This is, as usual, fantastic work! It is so aesthetically pleasing - all these smooth lines - along with on-point functionality. I hope you forgive me for chuckling at the pronunciation of "canopy" that often sounded like "campy"!

It´s so satisfying to see how everything fits so perfectly.

I have followed aviation for quite a many years, this project gentleman next level and ground breaking. I wait for the first flight and successful test flights and mark my words, Dark Aero will be a success!

Dang the optical clarity on that is insane! I can't believe it, it's all coming together and gets me so hyped!

That looks sublime! Great work guys. Optical clarity on that new canopy is phenomenal...

Outstanding work. The progression of this project is clicking right along. You all are creating a true winner.

Love watching the work being done here. I dont fly nor work on planes at all, your channel came accross my feed one day and I have been loving the progress yall are making. Good job

Awesome Video DarkAero!

Thank you for posting these videos. It's very interesting to watch your progress.

Just an amazing build! Keep up the fantastic work...

Superb work gents, as always. Can I ask about provision for thermal expansion/contraction with such a tight tolerance design? I had a sailplane that used to suffer binding between canopy rail and fuselage on hot days due to differing CoTEs. Am eager to hear your thoughts. Thanks!

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

The CTE mismatch is definitely a challenge. Acrylic expands and contracts with temperature changes a lot more than carbon fiber. We built in some extra clearance to account for this. Summer temps will show if there is any binding, but we don’t expect anything to interfere at higher temperatures. I could see the issue being pretty pronounced on a sailplane with a really long section of acrylic. The canopy on my Cozy sees some flex with temperature changes that translates into changes in the gap size where the canopy and fuselage meet. One solution might be to use more small window segments rather than a full bubble canopy. Hard to beat the visibility of the full bubble canopy though, so the CTE mismatch tradeoff is there.

@andymckee53

2 жыл бұрын

Sikaflex is the product to use to bond Perspex to carbon frames. It allows for the difference in CoTE.

@timduncan8450

2 жыл бұрын

@ Darkaero, Inc Great stuff guys! Dreaming about a fast traveling machine. Got my PPL a couple years ago. Recently I’m learning more about engineering behind Vne. What is your Vne basis, gust loading, flutter, FEA, tests etc? Can you speak to anti flutter design options for composite and sheet metal construction? Thx.

What an elegant design! Nice job guys.

Great work fellas. I'm continually impressed at not only the engineering work you're putting in but also the ability to clearly and effectively relay that to the casual observer. It's a learned skill in industry that many of us struggle with. I can't wait to see more progress and the bird in the air!

Thanks for the update, we've been waiting for the video on KZread

Very nice. I liked the lack of distortion looking through the canopy. The square, red iron grid on the wall was a great shot.

You guys are crushing it. Keep ‘em coming. 🇨🇦

Awesome progress!

superb fit, incredible design, plus entry/egress will be easier with the panel out of the way. brilliant!

so good engeneering, pleasure to look at!

Great work, well done.

It’s impressive to see how much better the new canopy is for optical clarity. Congrats!

Fantastic progress. Flying can't come soon enough.

Great work. Very glad to see that you have addressed the need to have a way to blow the canopy off in an emergency. One additional question: did you design the stiffener in the turtledeck behind the pilot's head to act as a rollover structure?

This DarkArrow ...is getting BRIGHTER and BRIGHTER as time goes by. What an awesome journey and AIRCRAFT.

The track you used for this video is fire. Also nice canopy!

Beautiful work gentlemen. I was curious about the choice of using acrylic for a windshield…. Why is that the plastic of choice? Whenever I have worked with it, it seems quite brittle, like if a bird hit it, it would just shatter…. Is it harder to form poly carbonate? My brother has a BD 4. We switched the acrylic windshield to poly carbonate… wondering if there is a reason many use acrylic

Awesome work! Don't be afraid to go into more technical detail on why you do certain things the way you do them (I can't speak for everyone, but I would love to hear about your thought processes) - unless of course they are corporate secrets ;) And even more so don't be afraid to show off more of your beautiful work! I would have happily watched another 10 minutes of just the gorgeous canopy!

