I came across a small article in a 1930s French magazine about a concept for a light plane inspired by the shape of the classic paper airplane. Here's the sketch from the article and a link to the source. While I see several flaws with that design, it did get me thinking that it might be fun to experiment with the concept.
Imagine something like a Sonex but without the wing and horizontal stabilizer but instead a parasol delta wing with elevons supported on two faired struts and the rudder post. Going for a little more aspect ratio, a pure delta 24' long and 12' span would give 144 sq ft of wing area. Clipping the delta at the nose and wingtips, a bit like the Nakamura Dart paper airplane, would provide more area and better elevon authority.
Visibility except straight up would be quite good and the hangar footprint relatively small. Yes, it would need to land at a fairly high angle of attack and would not win any soaring competitions, but it might still be a lot of fun.
Does anyone know of any such low aspect ratio delta wings tested at light aircraft size, wing loading and speed?
Imagine something like a Sonex but without the wing and horizontal stabilizer but instead a parasol delta wing with elevons supported on two faired struts and the rudder post. Going for a little more aspect ratio, a pure delta 24' long and 12' span would give 144 sq ft of wing area. Clipping the delta at the nose and wingtips, a bit like the Nakamura Dart paper airplane, would provide more area and better elevon authority.
Visibility except straight up would be quite good and the hangar footprint relatively small. Yes, it would need to land at a fairly high angle of attack and would not win any soaring competitions, but it might still be a lot of fun.
Does anyone know of any such low aspect ratio delta wings tested at light aircraft size, wing loading and speed?
