May 16 1980
From The Space Library
Space News for this day. (1MB PDF)
Aviation leaders from across the United States attended a banquet at the Washington Hilton, Washington, D.C., to honor Dr. Paul B. MacCready, designer of the Gossamer Condor and Gossamer Albatross, who won the Robert J. Collier trophy for the first human powered flight across the 22-milewide English Channel. Master of ceremonies was NBC news correspondent Peter Hackes, a fellow enthusiast of sail planing. The audience saw the film of the Channel flight and applauded the touchdown of the Albatross on the beach at Cap Gris Nez, France. MacCready accepted the trophy for himself and for the "engine" of the Albatross, cyclist Bryan Allen, who was unable to attend.
MacCready reported that NASA was negotiating to use his backup aircraft Gossamer Albatross II in tests aimed at design and operation of a remotely powered vehicle at 100,000 feet altitude. The Albatross's extremely light weight "exaggerates the apparent mass effects in stability and control, and also the effect of turbulence on wing efficiency." "These are areas heretofore unexamined and deal with phenomena never before encountered," he added. (NAA newsletter May/June 80; NAA Release May 19/80)
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