UTRC First Fuel Cell-Powered Rotorcraft Flight

[RoboTekno]

oh wow, very cool :D Now do some 3D

[stratosjoebar]

surely sounds great , but i think we gonna take it in our hands not soon

[theworacle]

That's what UTRC says, although it does sound big to me

[FormerlyFlightsuit]

A twenty minute first flight? That's certainly better than what I'd expect from a Li-Poly battery.

Forget military applications; I wanna know when us hobbyists can get our hands on these things!

[theworacle]

You can help me research this story! I am trying to find out what model of RC helo they modified, but what endurance would you expect from a battery-powered model weighing 10kg with a 2m rotor diameter?

[FormerlyFlightsuit]

I honestly don't know for sure. The biggest helis I'm experienced with are a lot smaller and lighter than what you're describing. If you're really intent on identifying the one in the video, your best bet would be to ask the folks at RCGroups d0t c0m. In fact, I think I'll post a link to this video in their forums and see what they might be able to come up with. Stay tuned...

[theworacle]

Thanks

[FormerlyFlightsuit]

My pleasure! Are we sure about that weight figure, though? 10kg equals 22 pounds, right? I guess certain hardcore RC aviation enthusiasts might not be phased by such a figure, but to me that is a stunningly heavy weight, and probably at the upper end of the RC heli size range.

[FormerlyFlightsuit]

Check the link I sent you via PM. You'll see that, according to my RCGroups cohorts, the weight and size you've described is actually not unreasonable from their perspective. They've also come up with some pretty good educated guesses as to make and model, as well as the normal flight times they'd expect from conventional batteries.