was in my opinion, one of the most interesting era for aviation, military aircraft had litarelly days of service before becoming outdated in US at least, loads of odd shapes and just different ideas, everybody just wanted to do something new. Crazy times lol
Crazy in the sense of danger too, so many pilots lost as they pushed the boundaries beyond what the plane was capable of doing. But I agree the 50s/60s were the most exciting times in aviation, both military and civilian.
Moneymen had cash to spend. And The Complex was in situ.
Crazy times indeed, but I wasn't laughing out loud.
Danger maybe, but that’s the FUN!! Otherwise it’s boring!! Pushing the envelope being the best crew chief in the USAF is how one of many reasons I got a ride in the backseat of my F4E Phantom flew in the Edwards AFB and China Lake ranges did a Mach run thru Death Valley and took the controls pulling 7.5 +Gs -4 Gs and did acrobatics that almost made my own F4 pilot sick!!!! Fun times indeed!! Oh but that was in 1992 just before they closed George AFB Ca!
Then the lawyers and politicians destroyed the industry, and innovation.
Think Hotel chains trying to destroy AirBnB.
This design desperately needs a re-visit with modern technology and manufacturing taken into account
Agreed! (and many others here in the comments think so too)
that would be freedom we don't have that anymore
No. It really doesn't. Modern CFD software vividly illustrates why so many delta-wing aircraft crashed. A delta-wing is extremely mushy to handle during any sort of stall recovery maneuver, very inefficient at sub-sonic velocities, and difficult to manage during the transonic realms. We can solve the instability issues with modern fly-by-wire, but physics still dictates a very inefficient aerofoil so we'll never see this sort of design in commercial small-body aircraft due to immense fuel consumption wrt available payload and, relatively-speaking, much longer take-off/landing runway requirements. At most, a revisit would yield a ramp-toy that's fun in a straight line speed-run, but horrid in any mandatory IFR conditions akin to a Rutan Long-EZ, but without its cruise efficiency.
This cruises at 150 knots, certainly subsonic. Though given the body produces lift, it is more like a flying wing.
@@liam3284 I want one half that size that's inflatable. And a detachable recombinant e-bike as the power supply. Nitinol wire bracing/morphing for control. Nvidia Jetson AI autopilot.
What an awesome aircraft. The landing gear is perfection, no stuck gear ever
Inspirational people come along once in a while that just make their ideas work and let the professionals scratching their head in awe..
I am actually kind of mad at John for not allowing his aircraft to become mainstream. It's more efficient, comfortable, faster, lighter smaller, everything a small plane should be, but can't cause he won't let it.
I don't know enough to say that he "wouldn't allow anyone", all I know is he didn't pursue manufacturing nor kit-building, and quite possibly no one really approached him to buy out the design. Keeping in mind also that in the 60s there were practically no kit-built planes either, so what he was selling was the norm for those times.
And why hasn’t velocity become more popular either? That’d be an excellent instrument trainer. No wing stall
Intellectual property and decades of work is difficult to transfer to production contracts with license agreements. If you've ever tried to do this, you can understand why this may have stalled production. It's a fact of inventor/developers.
The kind of plane that is heirloom. Some lucky family member is bequeathed as pilot gets to old to fly. An amazing success story of a very talented gentleman!
Thanx😊
designed to carry the family but takes 39 years to build life is such a catch 22 ....looks like a nice plane...
In today's drones and autonomous systems, I hope we'll see resurgences in personal travel designs like this, but updated with modern manufacturing.
0:16 - that one feature, eh?
I built 9 Experimentals before Agent Orange took over my body in '08. The first was of wood - the Taylor Titch. Very fast on a VW engine. The last was a Bakeng Duce, which I named Deuces Wild. That one was featured in Sport Aviation in about June, 2008. Extremely fun to fly.
Then, couldn't pass the flight physical - taking opioids for pain is a no-no. And the AO had caused a blowout in my left atrium. Thank the Lord for the VA!
