The Kite Society Newsletter
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THE KITEFLIER THE KITE SOCIETY NEWSLETTER with MIDLAND KITEFLIERS NEWS BRIGHTON KITEFL YERS AERODYNE JANUARY ISSUE 26 CONTENTS -------- EDITORIAL • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • 2 LETTERS • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 4 QlJADR I PL.At£ • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • . • • • • . • • . • • • • • • • . • . • • • • • • • • 6 ~ AND THERE • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 7 RN1 JET' DEL. TA • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • • . • • • .. • • • • • . • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 11 .AERODYNE • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 15 ~ INTEFEST • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 17 OCTOSl...ED • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 19 t-EFE. AND T1-ERE 2 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 21 EVEN'TS LIST • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 22 SUBSCRIPTION FORI'I AND SWEATSHIRT • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • 23 The photograph on the front cover is Tom Pratts Quadriplane Delta the camera rig is about 10~ above the ground. We stock a large range of quality kites';. materials, books and miscellanea. MAKERS INCLUDE Wycombe Kite Co., Prof. Waldof, Vertical Visuals, Trlby, Flexifoil, Peter Powell, Windy Kites, Fennemore, Dan Leigh, Monday Lunch, Propius, Peter Lynn, Stratton, Gunter, Zammo. MATERIALS Our 1985 range of materials includes many new fittings: rings, swivels, fibreglass rod, dowell, ripstop tape, ripstop, tyvek etc. MISCELLANEA Books,·Model Hot Air Balloons, Boomerangs, Frisbees-all weights, greetings and post cards, clocks, earrings, brooches. KITE LINE Braided kiteline from 231b.- 15001b., Twisted line from 201b- 801b, in bulk or short lengths. Kevlar (to order). MAIL ORDER Send a stamp for a free copy of our illustrated mail order catalogue. VISITORS Very \Nelcome- see our impressive display of kites, photographs • and accessories. We are open at weekends and bank holidays too --: See catalogue for full details. THE WAREHOUSE, ST. ANN'S ROAD, GREAT MALVERN, WORCESTERSHIRE. TELEPHONE: MALVERN {06845) 65504 page 2 THE KITE SOCIETY 31 , Grange Road , I If ord, Esse x IG 1 1 EU KITE SOCIETY Dear Reader, Once again a new year is upon us and it is titae to start thinking about Mhich festivals and events to travel to. The choice looks li•itless. You c~ go to almost every country in Europe visiting major festivals. Outline details of these events can be found in t he "Here and There" section. You Mill also find details of an European delegation to China. The trip as a Nhole looks extremely good value and if you have been thinking of China .e MOUld reca..end approaching Hichael Stel zer. Of course we must not forget the festivals that are taking place on ha.e ground. The event at York looks to be extretaely good Mith a lot of naw ideas being put forward to interest the kiteflier and public alike. There i s also t he twice annual meet ings at Old Warden Aerodra.e. Ne are currently awaiting confir mation that Ki te Society .a.bers Mill be able to benfi t from f ree entrance to the Aerodrome. Everything l ooks hopeful ~d we will be abl e t o tell you in the next i ssue. In the l ast issue we included a subscript ion for• for use by non--...bers. This has proved very s uccessful and we t herefore repeat it this issue. On the aa.e page you wi ll find some i nformat ion about the Kite Society SN&atshirt. Available in grey or whi t e with the Logo printed on the left breast. See pAge 23 for details. You may 1 i ke to know that the stamps we receive are passlld on t o a di ff.-ent charity each year. Last year <1985 ) we sent over 3000 sta.ps to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution <RNL I >. THE DATA PROTECTION ACT. I f there is no objection to your na.e and addr ess being held on a coaputer f or mail ing and the Kite Society agr..s not to disclose that informati on to unauthorised persons without your per•ission t han we wi 11 not have to register as . a data user. l'letlbers are free to inspiiCt the details held for them at a reasonable notice <this is required by laM). If you have any objections to this then you IRUSt write to us stating your objection. Finally Dieppe 1986. This event is taking place on 13th and 14th Sapta.ber this year and we are once again organ1s1ng a trip to the festival. If you are interested in joining our trip then we require a £10.00 deposit par person showing your interest. All the best for 1986 Sill and Jon Bloom (Editors>. From Ted Fleming A word on the very erudite article by Stephen Smedley on kite law in the l ast April issue. It so happens that I had just coapleted a version of the 'Georges' kite described