Take-Off roll

[Pips]

When you look at movies like 'Blue Max' the take-off is rather leisurely and long. Perhaps it's a safety concern with copies. Even in earlier movies like 'The Dawn Patrol' and 'Hells Angels' the roll, while quicker, is still fairly long.

Then compare those above to that shown in the superb documentary on WWI flying 'Four Years Of Thunder'. Blimey! No sooner are the throttles opened than they seem to be of and up!

Now is that more a reflection of early camera film speeds or realistic do you think?

[Taz]

Cobby- Many WW-I fighters could take off in less than 50 yards, so the documentary film is accurate. Replicas with modern engines and small propellers, compared to the 9' or so of a WW-I aircraft prop, in general (not always) have a much longer take-off roll. Fred Murrin's and Ross Walton's Fokker F.I Triplane replicas with real Le Rhone rotaries get off the ground very quickly.

Taz
Terry Phillips

[EdStevens]

Way back when, I saw the Sopwith Triplane of the Aviation Museum here in Ottawa fly. It was airborne in an amazingly short run -- the "taking off in a tennis court" kind of thing you read in contemporary accounts. Light wing loading and a big prop with lots of torque made it just hop into the air. With a well-executed sideslip it could also land with a very short run. Impressive!