archived as http://www.stealthskater.com/Documents/FTA_01.doc

more is at http://www.stealthskater.com/PX.htm#StarChamber

note: because important websites are frequently "here today but gone tomorrow", the following was archived from http:// www.angelfire.com/electronic/ftadefy/basics/intro1.html on October 4, 2001. This is NOT an attempt to divert readers from the aforementioned website. Indeed, the reader should only read this back-up copy if the updated original cannot be found at the original author's site.

Flight Test Article "Defiance"by Thomas Skeggs

http://www.ftadefiance.org/ http://stargate-web.org.uk/

Basic Description of the Flight Test Article

IntroductionThe Flight Test Article (FTA) was created to fulfill a life-long desire to explore remote regions of

the world like Antarctica. I've always had an interest in aviation and space flight many years ever since the Apollo moon missions. The main purpose of this webpage is to provide a basic description of the Flight Test Article's onboard systems and overall design. The Flight Test Article originally began life as a basic delta-shaped aircraft but over the years it turned into prototype aerospace vehicle. If I went ahead and built it, I would have broken every national and international aviation law in the book. But I would not let something like "laws" stop me, so that's why I called it "Defiance".

What is the FTA?

The Flight Test Article was a 24ft x 24ft x8ft experimental prototype designed to carry out a limited number of test flights. The FTA consists of a 4-sided triangular-shaped aerospace frame. It' s triangular to reduce its radar cross-section. The FTA had a special "Drag Reduction Skin" designed to reduce the effects of friction and wave drag. Enveloping the vehicle within a cloud of ionized gas can reduce its radar cross-section, making it stealthy.

(Scale Model of the Flight Test Vehicle)

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It may have included an Anti-Gravitic Skin to reduce its weight by 10% causing a huge savings in fuel, and reducing the size of the aerospace vehicle to that of a modern-day fighter plane. Its original propulsion systems made highly maneuverable and agile flight. And it would have had the ability to hover, turn on its own axis, and take off and land vertically (VTOL). The main reason why I needed a stealthy aerospace vehicle was that if I went ahead and built it, I would have broken every national and international aviation law there is. This would have not stopped me -- it would have added to excitement!

Drag Reduction SkinThe Drag Reduction Skin would have used a Tesla coil with an output of around 500 Kilovolts (or

higher). The Tesla coil was wired to an apex mounted at the top of the vehicle. The Tesla coil transmits an electric charge from the apex ahead of the vehicle and the ionized gas gives the surrounding air an electric charge.

The energized skin with its high voltage electric charge repels the surrounding air, and this reduces drag and friction on the vehicle. The actual triangular-shaped frame and its sharp wing tips & leading edges aids in the emission of the electrostatic charge and also helps repel the surrounding air reducing drag. The Drag Reduction Skin basically consists of a nickel-based paint which produces a rough electroconductive surface. This rough surface aids in the emission of the electric charge.

Anti-Gravitic SkinThe work of Thomas Townsend Brown has been incorporated to give the apex-or-nose a positive

electrical charge and the underside of the FTA a negative electric charge. Townsend Brown believes when a voltage is applied to a capacitor, it has a tendency to move in the direction of the positive terminal. Townsend Brown carried out many experiments and designed a series of working prototypes. He believes in a principle that if you apply a high voltage to specially shaped electrodes separated by a dielectric insulator, you can produce a measurable anti-gravitic effect. The early FTA designs tried to mimic this effect in a bid to reduce the vehicle's mass by 10%. This would have resulted in a huge savings in fuel, and would reduce the overall size of the vehicle, to that jet fighter.

According to numerous lab experiments carried out by Townsend Brown, this should create additional lift by using an electrogravitic effect known as, "Biefeld-Brown Effect".

The intensity of the Biefeld effect is determined by five factors: 1. The separation of the plates of the capacitor: the closer the plates, the greater the effect. 2. The higher the "K" factor, the greater the effect. ("K" is a measure of the ability of a material

to store electric energy in the form of elastic stress.3. The greater the area of the capacitor plates, the greater the effect. 4. The greater the voltage (potential) difference between the plates, the greater the effect. 5. The greater the mass of the material between the plates (dielectric), the greater the effect (1).

I came up with numerous Anti-Gravitic Skin designs, but most had a similar design which consisted of metallic/dielectric sandwich skin, 2 metal sheets with a dielectric in between. The skin would have

(Top View of the Scale Model Prototype)

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been powered by the Tesla coil. The AGS would have been bonded to the aerospace frame. I have always considered the AGS as an optional extra, and the FTA can still function without it. Its primary role is simply to reduce the mass of the vehicle by 10%.

Main Propulsion SystemThe first Main Propulsion System consisted of a conventional rocket motor modeled from the main

Shuttle engines. It's the main engine that produces most of the lift, combined with the Reaction and Stabilizer System listed below. The MPS used hydrogen and oxygen gas mixture as its fuel. T he gases would have been stored in two large fuel tanks.