But that old bug is at it again, whispering in my ear to "just build one more..." And this delta-wing beauty just might be the one.
Sorry to hear what you're going through! But you sound like you've got the stuff to get it done! Contact John's daughter Linda, her email is in the video description and she can hook you up with plans.
Your Deuce was a work of art, even the photos in Sport Aviation didn't do it justice.
VA is treating vets for Agent Orange exposure now, Google the PACT Act
I remember this aircraft! But then, I'm now 73. (I also went into Soaring with a 15 meter wing span. (50 ft) with oxygen onboard).
Damn! I did some soaring myself when I was young but not that high!
@@aircraftadventures-vids 21, 200 feet over Minden Nevada was pretty sweet. (H-301 Libelle).
I remember seeing this plane in Dayton as a boy, 13, circa 1966! I grew up there, in Trotwood ohio.
Excellent video on a lesser known plane!! The Delta is super high on my photography list!
Hope you get to see one!
I'm not a pilot but my dad was. He owned a Cessna 172 back in the mid 70's. Having spent many an afternoon at the airport washing and waxing, helping with the annuals, etc., I realized flying wasn't for me. Growing up in S Florida, boats were where I really wanted to spend my time, so much so that I ended up repairing and building boats for a living. When I saw that steel tube frame and the quoted number of hours to build, I thought about how much easier it would be to build in composites. Based on some of the comments I've read here, I guess others have the same thought. I'm kind of surprised nobody has tackled that project.
As an aside, I wonder how many people really want or care about folding wings? I mean, would that be the deciding factor that would make or break the deal? Not having folding wings would probably knock off a significant cost in both time and money.
Hey, I'm from Fort Lauderdale, happen to love boating myself (own a Robalo 227). Agree on the composites comment, of course keeping in context that there were no composite aircraft back in the early 60s. But I agree it could be done today. Also agree the ability to tow is probably exclusive to a very small group of owners, by leaving that out it should simplify it quite a bit.
I’d never heard of the Delta before. What a fascinating video! It seems like it was ‘half way’ between the Nasa lifting bodies from the 1960s and a conventional aircraft.
That certainly was the idea. Thanks for watching!
Yes it had inspiration from the NASA H10 lifting body. I remember seeing the kit ads and articles in various mags as a kid and dreamed of building one, since my older brother was a certified Master Welder and both of us mechanically inclined unfortunately life got it the way as I was an USAF aircraft crew chief on Phantoms and he had his welding business. He is now working with the US Navy and Edison Welding Institute creating a new welding university to train and certify 300,000 new welders desperately needed over the next 5 years!! So if people want a very lucrative career opportunity they need to keep their ears open searching as this program is ramping up fast!!
what an amazing design , and such a cute aircraft.
I am surprised that there is not a small aircraft manufacturer company not purchase the rights to build these. Imagine them with modern materials, powerplants, and avionics. I cannot imagine that there would not be a market for this.
There are HUGE legal/ government hurdles to certify a non-orthodox aircraft like this. No company would touch it. Look up the story of the Beechcraft Starship and what happened to that plane.
0:06 is not a mechanic's garage but a boat's engine room.
As a boy i Sweden I grew up seeing the deltawinged interceptor fighter SAAB Draken fly many times. So I know this is an awesome idea of an airplane concept.
Great video showcasing a really innovative and groundbreaking design. You’ve got to wonder if someone could take the concept but use composite or carbon fibre to make a new delta-wing homebuilt.
Absolutely! I've spoken to someone recently who discussed launching that concept. (not sure how far they are from that)
The man! Inspiring.. this is the america i use to love.
It's still out there, amidst all the noise with social media.
@@aircraftadventures-vidsGod I hope your rite
it's gorgeously functional even though it doesn't look like it at first glance. what an achievement
Id love to build one!!! 4,000 hours… someone needs to make a kit!
