
The plane that can fly backwards - breitling
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20150415-the-plane-that-can-fly-backwards
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schoen
There was an An-2 giving air tours at the Luftfahrtmuseum Finowfurt, where the
last two Chaos Communication Camps were held. (Unfortunately the Camp will
have to move to another location this year.)

I took one of those tours in 2007 and it was a pretty different experience
from other planes in terms of the extreme maneuverability. What I most
remember is that the pilot didn't really bother to approach the runway.
Instead, he just flew toward the airport. When we got to the airport, he just
sort of hung a quick left onto the runway and landed. It felt almost like
taking a turn in a car!

As the An-2's stall speed is considerably slower than freeway traffic, we
might actually have been going at about the speed of a car at that point.

~~~
masklinn
> As the An-2's stall speed is considerably slower than freeway traffic, we
> might actually have been going at about the speed of a car at that point.

Depending where you live, other planes have stall speeds considerably slower
than freeway traffic (a Cessna has a stall speed of 50mph/80kmh), the An2 is
in the range of _urban speed limits_ (the article and wikipedia both quote
pilots reporting full control at 30mph/50kmh airspeed).

Interestingly, it doesn't even trade maximum speed for being unstallable.

~~~
roeme
_> Interestingly, it doesn't even trade maximum speed for being unstallable._

Depends on how you interpret it. The bi-plane design _does_ impose quite a
drag at higher speeds. There has been research into making the design faster,
so far, that meant getting rid of the lower wings.

On the other hand, the designer never intended her to go fast.

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tobinfricke
I flew a Cessna 152 "backwards" during my checkride. Any airplane can fly
backwards relative to the ground given sufficient wind. What is impressive
about the An-2 is its super-slow stall speed (the minimum airspeed necessary
for flight).

From Wikipedia: "The An-2 indeed has no stall speed quoted in the operating
handbook. Pilots of the An-2 say one can fly the aircraft in full control at
30 mph (as a contrast, a modern Cessna four-seater light aircraft has a stall
speed of around 50 mph)."

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Raphmedia
It doesn't really "fly backwards". Well, it does, but not like you would
think. It can get to some pretty low speed without stalling, so you can
position it in such a way that the wind will push you backward.

Edit: Seagulls do this too!

~~~
ams6110
Yep, the forward airspeed needed to generate lift is relative to the aircraft,
not to the ground.

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stevecalifornia
The AN-2 is the Ak-47 of airplanes: extremely durable, well designed, heavily
mass produced and found all over the world.

They are also dirt cheap to buy ($20 - 30K) but they burn A LOT of fuel.

I'd always day-dreamed about getting one but I can't imagine it's practical.

~~~
roeme
_> They are also dirt cheap to buy ($20 - 30K) but they burn A LOT of fuel._

She does. However, given a well-maintained engine, and 10 to 12 passengers,
cars are _easily_ rivaled, and given favourable conditions, even undercut. We
did the math, briefly said, the plane has a higher cruise speed, and can fly
in a straight line between destination, etc. pp.

 _> I'd always day-dreamed about getting one but I can't imagine it's
practical._

Well...I co-own one with some other crazy blokes. While a 3.5-ton dry mass
can't be put into the bike rack in front of your house, it hardly affects your
daily life. I.e. she's next-to-none more inconvenient than owning a small
Cessna or the like.

Edit: Judging from your user name, there's a different story though. From what
I've heard, the U.S./FAA doesn't really like this soviet plane, and you've got
some artificial prohibitive rules on it (compared to Europe).

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TylerE
Basically, you can own and fly one, but can't do anything commercial, even sky
diving ops or banner towing.

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ridgeguy
Another aircraft with similar capabilities to the An-2 is the Helio Courier
([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helio_Courier](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helio_Courier)).

I was with a friend who was flying his Helio to Orange County Airport (b4 it
was named John Wayne Airport). On approach, tower asked for a slow flight
demo. He obliged, and flew at 33KIAS, ~25 feet altitude along most of the
runway (the shorter one), then touched down about 50 feet from the last
taxiway, exiting there with a nice short field landing demo. It felt truly
bizarre to fly that slowly in a fixed wing aircraft.

