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Ken Wallis Autogyro Pioneer Dies At 97
First time accepted submitter gb7djk writes "Wing Commander Ken Wallis the developer and promoter of small autogyros died peacefully today 4th September, aged 97, at his home in Norfolk. Ken is mainly remembered for 'Little Nellie', the tooled up autogyro that took on some helicopters in the James Bond film You Only Live Twice. He made the breakthrough discovery of the offset rotor head that made autogyros stable as well as many other aviation inventions. More info here and a video of him flying one of his creations (at the age of 95)."
...without which we would not have the Bruce Spence character in The Road Warrior!
Yes, I'd like to send this letter to the Prussian Consulate in Siam by aero mail. Am I too late for the 4:30 autogyro?
Science advances one funeral at a time- Max Planck
I knew Ken when I worked at Weslake Developments in Rye, East Sussex, an engineering R&D company that designed and tested engines for the UK automotive and aviation industries (I was the firm's Costing Engineer at the time); he was one of the directors of the firm. He was always a calm and reasonable voice in often head debates over the future of the company. His accomplishments gave him a platform that got people to listen but it was his warmth and understanding, both of technical issues and the people involved, that made him so respected and such an asset to the company. His flair for the dramatic was never far away...he'd journey from Lydd Airport (principally owned by Richard Branson who knew Ken well) piloting a skeletal Autogyro, of his own design and that he had built, landing it in a field behind the business park where Weslake Developments was housed. I've many happy memories from that time and value them greatly...I'll surely miss him.
Yeah - because all of the new tech just sprang into existence via parthenogenesis, right? None of it has its roots in old school tech, after all. Then again, I can see where you wouldn't be impressed with a heavier-than-air flying machine that can transport a person significant distances at reasonably high speeds, or the kind of man who could invent one. I think, however, you will be in something of a minority around here.
Luddite.
I bet the real story is that he died peacefully in his sleep -- behind the stick of his autogyro, as it crashed into his house at 80kph.
Yeager, Chuck
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuck_Yeager
On October 14, 2012 on the 65th anniversary of breaking the sound barrier, Yeager did it again in a McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, out of Nellis Air Force Base at the age of 89
he's old and bold. how many 89 year olds break Mach? and he was a test pilot for 30 years after he retired officially.
"The Right Stuff" is right.
No helmet, no goggles - just undiluted awesome. He's like a character out of a Miyazaki film.
My God, it's Full of Source!
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