Quote:
Originally Posted by stiletto2
Because of friction, contact with the ground resisting relative air movement and air drag, vehicles on the ground "feel" the wind more and its effects when it is not going the same way as their direction of travel. We try to do what we can to be slipperier and less affected by the air from any direction. (but stay firmly on the ground)
|
One way to reduce weather vaning is to reduce the tail area ... which is of course contradictory to streamlining the ride.
But a slippery glider forward fuselage would have little (or rather , less) wind resistance from the sides than most other shapes.
BTW:
I've seen a Fieseler Storch do your trick years ago when flying was still allowed at airshows
And a Harrier, but that's not as impressive as they are cheating with thrust vectoring, it's just a lot noisier.
After Rammstein and more locally Ostend, the European airshow scene has become pretty lame.