Agreed
Thanks for the inspiring video! As someone who is stubbornly persistent with trying to bring my own innovations to the world, it's encouraging to see a story about someone who never gave up and built something that was well loved. Even if he chose not to make it into a commercial success, he still saw it through and made his dream reality. A lovely story.
Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!
He also had a wife who was into it and tolerated him living in the garage when he wasn't working. Those are far and few between unless they are pilots themselves. I have the skills and equipment/money to build one of these, but 2,000 hours is one full year of 40 hour weeks in addition to your regular life, so for most people, the time required is prohibitive unless you can hire help. I think they quoted 6,000 hours to build this one.
You have filled a great number of dreams.outstanding job John.
I just wanted to drop in a comment to apologize for my lack of clarity in defining what the "wing stubs" were, those were part of the folding wing mechanism. I guess I glossed that over so it's seems reasonable that many wouldn't have got that part.
compounded on my puzzlement was the _lack_ of stubs on some of those models.
What a fantastic airplane! Kudos for perseverance to John and kudos to @aircraftadventures for the amazing and enthralling video!
Thank you Frank! Means a lot
I have a set of plans for this little beauty. My retirement project!
Let me know when it's done!
Where’d you get the plans?
I’ve got some interest as well.
Wow do you know where i can also get a blueprint
@@JL-tm3rc might still be available from John or his family, Fairborn OH
@@JL-tm3rc There was contact information for the plans in the description under the video. Hope that helps. I got to fly in one of these, maybe even with the guy that invented it. I was a radio personality in Dayton, OH in the 80s. The station did a remote at an airshow somewhere near Dayton. I got to interview the man who built the plane, which was red, white and blue and looked just like one of the planes in the video. He offered to take me for a ride. It was fabulous. A Thank You God! moment.
Its hard not to love delta wings, they make so much lift!
Not the first time I’ve fallen in love with one
Ah, they get you when you least expect it
In the early 2000s I was at Briscoe Field in Lawrenceville,Ga to take a flight in the B17 named Aluminum Overcast. Several GA planes flew in for an EAA event. One of the planes was a delta. It was likely one of these. The pilot said his father built it.
I'm sure it was, there's really nothing else like it. I've seen them at Oshkosh too a couple years back, the design was always in my mind (hence the video)
I live next to briscoe field!
@@T.Watts89 - I flew out of Brisco Field many times as a flight nurse.
@@wickedcabinboy Very cool!!! Thank you for the no doubt many life saving and life changing things you've done for people in need!! I appreciate you!!! 😊
So glad to see this video 😅 I really really like how it gets 50% of its lift from the fusilage, cause that's the high bit😮 a very long and tall curve, would love to build a RC model of this awesome plane😅every horizontal surface creates lift
What a remarkable man and remarkable aeroplane! It genuinely looks like a delight to fly.
Thanks for sharing, great research work.
Glad you enjoyed it
The stuff true artists are capable of... With enough creativity you can overcome any hurdle, and build something as beautiful and competitive like the JD... Mr. John, you are an Artist of magnificent qualities... Thank you for this inspiring video...
I agree 100%, and thank you for watching!
@@aircraftadventures-vids 🫡😁
The guy was an inventor, not a businessman that's for sure 😊
The subject reminds me of the days when people just did things, DIY, like Popular Mechanics and Popular Science showed us. You know, the 70s. Also, I enjoy your delivery very much. This video has the best mix of A-roll and B-roll footage I have seen in a very, very long time. I would be quite surprised if you auto-produced this video with AI. Thank you (and your team?) for the serious work that went into this. Couldn't help but subscribe.
Hey Chip, thanks! Means a lot to me. I put a ton of time in production, and honestly I kept tweaking the thing to death over the past few weeks, so obviously still wasn't 100% happy with the final product (but I never am, lol). My "team" is me and myself, I'm self-taught in production and still learning (the curve is super steep too). Really no ai involved, just old fashioned research and writing. Guess I'm a relic in that way.