I wonder about the instrument cluster and switches/selectors rotating up like that. Some people like the canopy partially open in very warm climates until the AC really kicks in.

@blameyourself4489

2 жыл бұрын

True!

Great progress! Such a joy watching your team's achievements. Like, subscribe, and ring the bell. Support DarkAero!

Good work!

Awesome sauce boys!

Nice progress as always. Is there any concern when for when the canopy is opened during taxi for ventilation on those hot days and not having a 'pure view' of the panel?? Feel like it could be an issue for either over heating inside the greenhouse type of canopy or the panel not being accessible when it's lifted up.

Looking good!

Getting more and more excited . when will you be taking your test flight ?

Beautiful work and great design! And im very happy to hear that you're not flying it with the blue tape on the canopy 😄

Multiple wires being hinged and working through about 40 degrees every time the aircraft is entered or exited seems a bit risky.

@triedproven9908

2 жыл бұрын

This is a good point. If they use extra wiring loom and run two or so "S" runs across the fuselage at the point of rotation they could have a nice slinky loom with minimal flection at any rounded portion they could zip tie them to semi circle throu paths on each side of the frame so they can pull without catching like a guided slinky rail.

@rotaryperfection

2 жыл бұрын

Car doors have been doing this for decades. I'm sure it wont be a problem. They just need to place the wire looms near the hinge point to lessen the wire travel distance.

@randominternet5586

2 жыл бұрын

The normal approach is to route wires through area of hinge where travel is reduced. With some care should be manageable. expect more problems from engine area vibrations / heat etc then cockpit? Smaller diameter cables make a big difference here actually - normally you want to over spec wire size, but if you have a flex application going small has a big payoff. Ribbon cable is also popular for ticktock flexing. One gotcha is a big round cable that is tightly held, as you can get internal friction / heat. Stranded wiring also more popular for any type of flexible cable for obvious reasons.

@jimhayes2786

2 жыл бұрын

My thoughts are the same. As an engineer, this is the first design choice I really don't like on this a/c (these guys are sharp). Also, as a pilot I guarantee there will be times you want to run the panel with the canopy open...this makes that awkward to say the least. I see this changing in future revs.

@todaywefly4370

2 жыл бұрын

Yep to all. Making the moving section of the harness a cheap service replacement item might alleviate the issue. (if there ever is one) It would be better than replacing a complete harness.

Impressive!

Great work. Have you thought about tapering or putting a radius in the back bottom of the dash box so its ascetically softer on the eye when you get in and out.

Can’t wait

Awesome work! Do your guys plan to have a dedicated assembly jig for production?

Beautiful work guys!! Thanks for the outstanding videos. There are a couple of questions/comments. I have an RV7 with tip up and it is in no way rigid like your design. But . . (1) the leading edge of the canopy will move forward on opening. How to you ensure that the finished product can be adjusted to ensure the final .010" of adjustment is there and not snag the forward skin (w/paint)? (2) the acrylic thermal expansion/contraction presents issues for an orthogonal aft interface. I see yours is angled which should eliminate the expansion issue on a hot take off day and not leave a gap on a 0F day in flight. Have you (will you) tested the distortion in various temp environments? (3) Sealing: Maybe I missed the sealing aspect of the canopy perimeter, is there a provision for some teardrop gasket (like RV) to prevent excretion drag at speed? It adds to cold spots in winter too. :( (4) Is the canopy pretty rigid torsionally? The RV is not and has wear points on the lower aft corners even with best intent of center lift point open/close. Again, magnificent design and considerations guys, keep it going. BTW just hopped to Morey a couple of days ago, did not know you were so close!!

Love the design and videos as always! How much headroom is there in the cockpit as it looks a bit tight for headsets etc?

I’m not remotely qualified to discuss the engineering, but that is one beautiful aircraft. Love these updates!

Beautiful design... when do you plan to complete this project?

Cannot wait

Real beauty

Looking good. Out of curiosity, how tall are each of y’all? Looks pretty cozy.

Can't wait to see this thing in the air. Curious about the performance and flight characteristics.

