UNIVERSITY AND SCHOOLS
HEAVY LIFT CHALLENGE 2008
THE COMPETION BEGINS
On the 7th of June, teams representing a number of Universities and schools from around the country descended on the Yorkshire Air Museum at Elvington near York for the first day of the 2008 Heavy Lift Challenge.
The Saturday is the chance for the teams to present their aircraft to a panel of expert judges, teams are allocated 7 minutes in which to cover the design, material selection and build of their aircraft.
During their presentation, teams are not permitted to use any props or aides other than the aircraft itself, the majority of the teams put on very professional presentations and the day culminated with a very sociable buffet followed by some free time to take a look around the museum (for those who have never been the Yorkshire Air Museum is a very interesting day out with lots of excellent exhibits on show).
TESTING TIMES
Strathclyde 'Team Egghead'
As each team finished their presentation to the judges they were required to take their aircraft to be “scrutineered” in the next room, this involved compliancy and safety checks as well as weighing of the airframe. Also correct operation of the failsafe was established and a “passed” sticker as well as flightline vouchers for the following day were provided to each team. There were a couple of airframes with minor airworthiness issues, these were advised on and corrected by the teams on the day, we ended the day in the happy position of every aircraft present being cleared to fly on the Sunday.
THE TENSION BUILDS
Sunday morning dawned bright and clear with little wind as promised (no one believed me when I told them that I had organised good weather) and all teams assembled at Elvington Airfield gate ready to be directed to the flying area once we had established the location for the day’s activities.
The dispersal pan at Elvington is still one of the largest pieces of concrete in Europe and so provides an ideal setting for the Challenge, we set up base along one side to give us the maximum area in front of us and keep the catering tents on the grass. The various distance markers were set out and the 61 metre lines were established for the take off and landing as well as the startup and fuelling boxes. The competitors line was a hive of activity and it was heartening to see how focussed the teams were as they prepared their aircraft (I particularly liked the team who had their own T shirts printed with their “Thieving Rooster” logo and team name on the back).
Everyone gathered at 10.00am for a briefing on the day’s proceedings, whilst we try to keep the day fairly informal there are obvious safety aspects to cover as well as the format for the competition. Everything was set for a 10.30 first launch and the temperature was steadily rising, it promised to be an entertaining, if rather hot day.
BATTLE COMMENCES!
Alastair Sutherland preparing for flight.
First up to fly was Strathclyde Team E “Airforce Fun” in the IC Heavy Lift Challege, this part of the event gives each team the opportunity to fly their aircraft and demonstrate that it will lift the predicted weight that they had submitted as part of their presentations the day before. The engine permitted is a standard Irvine 40 and the airframe must be able to fit into a box measuring 2500 x 2500 x 750mm.
The high payload weights involved ensures that most of the aircraft are unwieldy beasts with poor handling and marginal power (I suspect that the pilot’s description would go considerably further but not be printable in a family magazine!)
The Team E aircraft was placed in the startup box and was soon being tuned for maximum RPM, it was wheeled out to the flightline and pilot Alastair Sutherland gave the “nod” and opened the taps. When the aircraft proceeded along the runway with all the speed and grace of a slightly arthritic tortoise we began to wonder whether the team’s predictions had been a little on the optimistic side, the 61 metre line was (slowly) approaching! Then in a flash of piloting wizardry Alastair coaxed the lumbering giant into the air and there was a huge cheer from the assembled throng, but alas, it was short lived as gravity cast an unwelcome eye over the proceedings and deposited the aircraft in several bits on the edge of the runway, it could only get better.
WELL OILED MACHINE
From then on the I/C class proceeded in a more auspicious fashion, teams were well prepared and ready when summoned to the fuelling station, the pilots started to get into the “groove” and most of the aircraft were persuaded into the air without too much drama.
Bob Nash in the start-up box.
The competition rules specify that the aircraft must be flown in a large rectangular(ish) circuit with an opposite direction orbit on the downwind leg, sounds easy, certainly no problem with your Wot 4 or 3D Hype, but try it with a model carrying an extra 7Kg of weight on board that won’t climb above 20 feet! There was many a bead of sweat to be seen on the pilots, and it wasn’t just the heat!
The rules state that the aircraft have a 61 metre distance in which to become airborne and a distance of 122 metres in which to land, this can test the undercarriage to the limits given the huge payload carried. Most of the aircraft present utilized thin, aluminium wheels (some complete with ball bearings for that totally friction free take off roll!) these proved a weak point in several cases with many a stray wheel or tyre making a break for freedom across the Elvington concrete, Strathclyde’s Team G “Fear and Panic” lost it’s undercarriage altogether.
This year saw a good variety of aircraft taking part with mostly high wing monoplane designs, some twin boom and some conventional, also for the first time (as far as I know) a biplane was entered which did very well and was beautifully built and finished. The aircraft that received the most cheering had to be the Sheffield Hallam University entry, I don’t think many of those present had ever seen an aircraft covered in checked Fablon and using 3” brass hinges on the controls before! But it flew ……. Sort of.
IN SEARCH OF THE PERFECT OMELETTE
Next up was the Electric Egg Lift competition, this element has undergone a complete rework and has evolved from the original Electric Lift. The teams all use a standard permitted power package (E Flight Power 10 motor and 40 amp speed controller) and the aim is to design, build and fly an aircraft to transport as many standard hen’s eggs around a prescribed course as possible in a 10 minute time slot.
The teams had taken varying approaches to the problem, from storage in the wings, to fuselage mounted trays; the one thing that struck me was that they all carried a lot of eggs! Had we bought enough?
