Alsomitra Seeds and Paper Airplanes

The Javan Cucumber or Alsomitra seed has wings and flies through the air like a well trimmed paper airplane. But also like a paper airplane, the plant has little control over where the seed flies. I'd like to try flying an Alsomitra seed as a walkalong glider if the speed is not too great.

How simple can sustained and controlled flight be?

I always wanted to be a pilot. I started 30 years ago in the traditional way spending a lot of time and money getting my pilot's license at the local airport. But after a while it was getting a bit like work having to maintain the license, going around the pattern and getting ordered around by an air traffic controller. About 10 years later I started to fly airplanes without engines. This was more like flying as the glider club was located in the country side at an uncontrolled field. I had an awesome gliding career and even got my commercial glider rating. But it was still a lot of time and money and not easy to share with other non pilot folks. It was during this time that I became acquainted with the walkalong glider, the simplest of all to both build and pilot in sustained and controlled flight. Finally I could share flight with the broadest audience, young and old. But I hope to cover not just the easiest but also popular RC indoor flying models. What do you fly?

Walkalong Glider

RC Helicopter

I feel getting close to competent at any flight requires much practice, mainly in the weather. Our assumptions are that the air is like the ground: always imovable for easy locomotion but the air is anything but like the ground. Only in cases of temperature inversions (say hotter air over a skating rink) will the air be resistant to sloshing around as you walk through it. So normally we are struggling with a moving target as the wind tosses the aircraft about.