Reaction Control & Stabilizer SystemOne of the hardest systems to design and develop for the FTA is a means to control direction and a

system to provide additional thrust during take-offs and landings. I came up with a design which combined the two systems into one, known as the Reaction Control & Stabilizer System (RCSS).

The original early RCSS designs consisted of 3 basic rocket motors using hydrogen and oxygen mixture as a fuel. All 3 engines were fixed in positioned and were not gimbaled mounted. Controlling direction and thrust was achieved by throttling the engines. The rocket engines designs were modeled on the engines used on the Space Shuttle. But my engine was a lot more crude and basic.

Maneuvering Thruster SystemDirectional Control is produced by a Maneuvering Thruster System (MTS). The Maneuvering

Thruster System consisted of packs of small hydrogen & oxygen thrusters. This would affect the roll and pitch of the FTA, providing some control of its direction. Yaw may be controlled by bleeding ionized gas into one of group of holes which act as basic thrusters.

The MTS would give the FTA a great deal of maneuverability and control, and it should would able to make the FTA turn 360 degrees on its own axis. Additional thrusters would also provide better control over pitch and roll, especially during sub-orbits or low Earth orbits. Both the RCSS and MTS were linked to 3 rate gyros and a small computer which would activate servos and throttling the RCSS over firing one of the directional thrusters to maintain stable flight.

FTA Design HistoryOperating an aircraft in remote

regions called for a design that could Vertically Take-off and Landing (VTOL) like a jump jet. The rough terrain would prevent a conventional aircraft from taking off and landing due to lack of runways in Antarctica.

The main drawback with a VTOL aircraft is that it would require powerful propulsion systems and a lot of fuel to take-off and land. I overcame this problem by designing the Drag Reduction and Anti-Gravitic Skins. And I also decided to use hydrogen and

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oxygen as its main fuel because I designed a on-board system which could convert ordinary water into hydrogen and oxygen using the common electrolysis process.

Both hydrogen and oxygen would be used as fuel and also the oxygen would be used for life support. (To improve performance, the hydrogen and oxygen gases would be stored in pressure tanks to optimize gas flow to the MPS, RCSS, MTS, and life support systems). This means I would use a fuel that costs almost next-to-nothing to produce. The electrolysis system permits me to refuel by taking water from a lake, river, or stream. The process is very slow and may have taken up to 3-4 days to refuel the vehicle. (I had to avoid seawater as it can produce chlorine gas).

During space flights, the batteries would be recharged by using fuel cells which convert hydrogen and oxygen into electricity. Fuel cells can also produce drinking water. The fuel cells that I found only had a 12-volt 1-watt output.

I also found some plans to convert an ordinary gasoline car engine to run on hydrogen. I came up with a rough design for a gasoline engine running off hydrogen which drove high-powered alternators, originally designed for marine engines. This design was expensive as I found a special gas conversion kit for the engine plus the engine would need some stainless steel valves and manifolds to prevent rusting and corrosion.

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I begun work on the FTA in 1996, and the first design consisted of a delta-wing shaped aircraft powered by conventional rocket motors. It was designed as an aircraft only, and it was not designed to operate at high altitude. By 1998 I had designed the Drag Reduction Skin, and by early 1999 I had a basic design for an anti-gravitic skin.

But in 1999 disaster stuck and I experienced numerous personal problems which seriously affected my health and judgment. And in a bid to cut spiraling costs, I made a series of bad design errors by trying to develop cheaper components. I aimed to reduce the mass of the craft by over 50%. I also took out the fuel tanks and I tried to develop a system where water would be converted into fuel during flight. I tried to make its original internal aluminum airframe out of cheaper materials like polycarbonate or fiberglass. I even tried to see if I could do away with the standard rocket engines and use ion-powered or even a solid-state electromagnetic drive system.

(The design used 3 parabolic reflectors and capacitors. The idea was to discharge an extremely high voltage and currant into the top skin of the FTA. (See pictures above and below.)

Because the energy was suddenly discharged into the skin, it would create a high potential between the positively-charged top and the negatively-charged underside, and it should in theory produce thrust.

I dropped the idea as the electromagnetic system I developed proved to dangerous and unreliable. There was also a major problem with obtaining suitable parts and components (especially the Tesla coil). Yet in 1999 I also decided to convert the FTA design into a prototype aerospace vehicle.

Outer space is only about 50 miles straight up. So I started to modify the overall design so it can operate in a space environment. This included redesigning the life support systems and designing a pressurized cockpit.

I also researched the idea of installing a GPS system to aid in navigation.

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In 2000 I redesigned the aerospace frame to make it more efficient at Vertical Take-off and Landing and to improve drag resistance. Its general flight plan is to take off vertically and fly at 80-degree angle to the ground until it reaches the required altitude. Descent would require it to fly sideways so that one of its wing tips becomes its nose. (Later designs included wingtips linked to the Tesla coil). Also DRS which reduces friction means less heat build-up on the aerospace frame during re-entry. I added the 3-sided pyramid to the triangular aerospace frame.