Just a Thought on your Control Box could you have put more Radials in the bottom so you have a smoother look and less square edges? Very sweet Plane.

great idea....i like it

respect boys!

I just saw an amazing video on prop offset. Did you guys engineer some on the Dark Aero 1? I never knew of such a thing.

Nice!

How do you anticipate the differences in CTE between the stretched acrylic and the frame? Will it put a strain on the gaps, not only between the acrylic and frame, but also distort the frame, creating a fitment and actuation issue?

Great work as usual. Does the canopy headspace get hot? I rode in a homemade go cart once that had a plexiglass cover and the air under the thing was hot after about 10 minutes. Kind of like a greenhouse. Mind you it was summertime but I’m still curious. Do you have some kind of airflow for keeping hot air from getting stuck at the top of the bubble?

I been meaning to ask. Any plans for a pressurized version down the line?

Awesome guys I am your northern Illinois cheerleader. Great job!!!

I would think that given the fairly long flights intended that blinds are going to be needed. Presumably pleated ones attached with suckers that extend from the longitudinal centre-line of the canopy (like on Jimmy's of Jimmy's World Lancair) could be used? ETA>> amazing stuff to behold, can't think of any project other than a certain M. Patey's that's remotely comparable, and I keep forgetting that you're so close to flying now - really, REALLY looking forward to seeing it.

Great series of videos. I have noticed that you have made some box sections by folding the carbon fibre after curing. This is a great idea but how do you do this without cracking the part?

I would imagine the service/emergency release pins will spring loaded and connected to some sort of accessible release mechanism. I’m wondering how you are going to deal with the potential for one or two of the pins failing to fully engage? It seems like there is no way to visually inspect engagement without looking under the instrument panel. What about an externally inspectable indicator like one might find on a torque indicator bolt?

Great work guys, what is the next step now?

Any thoughts on seal design? Or the rear latching mechanism? Emergency experience in tip up sailplanes has shown your pins alone will tend to leave the canopy in place in some situations. There are several workable solutions but the hook designed by Professor Roeger may be the simplest.

very nice

The way the control panel hinges, is a really good danger of finger shearing. Are you going to put curved panels on the sides to prevent that?

I thought you guys were going to put out more videos. You have too! It's too good.

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

Good call! :) It's always a balancing act trying to keep up with the plane projects and filming for KZread. We have some good ones planned that should be coming out soon so stay tuned!

I'm interested to see how it is sealed. Or is there no sort of rubber gasket involved at all?

Hello Reilly, River and Keegan from Sydney Australia. Thankyou for your latest filming of the panel and canopy for the Dark arrow. What is your thoughts on the wear to wiring and connections from accessories, sensors and power supply; to the avionics, by the lifting and closing movement? 🌏🇦🇺

Awesome progress Dark Aero 1 team. This seems to be an appropriate video to ask whether anything is known about the aerodynamics in the event the canopy unintentionally disappears? I am told some similarly designed aircraft experienced quite dramatic effects when the remaining fuselage tail section started acting as an air scoop or just the canopy failing to add lift. Similarly, what are your thoughts on impact resistance of bird hits with the aimed high cruise speeds? Luckily you have relentless powerful shredder preceding your beautiful window, but still. Probably several lucky dollars will keep you safe of course ;-). Greetings from your Amsterdam fan.

The blue tape (1:40) is for your instrument rating.

I love what your doing. I'm curious if someone has asked this already or not, but what will you do about shading with the canopy and sun? seems like very tight space to have the traditional slide curtain style shade. Cheers! keep up the great work guys!

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching! We have looked at the Koger Sunshade. More details on it can be found on our Builder Resources page in the Purchased Separately document. www.darkaero.com/knowledge/builder-resources/

Cool disign Guys. Just a question. When the cockpit opens people may get their hands or feet under the dashboard when it closes or is their Some stretchy febric to preventie that.

After all this years and many more to come i can't wait to see it fly. (Sorry for my english it is not my native language)

Question about emergency ditching. How do you eject the canopy while airborne in an emergency?

Would it be worth adding interlocking fingers between the top and bottom hinge halves to reduce possible pin movement and stress. Thanks.

