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Africa's First Airplane Project!


ColoradoParanormal

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IT consultant and aspiring airplane manufacturer Gabriel Nderitu brings his latest prototype out to the Kenyan countryside for a test flight. If he succeeds, he will be the first man in Kenya to fly a homemade aircraft made out of scrap parts.

Take a look at this mass achievement and ingenuity! The wright brothers had NOTHING on this guy! I jest of course, actually the Wright Bro's first Airplane looked a LOT more reliable and technically advanced then this nightmare.

I did want to add that I have to give this man props for following his dream and going for it. There's a lot to be said for a man whom has the courage to do this.

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[/media] Edited by ColoradoParanormal
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Cool hobby, but wtf, wheels crooked as **** off the gate, half ass loaded into the truck lol oh lord.

lol Yes. Did you get a close look at how the fuselage was made and hacked together? oh no....

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Take a look at this mass achievement and ingenuity! The wright brothers had NOTHING on this guy! I jest of course, actually the Wright Bro's first Airplane looked a LOT more reliable and technically advanced then this nightmare.

I did want to add that I have to give this man props for following his dream and going for it. There's a lot to be said for a man whom has the courage to do this.

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He is probably very lucky it did not take off.

But I agree, fascinating hobby, and I admire his spirit. Well done. More people should "have a go" like this guy.

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:lol: Reminds me of the Jamaican Bobsled team..

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Edited by seeder
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Kenya flight 1 to tower,how do I get this damned plane off the runway.

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http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20130625-africas-diy-aircraft-builders

This story suggests the video in the OP was recorded in 2010 at the latest, and that Mr Nderitu was unsuccessful.

Given the video mentions the aircraft as weighing 800 kilograms, I seriously doubt it had a chance of taking off. As a result I concluded Mr Nderitu was wasting his time (I also noticed in the video he had no problem with damaging the truck he hired to carry the plane {sawing off a roof rib}) where he could've turned his obvious talents to more practical uses.

But the article I've linked above has a more nuanced interpretation: Nderitu is an example of frustrated African inventors who have little infrastructure to work with, little opportunity to gain proper skills, and face resistance from both governments and employers who are at best apathetic and at worst actively work to interfere with their projects.

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He is probably very lucky it did not take off.

But I agree, fascinating hobby, and I admire his spirit. Well done. More people should "have a go" like this guy.

As long as they don't 'have a go' over my little home! With the luck I've got they'd come down on my house just as I've finished painting & decorating.

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:lol: Reminds me of the Jamaican Bobsled team..

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HAHAHAHA! That literally made me Laugh Out Loud! Nice! :w00t:

He is probably very lucky it did not take off.

But I agree, fascinating hobby, and I admire his spirit. Well done. More people should "have a go" like this guy.

Yes! I had the exact same sentiment. Had he taken off, I fear the news story would have had the bi-line of: "Man in Africa attempted to fly his homemade Airplane and upon initial take off the wheel barrows and shopping carts he was using for the frame and skin of the craft broke in to millions of tiny pieces. Memorial Services for Mr Nderitu will be held on Wednesday." hahaha

Kenya flight 1 to tower,how do I get this damned plane off the runway.

lol!!! :tu:

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That doesn't look very safe. I'd be surprised if he could get it off the ground, let alone achieve controlled flight. Also, this isn't the first aircraft to be designed and built in Africa. Denel of South Africa's been building and exporting aircraft for decades.

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Surely making a microlight would have been an easier choice...

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Also, this isn't the first aircraft to be designed and built in Africa. Denel of South Africa's been building and exporting aircraft for decades.

That`s new for me that DENEL (former Atlas Aircraft Corporation of South Africa) designed and built own A/C. The only A/C I know about

build by ATLAS SA was the trainer A/C Atlas ACE, in total 1 was build and wrecked during a test flight. All other A/C by DENEL were just

under licence manufactured foreign A/C or parts of thereof.

Can you please provide informations that support your claim that DENEL designed, build and exported own A/C?

Edited by toast
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Surely making a microlight would have been an easier choice...

Absolutely. But given that the reporter on the video in the OP said that Nderitu had no training in aircraft engineering, I doubt he could have made a microlight either.

The more I think about it, the more I think that Nderitu didn't actually build a plane. Instead he built an object that looked like a plane. But given his lack of engineering skills he seems to have completely missed the importance of building the plane as light as possible. There's a saying that anyone can build a bridge which stands, but it takes an engineer to build a bridge which just stands. The same goes for aircraft - anyone can build an object that looks like a plane, but it takes an aeronautical engineer to build an object that will actually fly.

Another way of looking at it is to look at the earliest aircraft from a century ago. They were made of wood and canvas with a minimum of metal, and weighed a lot less than 800 kilograms. That Nderitu missed the mismatch between his airframe and his engine again suggests he knew little more than how to make an object that looked like a plane.

Should he be praised for at least making the effort? I don't know. On the one hand he showed a commendable commitment to a goal and an ability to scavenge and improvise. On the other the extent of his failure provides ammunition to those who would denigrate him specifically for wasting his time and resources on a pipe-dream, or Africans in general for their wasting of the potential of people like Nderitu.

ETA: If someone were to send him the plans for a microlight it wouldn't surprise me if he could build it, given his talents. Such a craft would have a much greater chance of flying than the device in the OP. If someone were to also send him a text book on aeronautics it would likely improve his chances of success considerably.

Edited by Peter B
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Mind you, others like him have also dreamed of bigger things, this guy built a ramshackle windmill to make electric. Wooden tower, bits of bike and pulleys, and a vision he learnt from old science books in the library

quote:

"This is the inspiring true story of William Kamkwamba, a boy with big dreams who built a windmill from junkyard scraps in order to help feed his village. William always dreamt of magic -- the magic of Ghost Dancers and witch planes, but also of the magic that made radios play music and trucks rumble by the fields his family farmed. When famine hits their village, William is forced to drop out of school and eat only one meal a day. Undeterred, he studies science books from the library and learns how to unlock the magic of a windmill, a magic so strong that it will help him feed his people".

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http://en.wikipedia....lliam_Kamkwamba

For more up-to-date information.

Thank you for that, Seeder.

:tu: Youre welcome. Nice story isnt it? And shows that anyone with the will and some basic knowledge can achieve such things

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Can you please provide informations that support your claim that DENEL designed, build and exported own A/C?

Sure.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denel_AH-2_Rooivalk

This was designed and built in South Africa, although it hasn't as of yet been exported.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlas_Cheetah

This was based on a Dassault Mirage, but is essentially a new aircraft with new fuselage components, wings, engines, canards etc. And this was sold to Chile and Ecuador.

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