I use to always see these at Oshkosh every year. I went every year 98-2018
Love the sound of the engine! That is, do it yourself good old fashion, American ingenuity, right there ladies and gentlemen👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
When built with the short stacks, they sound pretty sweet.
Is that you at 8:17?
😂😂😂😂. Nah that was just a glitch in my video software which I didn't catch before uploading the video. Lesson learned (and good eye)
Fight club reference
What an innovative new design! To quote Tony Stark, "I want one." And I've never even piloted a plane! But some close friends of mine have. They'd love to fly it.
I knew Gary, John's son. But lost track of Gary after he went into the navy. Remember seeing the plane sitting in the driveway(Fairborn, Ohio).
Thank you. If I hadn't read the title of this video, I would have had no idea whatsoever that this tiny plane design rocked the aviation world.
The first and only homebuilt that I ever wanted.....And still do.
You need to check up on Bart Verhees' Delta 2 homebuild, caused quite a stir in Europe
What a brilliant guy and design
Great presentation. When I first saw the design decades ago, it looked really beautiful. But one additional downside is that is requires a long runway. Some pilots got into trouble because they weren't expecting that.
Yeah, it truly has to be handled like a little fighter plane. You wouldn't want to take a dassault mirage into tiny strip either.
I thought the video said 1,000 ft takeoff roll?
@@Primus54 Maybe that’s pilot and a light fuel load? Seems like fully loaded that wing would have a relatively high stall speed and the angle of attack on retake off means a lot of drag trying to gain speed.
Wonder what would be needed to reduce the take off requirement, increase range and performance and maybe make it easier to build. If I had the resources I'd love to see this replace modern small planes.
@@tcav3556 Some carbon fiber or other composites might help. As the video mentioned, the builder would have to weld, weld, and weld. About the only ways to reduce stall speed would be to increase the wing area, but that might detract from the elegantly beautiful design, or reduce weight. Great idea though. What a marvelous design for the early 1960s.
Never seen this plane before. I love it! I can see many ways it can be updated, and most of the welding eliminated, probably even save some weight by using composites.
A lot of talk here in the comments on that, and I agree
7:30 WHAT!!!?? that is Amazing!! I love this guy.
What an awesome little plane, that's some good old fashioned American ingenuity right there! Modern design, manufacturing & materials could make it a lot more accessible nowadays.👍👍
Yes indeed! Hope someone can run this design once again.
Quirky looks? No. Cool looks! Love this plane!
Very interesting video, thanks so much, hi from New Zealand
Thanks for watching!
Got to see one of these fly over my house the other day, turns out there is an owner at my local airport.
Lucky you! I’d love to see on flying
@@aircraftadventures-vids I had to do a double take as we have an airforce base near us as well. Seeing a deltawing aircraft, but hearing a propeller had me very confused at first!
I have no idea about aircraft design but to conceive of an experimental home built plane that can fly your family around the country is mind boggling. This is the same guy who put a propeller on the back of a bicycle!! He must have been a very unique individual.
Still is! Spoke to him a few months ago
I am a delta wing fan myself. This plane is incredible.
Thank you for this video, I really appreciated the effort put on history telling!
This reminds me of the WainFan Facetmobile, Stout Batwing Limousine, Arup S4, Westland Dreadnought, Baker Delta Kitten, Verhees Deltaplane, Vought 173 Flying Pancake, and let's not forget about the Nemeth Parasol!
Thank you! And that list brought to mind another crazy looking postwar twin but the name eludes me. It was an odd design built from a Cessna Bobcat, that Howard Hughes tried and failed to buy, so he sued the designer. Ugh, can't remember the name now.
I never really liked light commercial airplanes, I was always in love with military aircraft, with the exception of this aircraft. I always wanted one of these
Thanks for making this video, Richard! 😊
My pleasure, and tx for checking it out!
Always one of my favorites to see at Oshkosh every year
Mine too! It was what inspired the idea for the video.
What a fantastic little plane. I have never heard of this before, but it looks ideal.
