Page 124 - How It Works - Book Of Amazing Answers To Curious Questions, Volume 05-15

What is an AirBoard?
Meet the smallest one-person aircraft in the world
ver wanted to fly but don’t have the time or comes into its own when you take the AirBoard into
money to train as a pilot? The new AirBoard the great outdoors. Designed for both urban and
Ecould be the answer. The smallest one- rural use, the quadcopter will hover over nearly all
person aircraft in the world, it can carry the weight
of a single person using its powerful battery. The
AirBoard is classified as an ultralight quadcopter
aircraft and it’s small enough to fit in the boot of
your car. safety, the board’s altitude is limited to a tame 1.5
Its thrust is provided by four high-speed electric
motors that each power a propeller. The drive ideal for recreational use but its features also make
system is managed by an Intel processor chip that
incorporates a ground collision sensor to keep the
board at a set height above the ground. This system
What makes
an ultralight
quadcopter?
Take a look at the
technology under the
bonnet of the AirBoard
Intel processor
In charge of all this is an Intel
processor that allows the
AirBoard to be both power-
efficient and high performing.
Size when open
When in use, the AirBoard
stretches to 190 x 150cm (75 x 59in)
and 180cm (71in) in length.
Parachutes
In case of emergency, parachutes
can be attached to all four corners
of the AirBoard.
Propulsion
The AirBoard gets its lift from four
propellers, which are powered by
high-speed electric motors to
produce a total of 40kW (54hp).
124 How It Works
The contenders
More tiny aircraft proving that
bigger isn’t always better
ground, whether it’s a snowy plain, water, rocky
terrain or just in the street.
The device is easy to control, requiring the user
to merely lean in the direction they want to go. For Messerschmitt Me-328
It may have never made it past the
metres (4.9 feet). The AirBoard’s qualities make it prototype stage, but the
Messerschmitt Me-328 is the smallest
it potentially useful in search and rescue for the pulsejet fighter of all time. It would
emergency services and perhaps even espionage have been used by Nazi Germany as
for the military.
a parasite fighter launched off
larger aircraft.
Size when closed
Easily stowed in a car, the device is
only 80 x 110cm (31 x 43in) and 140cm
(55in) long when shut.
Bumble Bee II
The tiny 2.7m (8.8ft)-long Bumble
Bee II is listed by the Guinness
Book Of Records as the smallest
aircraft ever made, but it was sadly
destroyed in a crash in 1988.
Body Bede Bd-5
Using an aluminium and carbon The Bede BD-5 is considered the
fibre frame, the AirBoard is both smallest civilian jet but not the
light and sturdy.
world’s smallest aircraft. Its fi rst
flight was in 1971 and despite its
3.8m (12.5ft) length it can reach a top
Navigation speed of 483km/h (300mph).
GPS and a compass are included
within the AirBoard so you’ll never
get lost when going from A to B.
Added extras
Built-in Bluetooth gives the device
connectivity with smartphones
and tablets, as well as a host of
related apps. XF-85
A prototype parasite fighter like the
Me-328, the American XF-85 Goblin
was the world’s smallest jet fighter. At
2,050kg (4,519lb) when loaded, it is
significantly heavier than the civilian
aircraft on the list, mainly due to its © AirBoard; Thinkstock
four machine guns.