by Jean-Pierre Vandierendonck in 'Kitelines' vol 4 no 4. Stephen's notes referred to dropping of articles (bears) froa kites weighing more than 2kg, but not wishing to drop anything froa a kite I assu.ed that one MOUld be in order providing the flying height is kept below 60 8etr.s. However, later in the year I decided to purchase the Air Navigation Order 1980 to clarify, if possible, the legal require~ts for kites weighing .are than 2 kg. Not being able to see a copy of the A.N.O. at the local library I ordered one froa •Y local bookseller and ..as well and truly staggered to be charged over £16.00~. This included all the a.end.ents to date which I had ordered because I understood that there ..as one in Feb. 1981 dealing with standard markings for kites flying higher than 100 metres. However, none of the amendments sent dealt with this point and I suspect that it is a supple.ent ary regulation rather than an amend8ent to the original A.N.O. 1980. The C.A.A. had brought this regulation to our attention as a condition of granting a licence to fly up to 300 metres at the Ferry Meadows festi val. Briefly the regulations require that high flying kites (above 60 metres) shall carry a streamer attached to the flying line at every 100 metres ~asured froa the lowest point of the kite in the air. The reference of the regulation is ANO Sect2/8 Feb 1981 and the specification for the strea.er is given under Cl 14 (3) (b) Mhich says, referring to kites flown •more than 60 metres high by day• •shall have attached to the 11ooring cable" ••• "(b) at intervals of not IIKJI""e than 100 !Retres measured froa the lowest part of the kite, streamers of not less than 80 cm long and 30 cm wide at their widest point and ~ked with alternative bands of r ed and wh ite 10 Cll widen. These strea.ers will of course add to the drag on the line and would have prevented any attempt at a height record unless dispensation were granted by the C.A.A. On the question of kites heavier than 2kg it would appear that the C.A. A. has the authority to grant an "aerial application certificate• under Article 40 (2) of A.N.O. 1980 subject to its right to revoke, suspend or vary same under article 59, and under 40<3> to require the provision of an "oper ation manua l". Article 40(3) says that operating staff shall follow the instructions of the operations manual. Article 40(4) says that "operati ng staff" has the mean i ng ascribed to it by article 24<4> but article 24 only r efers to registered public transport aircraft on flights e>:ceeding 60 mi nutes duration. However i f you are still with me, reader s, you wi ll hear mor e of this saga after I apply for an "aeri al application certificate". ::::::::::::::::::::::: ::: : ::::: : :::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::::::::::: From John Spendlove Just a quick point about winders. Although reels are .are convenient in ~ ways, they are bulkier (usually> and normally heavier and more expensive, so, on balance I must agree with John Wilding•s recommendation of th~. Winders, however, have this disadvantage - although they let you let out l ine quickly, the line is twisted in the process if its just been MOUnd the usual way, round and round. Now there is a Nay round this, and with just a little practise its an easy one wind the line on in a figure of eight. Trouble is, winders like the one sketched in Kiteflier no25 p 10 aren•t really designed for that. Kaybe John Wilding and other readers may care to consider modifying the basic design • . .. .. .. .. .. From P.F. Coverdale I got a passion for ki tefl ying when I bought a kite for •Y son when he Mas four in 1938. I had some kites made by Mr Brooks of Brookite fa.e but, unfortunately, had to interupt my hobby when, in the War, the NBalloons and Kites <Prohibition of flying> order 1940" stopped the flying of kites as it was thought that they might be used for sending ~ssages to the Geraans. The order was revoked by order in council of the 9th of Kay 1945. After the war material was in very short supply but one could ~ti.es buy "parachute material" and from this I again got l'lr Brooks to tnake ate sa.e kites which we flew for some years in Regents Park. I had in aind the possible formation of a kite society and wrote to the Society of l'lodel Aeronautical Engineers on the subject, you will see from the copy of the letter Nhich I aa enclosing that I got a somewhat frosty response! <The correspondance is dated 2nd July 1947 and reads as follOW&:-> I am in receipt of your recent communication undated on the subject of kite flying. I am aware that there are still quite a nuaber of kites flONn and at the moment there are a number of Sea Rescue Kites on the aarket Nhich Mere used during the war as a means of providing an aerial for the Nireless sets carried on the aircraft as part of their rescue equipaent.