Mar 2, 2009 8:37 pm US/Eastern
Powered Parachutes Creating Buzz
SEBASTIAN, Fla. (CBS4) ―
At six o'clock on a cool morning, a pilot is preparing for flight at Sebastian Municipal Airport. Dick Marshall, a veteran pilot, pulled a red three-wheeled vehicle from his hangar. In the back is a giant powerful fan. Marshall, and a few of his friends, all of whom he taught, met up for some early flying because they share a basic human curiosity.
"For centuries, people have dreamt of flight, to emulate a bird" Marshall said. Although there's no equal, the flying enthusiasts say, it sure comes close. Marshall commented to
CBS4 Mobile Journalist Jim Robinson, "You're flying with the birds. I've had eagles on either side of me as curious about me as I was about them right off my wingtips, it doesn't get much better than that".
It's called 'low and slow' flight. The aircrafts out this morning doesn't even require an airport. The 27-year veteran said, "People take off in five acre plots of land in their back yard".
A red, white and blue parachute is unpacked, very similar to what a skydiver uses when jumping from an airplane, except it's being used in reverse, taking Marshall and the nearly six hundred pound vehicle skyward.
Marshall makes a transmission on his hand-held radio to the tower, "Sebastian traffic we'll be departing runway 22 on the grass." Air filled the 'chute' rising above the vehicle, and then in a short burst, the vehicle was airborne.
Looking up from the ground is quite a sight as a half-dozen powered parachutes buzz around a small airport. Marshall talked to
CBS4's Jim Robinson from the air via radio and explains the experience, "Well Jim, it's absolutely wonderful. Low and slow."
Low and slow is right. Reaching a maximum speed of 25mph, and flying as low as about 30 feet. It's the place we call home, from a bird's eye view.
"You can see the deer and the pigs and turkeys and wildlife and smell the grass" Marshall added.
Many will ask whether the recreation is safe. "This is by far the safest way to fly. Your speed is low enough, your altitude isn't high enough and you're on a parachute, it doesn't get much better than that", Marshall laughed. "You're always flying whether the engine is on or off".
Operating a powered parachute isn't all that difficult. Using foot pedals, "push right you go right, push left, you go left" Marshall said. Cords are attached to the parachute creating an 'aileron' causing the aircraft to turn. Throttle adjustments give you speed and altitude.
While late morning wind limits flight to only forty-five minutes, the 'chute' can take a vehicle into a direction not intended when conditions gets too gusty.
Fascination with the sport lasts a lifetime.
"It's affordable, fun flying for everyone who wants to fly." If you would like to know more about this sport, ride or even learn how to fly visit Dick Marshall's
website at Fly Sebastian.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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