I got my first piece of a.... tail... under one of these in my dad's barn/hanger. It was a lot of fun to fly too... maybe that's what got that young lady interested.
Like any delta wing, it has some interesting stall behavior. That's how my father got ahold of it... it was stalled on threshold final and pancaked into the runway hard enough to drive the nose wheel straight up into the airframe. I helped him rebuild it. Lots of fun.
Thanks for sharing your Delta story! (and whatever else that got you, lol)
A Perfect Electric Plane!
Delta my Beloved! Love you make such great vids on oddball planes, really sparks engineering inspiration!
Thank you! I've been on a hiatus for a while, but hoping to squeeze in another video soon before my june retreat. I love making these videos.
I’m in awe of this video.
I saw one of those at Sun and fun.A few years ago. It was pretty cool.😅
You saw the one at the museum? Or it was as the airport and part of the event?
I saw the one flying it was yellow. I should have taken a picture of it, but I had no camera. This was a good thirteen years ago.
@@aircraftadventures-vids As a matter of fact, it had a 4 sale sign on it.
If it was the yellow Delta with black stripes, that would've been Dave Williams' Delta, N18DW. It was never for sale. Dave built that Delta and kept it up until he passed away in July 2021. His family donated his Delta to the Florida Air Museum in Lakeland, Florida, in Sept. that year.
@LindaMicheleBall I can't remember if it had black stripes or orange.
But I know it had a 4 sale sign on it. This was sun and fun, maybe 2012.?
Nice plane well built
What a beautiful lil plane, and a great vid!
Thanks a lot! Much appreciated
Such a beautiful machine
FYI CANADA HAD BUILT THE AVRO ARROW IN THE 1956 BUT WAS TOLD BY US MILITARY TO STOP FOR NATIONAL SECURITY REASONS. IT WAS THE FASTEST JET OF IT'S TIME!
Canada should stop listening to the fascist U.S. Government!
The “ National Security” issue was American aircraft manufacturers wanted no competition - apart from Kelly Johnson, most aircraft of the 40ies to 90ies successful technology and design was stolen from the UK manufacturers , killing their businesses.
Very nice informative video about a great design. Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
I have (or had) a set of those plans. Just don't know where they are. Loved the idea of that plane. Just knew I couldn't build one.
It's a longer commitment than a marriage! (almost)
@@aircraftadventures-vids Longer than any marriage I've had. And I'm old.
find it and let me know, I am willing to have a look into it and re engineer it for modern tools like TIG, 3D printing and similar, and yes, I am old too... lol
@@severpop8699 I have reached out to the family in hopes of purchasing the plans. Not sure where you are located but check my earlier post in here. I would enjoy collaborating on such a project as I will be building one... in one form or another.
Wow. I've been an aviation enthusiast for over half a century, yet I have never seen this before. Perhaps this video will renew interest in this fascinating machine. Imagine such a design as a kit but using high-tech materials such as carbon composites, CNC, glass cockpit, etc.
Glad you enjoyed it! And that was my intention, to bring this obscure design to light.
@@aircraftadventures-vids It would be wild if someone could put a turboprop on one of these bad boys 🤩
People looking at it from a distance probably thought it was a UFO.
So I read an article where a Delta flew over the concert, and the singer looked up and went "Oh look, a flying guitar pick"
@@aircraftadventures-vids lol
as a younger avgeek, i didn't understand why this one dude i knew LOVED this plane. but now i get it. i hope he got to buy one one day.
Fantastic design. I'd love to see a turboprop version.
Now you're talking! 😎
zoom zoom
the airframe's max speed is 200mph :-(
@@HarmonRAB-hp4nk huh! Of course, never thought of that.
@@HarmonRAB-hp4nk You would indeed need modern materials to increase the speed, but that's simple to do as this was designed in a garage way before the era of even personal computers. A monocoque body would easily be doable with modern materials, as would simulating a wind tunnel and various ways to strengthen the design. CNC milling and fabrication could result in assembly times for a kit in the order of a few hundred hours, if that. I'm personally intrigued by a modern re-design of this idea.
