Gossamer Penguin

Infobox Aircraft
name = Gossamer Penguin

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caption = Test flight of the Gossamer Penguin
type = experimental aircraft
national origin = United States
manufacturer = AeroVironment
designer = Paul MacCready
first flight = 1979
introduction =
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produced =
number built = 1
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developed from = Gossamer Albatross
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The Gossamer Penguin was a solar-power experimental aircraft created by Paul MacCready's AeroVironment. [http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/Photo/Albatross/HTML/ECN-13413.html Solar-powered Gossamer Penguin in flight] ]

The Penguin was a three-quarters scale version of the Gossamer Albatross II, and had a 71' wingspan and a weight, without pilot, of 68 lbs. The powerplant was an AstroFlight Astro-40 electric motor, driven by a 541 watt solar panel consisting of 3920 solar cells.

Initial test flights were performed using a 28 cell NiCad battery pack instead of a panel. The test pilot for these flights was MacReady's 13 year old son Marshall MacReady, who weighed 80 lbs.

The official pilot for the project was Janice Brown, a charter pilot with commercial, instrument, and glider ratings who weighed slightly less than 100 lbs. She flew the Penguin approximately 40 times before a 1.95 mile public demonstration at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center on August 7, 1980.

References