Slashdot Mirror

Why not use the right tool for the job. A *REAL* firefighting airplane.
The CL415 http://www.bombardier.com/en/a... is *designed* for that purpose.
It can reload in 12 second by scooping over any body of water just 6 feet deep. How long does it take to reload a DC-10?

If only there lakes full of fire retardant that a plane could just fly down to and scoop up a full load in a mere 12 seconds.

Hah. I have wondered how his wireless electricity scheme would've turned out. Looks like latter-day wireless electricity variations are showing up in certain fields, using inductance.

Speaking of Canada, why not get the next president a Bombardier Global Express XRS?

I can't comment on anything else in your post, but Bombardier is actually a Canadian company. They do make lots of choo-choos though.

The Canadian firm being http://www.bombardier.com/. Which began in Québec with snowmobiles....

Actually, the JFK Airtram is the same Advanced Rapid Transit technology as SkyTrain. It's (ahem) built in Canada by Bombardier http://www.bombardier.com/index.jsp?id=1_0&lang=en &file=/en/1_0/1_0.jsp

from:
http://www.bombardier.com/index.jsp?id=1_0&lang=en &file=/en/1_0/1_10/1_10.jsp

"Trains entering curves at high speeds are subject to centrifugal forces that can cause passenger discomfort. Typically, there are two ways to reduce centrifugal forces. The first is to improve the track curve radii or super elevation; this is a physical change to the tracks themselves. The second is the use of train tilting.

JetTrain high-speed rail coaches are equipped with a patented advance tilting system that allows the train to take curves at higher speeds on existing alignments. This improves travel times with no compromise in passenger comfort. The Bombardier advance tilting mechanism reduces centrifugal forces by almost 60%."

(go to JetTrain, Tech, Comfort, Tilt)

Bombardier's 415 is an awesome plane and doesn't have the concern of decades-old surplus planes (remember that video from a couple years ago of a C-130 losing its wings during a drop?). From their site:
It takes only 12 seconds, travelling at 130 km/h (70 knots) to scoop up the 6137-litre (1621-US gallon) water load. This requires an on-water distance of only 410 metres (1350 feet). The Bombardier 415 can scoop water from sites as shallow as 2 metres (6.5 feet) and 90 metres (300 feet) wide. This means that a great number of water sites can be used to reload its tanks. The aircraft doesn't need a completely straight scooping path. Since it's still in "flying" mode while scooping, the pilots can maneuver the Bombardier 415 around river bends or avoid visible obstacles in the water. As well, if the water site is too small for a full pick-up, the Bombardier 415 can take a partial load and return to the fire.

Bombardier CL415

Check the description and FAQ here.

Retrofitting a 747 for firefighting? Why not buy a plane designed from the ground off for firefighting purposes? It can drop 32000 to 65000 gallons of water between refueling. In real life situation it has proven to be able to deliver up to 30 000 gallons per hour.

Ever since I was a kid I'd seen videos of CL215 (the predecessor) fighting the big forest fires, and I was always wondering why the US used small choppers carrying minuscule payloads of water to fight the fires. Can anyone clear this up?

Unless this company is owned by Bombardier, there's a potential problem with that name.

No, but don't you see? There's a spinning gyroscope INSIDE the wheel hub that helps provide lateral stability. If the gyro is spinning fast enough, the device will have extreme difficulty tipping to either side at all, allowing the rear/front stability. (View the flash animation, and then visit your local children's museum and play with the bicycle tires you can hold while spinning)

This leads to the assumption then when turning the vehicle, the gryos slow down allowing the device to lean, and that leads to the question: How does it know if my lean is to turn, or if I'm falling over and corrections should be made in the gyros?

You are right about one thing, though. I don't see a physical way for it to rotate the tire beneath the rider the one way does on a unicycle. Is leaning the only way to turn the device? Even at low speed? Low speed turns would require more lean to turn the vehicle, and if more lean is allowed by the gyro, there will eventually be a point reached where the gyros can not recover, regardless of how fast they spin.

Remeber! Gyros can be used either as active stability devices or sensors. They arent' limited to one or the other.

This is frustratingly typical of what passes for journalism in this world

The PopSci page linked in the original /. "story" referred to Bombardier as a "company that designs ATVs and jet skis".

That's true, but they also manufacture locomotives and prop and jet aircraft (including water bombers and the famous Learjet), leading me to believe that the company has some serious engineering capabilities beyond recreational vehicles.

Bombardier's site map

Nice Flash video, on this page, of the thing.

(There's a link at the bottom of the article, but it's broken unless you remove the "www.")

And yes - when it crashes (often) you have the reboot the train.

The bl**dy thing can't even be diesel shunted if it breaks, there's no way to get the brakes off - not even a hand valve.

This is also the train that went through a period of having dead multiple unit trains if they coupled two sets together that have different versions of the software as the inter-train interface presumably changed(!). Bombardier's answer was to require all units reload their software over radio every 24 hours. If the 24 hour period expires, brakes go on, you go nowhere.

At least it's failsafe - just rather more than one would hope.

Source of the above info - various guards and drivers who staff these things.

What happens after 45? Im only 30 and need to know if I need to prepare myself for after 45.

How about a Mini Cooper / Unicycle hybrid?

OK

I got all excited when I read the headline that I would soon be able to have my very own miniature New York City Subway car and Long Island Rail Road car. Thus being able take out any commuting frustrations in the comfort and safety of my home. :)

I got all excited when I read the headline that I would soon be able to have my very own miniature New York City Subway car and Long Island Rail Road car. Thus being able take out any commuting frustrations in the comfort and safety of my home. :)

It uses standard diesel fuel; you can see more information including equipment specs here, on Bombardier's website.

UP had a few turbine locos in the 1960's but they didn't do well. In the past, the problem with turbines in locomotives has been low efficiency (especially at part throttle) and low reliability. They are getting better, but I doubt that you'll see them in freight locos in the near future. Their lighter weight is not a big advantage in freight pullers. Sounds good for lightweight passenger travel, though.

Here is Bombardier's own page on it and a photo of the locomotive.

---Mike

Bombardier is the family name of the company founder, it has nothing to do with bombs. The company started in the snowmobile (aka 'skidoo') business and later forked out into other forms of ground transportation. They only got into the aerospace industry when the aquired Canadair, in the mid 80's.

See their company history section

Here is a direct-link to the Monorail train model

Here's a page (framed, mozilla unfriendly, slow jsp)
from the principal contractor, Bombardier.

This is the largest of three monorails they are building (although they say 4 miles, not 8). What's cool is that two of the three are for systems to get around downtown, not just for a system to get you to the airport parking lot.

Unfortunately, the careers page doesn't reveal any openings. Sigh, this is the sort of socially responsible project that so many aerospace companies were to turn to after the cold war ended.

Umm. That was a bad example. Just a quick search of the web will lead to several manufacturers that have just recently come into the airliner market. Check out Bombardier, Embraer, and Fairchild Dornier just to name a few. What happens when the big guys get complacent like Boeing and Airbus, the little guys poke their noses into a niche and run with it. All of these companies have the ability to compete with the big two...

The same will happen in the CPU market.

The comments about self powered tracks seem to suggest they might be looking into a hybrid maglev solution where some form of magnet propulsion could be used (or at least some form of track mounted propulsion) with ta wing providing lift to avoid friction.

____________________