The first slot got underway with a mad rush by St Josephs College Team B to load the eggs from the “out tray” into their aircraft (all part of the challenge); they had gone for a clever system of carrying the eggs between each rib in a foam lined bay with flip up hatches for quick and easy loading. They managed to transport a total of 114 eggs around the course in the 10 minute time slot, a pretty impressive start!
ENTHUSIASM OVER PHYSICS!
Team “Egghead” from Strathclyde had gone for the “pile em high” approach with a total egg load of three dozen; would there ever be enough runway to see daylight under the wheels? Once again the intrepid Mr Sutherland stepped up to the “ochey” whilst the team armed the speed controller, it looked full of promise as the model set off across the concrete at a fair turn of speed, and rolled ……. and rolled! No aviation occurring there then, I think the team reached the conclusion that they had “over egged the pudding” (sorry about that). The team retrieved the aircraft and reduced the payload considerably and managed to transport 18 eggs in the time remaining.
Strathclyde's Thieving Rooster.
Alleynes School had chosen an interesting approach with a low wing aircraft incorporating a fuselage mounted, top accessible tray carrying a dozen eggs, this aircraft was very quick under the piloting skills of Chris Poyser and was reminiscent of a pylon racer as it rounded the flagman at each turn point, but it would ultimately prove to be their downfall!
Last up was Strathclyde team “Thieving Rooster” with their very attractive T tailed aircraft, this proved to be a very capable aircraft with a good balance of load capacity and manoeuvrability, they accumulated a total of 113 eggs safely around the course within the 10 minutes allocated.
REFRESHING THE INNER MAN (AND WOMAN)
As soon as the two rounds were completed it was time for the lunch break, this year we had organised a model flying display for the benefit of the students. This was organised by Andy Symonds and some good gents from the BMFA Northern Area. The display included a good range of models, sport, scale, aerobatic and a couple of jets. This was very well received and proved a popular addition with those present, my thanks to the gents that contributed to this part of the proceedings.
An excellent lunch was provided by Rachael Jackson who catered admirably for the hoards of hungry and thirsty students all day; very soon it was time for round two to begin.
ONCE MORE INTO THE FRAY
The afternoon’s proceedings got underway with the second round of the Heavy Lift; now the pressure was on as the aircraft were flying with the maximum weight on board and were clearly reluctant to part with Mother Earth.
More mishaps ensued but a good proportion of aircraft put in successful flights thanks to the skills of the pilots, again many a stray wheel could be witnessed on a break for freedom across the airfield and the design of the undercarriage is something that should certainly receive more attention when designing aircraft capable of lifting such high weights.
St Josephs College Team B model appeared to be flying nicely until it suffered a suspected elevator failure, unfortunately there was nothing salvageable from the wreck which was spread liberally over the concrete, proceedings were halted for a few moments whilst the team cleared up the remains and walked in a solemn procession back to their pits area.
A pleasing aspect was the support from all assembled and the cheering as each aircraft commenced it’s takeoff roll, there was a real “team” atmosphere to the whole competition.
MORE EGGCITEMENT!
The rise before the fall!!
The second round of the Egg Lift got underway and it was clear that there was everything to play for, the two teams at the top were neck and neck and both were keen to improve on their score from the first round. They had all learnt from their mistakes in the first round and now put on a very polished performance, particularly in their loading and unloading strategy. Team Egghead from Strathclyde University had reduced their payload to a more realistic level and now put in some good flights with their aircraft (I really liked their airframe, very pretty in a functional sort of a way and very nicely built).
Alleynes School were called to fly and loaded their aircraft in readiness for another high speed dash around the pylons, turn one was successfully rounded with a raised flag of acknowledgement but as pilot Chris Poyser “banked and yanked” for turn two the combined weight of the airframe and a dozen eggs proved just too much for the wing spar to bear! The high speed dive onto the concrete was spectacular to say the least and I had to feel sorry for the team as they stood heads in hands, it didn’t seem to lift their spirits when someone commented that they may now hold the record for the worlds thinnest omelette!
Team “Thieving Rooster” and St Josephs College were neck and neck and managed 155 and 153 eggs around the course respectively; it was definitely tight at the top!
Again it was pleasing to see the level of support and everyone assembled to watch and cheer the proceedings, the departure and arrival trays were becoming rather a sticky mess as the teams broke eggs in their rush to get each aircraft into the air for another lap.
AND IN THE END?
And so the day was done, all the flying was completed and it just remained for the judges to finalize the scores and the winners to receive their awards.
Dr Matt Strickland receiving the prize painting.
The winning team in the IC Heavy lift was Strathclyde Team I, with a total combined score of 257.42 points; their aircraft had lifted a massive 7.3 Kg payload into the air!
Both second and third places also went to Strathclyde aircraft with 181.72 and 160.19 points.
The Electric Egg Lift was very close, in first place with a total of 268 eggs safely around the course was Strathclyde Team B “Thieving Rooster” in second place was St Josephs College Team B with 267 eggs transported.
BMFA Chairman Robin Gowler was on hand to award the winners with the appropriate trophies, cheques and painting.
Each winning team member received a personal cheque as well as a substantial payment directly to the University department, the very impressive Perkins Slade trophy is awarded to the winners of the Heavy Lift and the Jetex trophy goes to the winners of the Egg Lift. A specially commissioned aviation painting by Norman Appleton is also presented.
I would like to extent my congratulations to all the teams that participated in the 2008 challenge and my thanks to the enthusiastic and committed team of volunteers who help to make this a successful event.
Photographs by Robin Gowler FSMAE and Keith Barker