Beautiful job. But how are you going to pressurize this? Is the canopy rigid enough? A beautiful plane like this should be able to fly above the tree-line.

Man its coming along and great work looks super clean. A few things I would just consider. -Drill and davit where the acrylic housing meets the upper campi frame. This will add another layer of hard point besides glue for the sake of unification. Also you'd want the drill holes to be molded into the next acrylic mold so you don't have to worry about the stress fracture prone points you could get from drilling. -I would have made the cockpit enclosure on a two point hinge system where the front end opens down and into the cowling a la " \-----" where you'd not only have two hard points on each side but a reduction in drag from a non gapped surface aswell as an upward force locking the campi frame up into the cowling. Great stuff you guys give me ideas I can't afford! Ok that's it im charging! J/k Can't wait to see what's next.

@triedproven9908

2 жыл бұрын

Campi = canopy

@triedproven9908

2 жыл бұрын

And now that I think of it. The two point hinge mechanism for the canopy would be accompanied by a hard swivel where the point of location would be located. That swivel that cantlevers the entire canopy could double as the quick release where all the canopy would need to do is slide backwards to a release point and be gently pushed away.

@triedproven9908

2 жыл бұрын

Point of rotation.

Please tell me the phillips head screws are just provisional and won't make the final product. Also, when you work with cut interfaced carbon fiber, make sure to use titanium fasterners to prevent galvanic corosion on the fasterner.

Thanks for the video folks, great to see and hear about the progress. At 4:15 you mention the "requirement" to get the instrument panel to lift with the canopy. Why does your current design have this requirement? Is it for ease of ingress/egress or some other structural concern? Thanks!

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching! In addition to improving the ingress/egress the instrument panel lifting up provides access to both the forward left and right baggage compartments which provide another 4 cubic feet of storage.

@PiInTheSky

2 жыл бұрын

@@DarkAeroInc Got it, thank you for the fast response. Looking forward to more videos coming!

It’s really nice to see you plan to incorporated an emergency canopy release mechanism in the instrument panel. Is there going to be a similar mechanism for rescue workers to release the canopy from outside the plane?

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

Alexander, thank you for watching and good question! This is not something we had incorporated into the original design but something we are considering.

On a hot day when the pilot may want to have the canopy open to stay cool does the hinging panel impede view of the avionics during start up procedures?

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

You can still see the panel with the canopy cracked open. It’s only when the canopy goes past about half way open where it gets more difficult to see the display.

Looks like TexTreme 😍

fabulous...

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Rachel! :)

Burt Rutan in last century "Symmetry is for wimps". I know already, make a Acrylic first and frame or even cocpit opening afterwards.

Great job! Please tell me why you used acrylic canopy instead of polycarbonate? As far as I know, polycarbonate has better properties than acrylic, and in previous videos you talked about making polycarbonate canopies

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

Each material has its pros and cons. Polycarbonate has higher impact resistance, but it scratches easier and tends to yellow over time. Acrylic has better scratch resistance and doesn’t yellow, but it has lower impact resistance. We experimented with both when we were trying to make our own canopies but settled on acrylic for production.

@randominternet5586

2 жыл бұрын

@@DarkAeroInc I think a pretty good call personally. In marine world outside of super high budget acrylic is hatch material of choice. if you do poly you NEED to have an easy replacement option.

@DarkAero You guys really inspired me to build my own airplane like this one day. I want to study aerospace engineering in the future and making own airplane would be a cool project. When I saw the Dark Aero Instantly loved it because of its design and mainly suing the same materials like the 787. Can you guys tell where you learned all these stuff like Advanced CAD, Design, Engineering etc. cause such level of complexity to be done in a small workspace just makes me really curious.

@asquare9316

2 жыл бұрын

ummm, school? these guys are all engineers, so very well qualified to design and build their own airplane.

