That segment had to do with efficiency in formation flight. Well the segment really didn't make it into the retrospective but at least a short video clip did. I think the series did do some good.
where are those dunes exactly?
The aerial portion was shot near Tracy, CA.
Entire episode is available here:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2mynp3
A few VAF members here were involved in the production of this episode, which was fun and informative to be a part of!
Like Joe said, we staged out of Tracy, CA (KTCY). The background in the clip shows the hills between Tracy and Livermore, just at the west edge of the Central Valley. This time of year they are green, with poppies everywhere. Most of the year, including early fall when we shot, they are brown.
A few tidbits about the show, and the shoot:
Steve Smith (VAF SCSmith) was asked to set this up by the show, as he's consulted with them several times. They shot the vortex flow test scenes at NASA Ames, where Steve worked for 35+ years.
The goal was to prove, or bust, the myth that flying in formation saves energy.
Tim Cone, Scott Randolph, Steve and I did a proof of concept in 3 RVs, to see if we could find, and stay in, the updraft portion of the wingtip vortex. We called it the sweet spot, and it was actually not too hard to find and fly in.
The sweet spot is above, behind, and inboard of a "normal" formation parade position. Slightly stepped up, and eyeballs about in line with the wingtip, or just inboard of that. When "in", the airplane wants to roll slightly away from lead, so to hold it there, we used slight inboard aileron pressure, and slight outboard rudder pressure. If you moved out of it, the cross-control feel requirement went away, so you just had to go find it again.
There really is a reduction of power when "in". We showed a 7% decrease in average fuel flow during the show data collection, which was done fairly carefully and scientifically. Three aircraft had hifi FF gauges, and the rest of us had co-pilots take raw data. Thus the "fairly"...but we tried to stay attentive to the details.
Probably the most dramatic test we did that showed how much impact there was, was during our proof of concept flight. Tim and Scott flew line abreast, and I flew behind and between them, in the sweet spot from both aircraft. They then spread out a bit sideways, and none of us touched the power...and they walked away from me. Kinda cool, but we did not duplicate that for the show.
We did do a 9-ship V, and everyone was able to find the spot. Less obvious the farther back you go, but the guys did some good flying.
The V and the line abreast tested just as expected. A benefit was seen in both, but the benefit was greater to the wingmen in the V, and greater to the lead in the line abreast. In fact, that is how it works in nature, per Steve. The angle of the V is self-regulating. If it goes steep, the wingmen get more benefit, and the lead tires, so the V flattens out a little. If the V is flat, the wingmen tire faster than the lead, and fall back a bit, making the V steeper. So nature finds its way. (I wonder if Canadian Geese have calls to each other, like, "Move back, you hoser!"..."Oh, gettin' tired, eh?"
). Also the lead does not change, since the V is thusly regulated to be mutually beneficial, so its not like team biking. We've heard rumors that the lead does get more girls, but I've not been able to prove that part of the myth in practice!
The "conga line" test was strictly for TV, to show that "drafting" does not work in flying. Even with RVs, none of us liked flying IN the vortex and prop wash. The hosts liked it even less!
Speaking of the hosts, they were fun to work with, and very personable. Very much like their on-screen personas...regular, fun folks! And yes, Kari
is that cute!
We shot for a day and a half, with 9 hops on the full day, in 96 degree heat. Hard-working RVs braved the hot oil temps, and hard working Raven RV pilots braved the hot cockpits. But, like Shadey Joe said, it was a bunch of fun, and we learned a lot!
The Mythbusters series was a good one...lots of fun. My kids learned a lot over the years. In Tracy of course, they ran right up to Grant and Tory, and asked..."what are we gonna blow up?!?!?"
Oh, and the myth was confirmed!
Cheers,
Bob