I also came across articles on electroaerodynamics, and I redesigned the Drag Reduction Skin (DRS) to try and improve performance and reduce the effects of friction and wave drag on the aerospace frame resulting in a possible 10-20% saving in fuel consumption.

In the summer of 2000 I begun construction on a Scale Model Prototype (SMP) to test and prove the design concepts of the Drag Resistant Skin and the Reaction Control & Stabilizer System (RCSS) (which provides flight control and stability during take-off) and the MEGS. In 2000, due to poor health I wound up my small business and now work part-time.

In mid 2001, I was getting back to my usual crazy self (following what happened in 1999) so I completely redesigned the FTA. I went back to the old idea of using 4 standard rocket motors. (Sadly, I have lost the designs for the standard rocket motors so this means I have to redesign them from scratch.

I redesigned the aerospace frame with an aluminum hull covered with an AGS and RDS. The aluminum hull would be primed with a heat-resistant paint. And parts of the rocket motors would be fitted with a ceramic composite material to protect the vehicle from their generated heat.

I reinstalled the two main fuel tanks and planned to install a high-powered Tesla coil to power the AGS and RDS. I redesigned its landing gear to be retractable instead of fixed. (Otherwise the heat from the rocket motors would have damaged the landing gear). The landing gear had 3 pads instead of wheels. The heat from the rocket motors could cause the tires to explode when the landing gear is lowered. I came up with a rough design for an emergency escape hatch fired clear by small pyrotechnic charges. I began research into designing the avionics and rate gyros plus its onboard computer.

On the 6th May 2001, I decided to cancel any further work on the Flight Test Article. I had cancelled building the vehicle during two main reasons. One was cost and the other was finding

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suppliers, materials and components. The new design called for a great deal of special engineering parts for the rocket motors, thrusters, rate gyros, and aerospace frame. Finding parts were well beyond my means. A basic pressure suit as worn by NASA Space Shuttle crews would set me back $16,000. A good quality Tesla Coil is $820. Flight instruments like an altimeter and an electric altitude gyro are about $1000 each.

The Scale Model Prototype was finally assembled built and tested. Yet the first tests included pressurizing its electromagnetic systems. But this test revealed too many leaks making too dangerous to test in a confined space. I dismantled the SMP and it still remains in bits for now. Taking into account of all the design changes I have made like installing standard rocket models means that I would need a bigger model. (I was considering building a large 6ft x 6ft x3ft radio-controlled model. But this means building 4 scale miniature gas burning rocket motors plus installing a Tesla coil and a whole host of electrical support equipment. It's going to be very expensive, about £7000. The rocket motors require numerous machined parts, and I would need contractors to build parts for me.) I have considered using solid rocket motors for this model but it would be too difficult to fly.

In September 2000 I made the biggest mistake so far. I decided to introduce some basic research into time dilation effects and I designed these ideas into the SMP. And I renamed it the CTC-Construct. This was a major mistake. I did this basically to save money in building another prototype, and I tried to use the Scale Model Prototype. But I quickly went back to the original design and set-up the 'Star Chamber' to research time dilation, time-travel, and teleportation using a different set of prototypes.

The Flight Test Article still means a lot to me, and I regret being unable to finish designing and building this vehicle. It's given me many years worth of fun as well as headaches trying to find solutions to numerous problems I encountered with its design. Yet I hope that one day I may be able to restart work on the Flight Test Article.

In May 2001, I took the decision to start some design work on the Star Chamber. It's cheaper to build, but the physics are mind-boggling and the math is horrendous. I may have made many mistakes -- some serious and some costly ones too -- when developing the Flight Test Article, and I aim to learn from those mistakes and hope not to repeat them when developing the Star Chamber.

Flight Test Article Specifications

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The Flight Test Article (FTA) specifications are: Title:

Flight Test Article: Defiance Design #4

Role: Experimental Prototype. Proof of Concept testbed.

Dimensions Airframe Limitations Length: 24ft. Empty Weight: Unknown. Height: 8ft. Width: 24ft. Surface Area: ??sq. ft. Accommodation: One pilot.

Weights Empty Weight: To be determined. Gross Weight (GW): To be determined. Operating Weight: To be determined Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW): To be determined. Maximum Landing Weight (MLW): To be determined.

Weights vary depending on engine design.

Performance Normal Operating Limit Speed (VNO): Mach 1*. Never Exceed Speed (VNE): To be determined. Stall Speed (Vs1): Zero-stall speed*. Surface Ceiling: To be determined*. Operational Radius: To be determined. Endurance: 2-standard 3 hours Max*. Range: To be determined.

Figures are estimates only.

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[StealthSkater note: in 2002, Tom has resumed work on the FTA. See http://www.ftadefiance.org/ and http://stargate-web.org.uk/ for current info. ]

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Powerplant One Main Propulsion System (MPS) One 3-point Reaction Control & Stabilizer System (RCSS) Maneuvering Thruster System (MTS)

Flight Modes: Vertical Take-Off & Landing (VTOL). Low Drag Cruise Mode.