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Kenji
Everything can fly in all directions, including backwards, if you pick the
right frame of reference (duh!). Misleading title, it's still frontal air
current that keeps the plane in the air.

~~~
PhantomGremlin
I hated the title, but not too many posters here seem to be bothered by it.

Either the BBC editor is woefully ignorant of the difference between airspeed
and ground speed, or he deliberately chose a clickbait title.

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sswezey
For a plane that can truly (albeit briefly) fly backwards, checkout the
Sukhoi-30. It is a Russian fighter jet with truly vectored exhaust - think
F-22, but 2 axes vs. 1 axis. Here is a video of it doing loops and Cobra
maneuvers:

[https://youtu.be/ujenrmoeALE?t=84](https://youtu.be/ujenrmoeALE?t=84)

~~~
MrJagil
What are the advantages of such maneuverability? I can't believe they're
trying to dodge missiles... Is it for aerial combat purposes?

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ghostberry
Modern missiles cannot be dodged. It's mostly just a way to show off the
plane's agility. It could just barely be useful for shooting at a target
behind you, but you sacrifice a lot of energy moving your aircraft like that.

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PhasmaFelis
I recall reading something about WWI fighter pilots who could _actually_ fly
backwards (as opposed to "forwards into a headwind"). Apparently, with the
right plane and a really really good pilot, it was possible to throw it into
something like a bootlegger turn, spinning 180 degrees around the Z-axis and
cruising backwards for a second or two to fire on an unsuspecting pursuer,
before quickly slewing back around to resume normal flight. IIRC, Manfred von
Richthofen, the Red Baron, was known for the maneuver.

~~~
paulmd
I think you're mixing up a couple ideas here. It sounds like you're thinking
of Pugachev's Cobra, which is a maneuver that can be performed by
supermanouverable aircraft.

In terms of maneuvers that could be performed in a WWI aircraft, I suspect
it's either a hammerhead turn or a flat spin. In a hammerhead turn you climb
vertically until the aircraft stalls, then use the rudder to yaw the aircraft
to a vertical dive. Like an upside down u-shape. In a flat spin you do a
power-on stall and yaw the aircraft in the same direction that your prop is
torquing you.

Either of those maneuvers would be pretty risky - while you're stalled out
you'd be a sitting duck.

~~~
PhasmaFelis
I saw a documentary animation that involved the plane yawing 180 degrees and
very briefly proceeding tail-first while firing back the way it had come. It
specifically involved WWI aircraft, and IIRC emphasized that it was only
practical with their low speeds. I can't find it now, though, so I can't vouch
for the source or expand on any details I may have missed.

It was definitely presented as nearly impossible to do, in any case. I vaguely
recall that it required a plane with a very short wingspan (e.g. a triplane),
but I could be imagining that bit.

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chrisBob
Reminds me of the short takeoff short landing competitions I heard about a few
years ago.

[http://www.wired.com/2011/05/video-young-pilot-prepares-
for-...](http://www.wired.com/2011/05/video-young-pilot-prepares-for-stol-
competitionvideo-young-pilot-prepares-for-stol-competition/)

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karcass
I used to have a Piper Colt parked at San Carlos (CA) that had a 50kt stall.
Occasionally I'd go out to the ocean on a windy day, catch the 60-70kt winds
over the ocean cliffs, and fly backwards. :) It was a fun way to freak out
passengers.

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roeme
For those of you located in Switzerland; you can "hitch" a ride at
[http://an2.ch](http://an2.ch) – though you must become a club member or ride
as a guest of another member (This is required by swiss law for non-commercial
flights). Another possibility is to show up at airshows; where tours may be,
and are given to the visitors for a modest fee.

It's quite an impressive experience, especially while starting, when the audio
of the power plant's huge displacement is felt by your stomach.

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bitwize
My grandfather liked to tell the story of when he flew a Luscombe 8A backwards
by pointing the nose into a headwind that was too strong for the plane's tiny
65hp engine to overcome.

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oska
As the article says, this plane was developed for the Soviet Forestry Ministry
and is still used by their smokejumping units. [1] Smokejumpers are
firefighters who parachute into remote areas to fight forest fires.

[1]
[http://environment.nationalgeographic.com.au/environment/nat...](http://environment.nationalgeographic.com.au/environment/natural-
disasters/russian-smokejumpers/)

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spitfire
You can also fly an Aeronca Chief backwards. Ask me how I know.

Fun fact, when landing with two people you can open both doors simultaneously
as air brakes. Stops real fast.

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rytis
> Ask me how I know

OK, so how do you know? :)

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kleer001
It feels suspiciously like there's some life lesson to be had here. Something
about tacking to the winds of fate or similar blather.

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fnordfnordfnord
I've almost done this in a Taylorcraft. It is fun as long as you can get back
to your airport. It also probably wansn't the safest/smartest time to go for a
joyride, but the wind was right down the runway.

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jason46
I saw an F-22 fly backwards, I'm sure it was much more impressive!