I crewed the F-102 for many years in the 60’s and 70’s-- great aircraft!
Wow!
I'ts gorgeous! I love this diamond-winged aircraft. Btw, I met her thanks to your IG account!
Thanks for the IG and YT visits 👍
The older I get, the more I realize that the generation before us was not only full of pilots, but full of private plane owners… This fills me with regret, and a deep sadness that I cannot convey. Why was my generation denied the skies? I've wanted to fly my entire life… And to suddenly find out, that it was such a real, and tangible thing for the generation before me… Honestly is heartbreaking. I wish this world had told me that I was capable of more, when I was a younger man... but I am very thankful that the generation before me got to experience what they did. God bless them all-
Thumbs up! Great video..
Thank you very much!
Great job, these are fantastic 'little personal planes', we should all have one of these babies in our home garage right next to our car or truck, I would own one myself for great personal convenience.
Some would say it's more of a flying diamond wing, than a typical delta wing. Typical delta aircraft have a longer root chord, and a more distinct fuselage.
That's true, it's not 100% technically a delta I guess. But, that's the name it got.
superb channel. very pleased to have found it - the just right level of detail and running time for me. thanks!
Awesome, thank you!
I guess this was what the whole Delta Flyer arc of ST:Voyager was about xD
While I do think it would have been a nice homage, I don't think the connection is more than the word Delta. The writers probably took delta from the series itself as Voyager was stuck in the Delta Quadrant.
Actually if you look at the Delta Flyer it does look very similar to this aircraft. So both statements may be true.
Been ages since seen STVoy but does seem to click together. Tom did enjoy flight & was the primary designer iirc.
Wow, how did I miss this in my 60 years? I want one 😂
He should have called Ruton. They did exactly the same. Design fast planes for people who were not billionairs.
Totally agree 😅
Burt Rutan was a toddler at the epoca... lol
Rutan began his aviation journey 20 years later. Rutan could have consulted with John!
@@aircraftadventures-vids Thanks. Still, twenty years later they should be in the same company. I can't believe nobody took him aboard, give him access to good wind tunnels and computers. Was Skunk Works discovered yet? Why did he have no help at all? Tying a model on a car, that is wasting his time. Why did the industry not help him far earlier? That is weird, all that tinkering for sooooo long.
An amazing story of shear determination showing real intelligent from experience than from having a sheep skin denoting intelligence. Such a wonderful aircraft! Certainly one that would be heirloom quality bequeathed thru family. This gentleman was far ahead of his time. Agree with other posts regarding use of modern materials & CNC equipment the construction could be significantly reduced. Yet not to many home builders have CNC at their finger tips...would enjoy a much simpler version built for 2...smaller scale....
I agree, it's an amazing saga and very few stories like this in this day and age. (not to take away from modern
builders like Patey and such)
Spectacular design; considering it was nearly 50 years ahead of it's time! Love these planes, and yes, John was right...they DO fly the way an airplane should fly; just ask the F-22 pilots today! :)
Well said!
Didn't know this existed. Supercool, like a bat. Sleek and stealthy. Love it. Thanks for the education. Would love to see this updated with a small jet engine and get 1500 miles of range.
Thanks for the comment! Would never work as a jet, sadly.
Those fight club 1 frame cuts though lol
Sadly I just caught some video rendering errors which I should have spotted before I published it. Oh well, lesson learned.
Wow, what a great video 👏👏 I've never heard about this airplane before I wish one day I could see one of those in person.
Thanks, Tato! They are pretty incredible, I saw one at Oshkosh a few years ago.
Absolute masterclass video....loved it every bit
Thank you! And tx for watching
Nice... I have to wonder though... what is it's stall speed? and what is it's landing speed?
I would like to know that as well 😅
It was about 60 kts, you had to bring in quite a bit of speed for landing so yes it required a generous amount of runway.