Great great plane , i hope I see it fly in this 2022 and hope u get all the certificates and permits for this design , i can really see the future DARKaero models be electric and this design really have more than enough innovations backing it 👍👍😀

@cw93711

2 жыл бұрын

Electric planes are far far in the future. Battery systems only last 8 to9 years on average right now and are much to heavy for the power they do produce and how long they last. Plus a say you used a 30 minute charge to get 75 percent battery life and your plane has a 1000 mile range. Now it has a 750 mile range and with reserves needed if it's IFR like this plane is ment to be now your down to 650 miles since with fuel you know how long you can fly. With battery how long is that charge going to last since the higher you fly the colder it gets which does effect battery performance. Maybe next generation of batteries will hold twice the charge, half the weight and last twice as long. But typical private pilot flys 50 to 100 hours a year. Typical io540 goes 1800 tell it needs to be serviced some over 2000 hours. So that's 18 years before your engine would need a major service minimum. In that same time span you would have to replace the batteries twice as it stands right now if it was an electric airplane. Plus airplane get hit by lighting allot. What happens to that big battery pack if lightening hits your plane. I personally think it's a minimum of a decade before their are good enough batteries.

@hellslayer9638

2 жыл бұрын

@@cw93711 my best bet will next gen high density Toyota solid state batteries those batteries are really really ahead of their time maybe that can provide 100% more range

@cw93711

2 жыл бұрын

@@hellslayer9638 their are multiple companies working on new batteries but their going to have to be non lithium based as their is only 90 million tons of lithium and by 2030 at the latest batteries will be using 20 tons a year. Plus counties like the US can't mine their lithium due to the EPA. Also some large lithium deposits aren't easily accessible. Lastly mining lithium isn't green. Toyota is hoping to bring their solid state batteries to market in 2025 but in hybrid vehicles cause they don't think the cost will be their yet. That fits with what I said about 2030 ish for a plane. Since everything is going to have to be proven tech without issues to go into a plane since you can't just pull over if you have a problem. Also the other issue I see with electric planes is it will be like flying a plane with a rotax engine. Limited angles of flight you can't exceed. With my io540 I can do most aerobatics in my former plane except spins. It didn't really like them. But I usually just did a few alieron rolls or loops. Plus the plane would need to be reengineered for batteries and electric motor as cg would be entirely different. Probably need to legthan nose as electric motor would need to be out front further as it's so light and if you could run some batteries firewall forward. Then a battery package in each wing. I thought about on underside of plane just making it thinker but Best area would be right under pilot and I wouldn't want a fire hazard under me if gear didn't come down and I bellied plane in. But that's just my thoughts

Did you consider polycarbonate glass for the canopy?

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

Hey Kyrill, the old canopy shown in the vid is made of polycarbonate and was being considered when we were attempting to form the canopy in-house. Polycarbonate is much tougher than acrylic, but can UV yellow over time and has a higher tendency to scratch, which would require an external coating to address these issues. It's also trickier to thermoform to achieve optical clarity. We may revisit it in the future, but for the time being we'll be using acrylic.

Hi guys. Cool project but why do the plane dash have to rotate with the canopy?

When do you guys think you'll get the plane in the air? Greetings from Belgium!

I'm thinkin' that front corner of the canopy frame should be slightly rounded. 275mph is smokin fast air to hit that square corner.

Engine runs please! :D

i have no idea how it usually done but how do you make sure there is no way for water to work its way inside the cockpit. I didnt see a seal. Is that just not installed yet or are you relying on the tight tolerances ?

Where are the boarding steps? Do they fold out from the side? A stepladder stashed in the cargo compartment? Part of the landing gear? Flip down from the wings?

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

Currently no boarding steps in the prototype aircraft since it’s easy enough to step onto the wing and then into the cockpit from the wing. We are thinking through some sort of retractable step as an option though.

@PetesGuide

2 жыл бұрын

@@DarkAeroInc Cool. I’m curious where you’re thinking about putting the retractable step. Wings are out for the same reason the landing gear ain’t there. Unless it slides out from behind the flaps when they’re extended? That leaves something flipping down from the main gear-is it in the right place for that?-or the fuselage. Maybe a fighter-jet-like extensible pole with staggered steps on either side?

@rotaryperfection

2 жыл бұрын

@@DarkAeroInc How high is the wing off the ground?

@tuckpilot1192

2 жыл бұрын

@@DarkAeroInc Please do so for us "old guys" with bad knees.

Phenomenal build! can anybody recommend any other good airplane build channels? I watch Mike Patey and Gravity Knight Flying channels already

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

Check out Project 2 Aero and Super701 :)

@105blwalker

2 жыл бұрын

check out Mike Patey's channel. He is the absolute King of carbon fiber and budgetless innovation.

That canopy is remarkably similar to the one Bob Walters had designed for my Dragonfly Tandem Wing aircraft.....

If you get a strong wind behind you when you open the canopy it looks like those small screws holding it will fail and the canopy maybe ripped off.

Probably too early to ask but do you all plan on making a 2nd model in the future, maybe something a few inches wider and longer?

@DarkAeroInc

2 жыл бұрын

The main focus for now is the DarkAero 1. A bigger airplane would be a logical next step if we are successful with the first design. One airplane at a time though! ;)

@n118nw

2 жыл бұрын

@@DarkAeroInc Of course! Keep up the great videos and great work!

And... there went my dream of ever building/owning one. Not nearly enough headroom. If I'm not mistaken you guys aren't even 6' tall, right? I'm guessing *max* height is probably gonna be ~6' and that's probably going to be a squeeze. I know that it's a kit plane, so there's room for customizations, but realistically the seat can't go down because it's a structural member of the airframe, and a taller canopy may be possible but would be prohibitively expensive to have made as a one-off, would require additional modifications to the turtleback, and would negatively impact aerodynamics. That said, for anyone your height or shorter this thing appears to fit like a glove and will undoubtedly be an awesome tool for going places fast on less gas than a 172.

@joshpeterson7216

2 жыл бұрын

They said 6'4" max

@ParadigmUnkn0wn

2 жыл бұрын

@@joshpeterson7216 If you have literally no seat cushion and keep your head tilted to the side so it doesn't hit the canopy, yeah, 6' 4" might be possible. I'd have to see it to believe it, but then again I would've said the same about this whole project. Not accommodating tall people isn't a deal breaker for like 90% of the population. This'll do fine.

Is the acrylic safe in high speeds? Thinking about hitting bird at 300kmh and getting sharp shatters all over the face.

It looks very nice but if the plane flips over on an emergency landing and catch fire how the passangers can escape?

@richardvisscher2626

2 жыл бұрын

same as any other small airplane

@schumiuav9170

2 жыл бұрын

@@richardvisscher2626 being bad because the others too is not a good point of view but this is just my opinion. I love this aircraft but because this safety issue I would never buy it.

@angela1984a

2 жыл бұрын

@@schumiuav9170 They have plans for a version with a BRS Parachute. With a BRS Parachute you could deploy that Parachute which will then 'stop' the plane. That should enable you to open the canopy in the air. And if you're then flying with a personal parachute you could just parachute out to safety. Also guessing the firewall will be able to prevent fire and fumes sufficiently enough to give you X amount of time to execute an emergency landing. Maybe the plane can also be outfitted with an engine fire suppression system that could further increase the amount of time the cabin will be survivable in the event of an engine fire. That could perhaps give even more time to safely execute an emergency landing... Not a pilot, so not really any kind of expert - but with that said - I think small planes like this one will always come with a risk...

@105blwalker

2 жыл бұрын

I built N36LV, which has gull wing doors. Knowing I would not be able to exit in the case of becoming inverted, I did three things. I installed a fire suppression system (outside the cockpit area), I had a crash axe that was a "go or no go" checklist item, and my plan for any off-airport forced landing was to land with the gear up. Planes usually end up upside down because the landing gear shears at different times during the crash, imparting extra torque moments to the fuselage. I had rear seat windows so my passenger brief included instructions on where the crash axe was located (behind the pilot seat) and to exit through the rear window areas after breaking them out with the axe. I got some sobering looks at times, but every person who flew in it thanked me for the extra mental preparation. These guys are going to have a more difficult situation but I would strongly recommend a crash axe in the cockpit.

@billl7551

2 жыл бұрын

@@richardvisscher2626 AND . . . ejecting the canopy before emergency landing option is there.