FAQ's PAGE
Paladin Industries, Inc., produces powered parachutes incorporating only the highest quality materials and the finest construction in the industry. With years of experience in this field, Paladin Industries is able to offer several features no other powered parachute manufacturer is capable of offering. These include the exclusive TiltBar^TM steering, for example, and a range of products designed to suit the customer's individual needs rather than one stock brand with a few different types of parachutes or an extra seat. The Golden Eagle^TM, offers a configuration that is more comfortable than any other type. Rather than the uncomfortable 'piggy back' seating common in the industry, we offer two separate tandem seats of the design used in racing cars. Even large men find them comfortable, and there is plenty of legroom even for the passenger. No other powered parachute can claim that.
Paladin Industries, Inc. 7300 N. US Route 130, Bldg. 13 Pennsauken, NJ 08110

The Hercules^TM allows for a gross weight of up to 1,000 pounds and boasts the most powerful engine and highest payload in the industry.
1. You claim the Golden Eagle and the Hercules are the biggest and strongest powered parachutes on the market. Why is that?
One of the first things a customer notices when examining either the Golden Eagle or the Hercules is the size. At eleven feet in length, they are the biggest powered parachutes on the market, making them easily the most comfortable. Yet for all their size both planes are relatively light - only 340 lbs for the Golden Eagle. That means the canopy and engine is lifting payload instead of plane. This is the opposite of many other manufacturers also using a 65-horsepower engine but whose planes weigh much more and can therefore lift less payload. The Hercules, still only weighing 390 lbs -- boasts a 110 hp engine, providing more power and lift than any other powered parachute in the world. On October 21, 1999, a rate-of-climb world record was set in a Hercules with a 1,500 fpm climb rate. No other powered parachute can match that. Yet, though light for their size, Paladin's aircraft are also the strongest-made powered parachutes. Basic construction material is aircraft grade aluminum. Please note how the design allows for most of the frame to be triangulated; triangulation is the same technique that allows a bridge to be both strong and light. For any part that is not triangulated, such as the nose and tilt bar, chromeolly steel was used instead of aluminum. Strength without bulk is a uniform priority for Paladin Industries.

2. Some manufacturers claim they protect the pilot better because they have a bar coming down vertically across the pilot. What protection for the pilot do your planes offer?

A horizontal bar is NOT necessary to protect the pilot in an emergency! All four models: The Golden Eagle and Hercules incorporate what is known as an "OPEN ROLL CAGE" to protect the pilot. If you draw three lines through the seated pilot representing the three different axes you will understand how this works. On the line coming straight up and down and paralleling the pilot's back - you will see two powerful aluminum struts reaching from either side and over his head. These struts form the main structure of the plane and will prevent head injuries in the event of a rollover. The lateral axis is protected by the chromeolly steel TiltBar -- this prevents the pilot from ever contacting the ground if the plane goes over on its side. And finally, only Paladin Industries manufactures its nose out of chromeolly steel rather than aluminum, to absorb the impact in an accident so that the pilot is protected.

In addition, the design gives a heightened feeling of security for the passenger, who is sitting in what is essentially a FULL metal roll cage, protecting on all sides by metal.

Finally, Paladin Industries offers a FOUR-POINT ATTACHMENT HARNESS as standard equipment. This will diffuse any impact forces preventing serious injuries possible with only a lapbelt or three-point harness. A four-point harness also prevents the pilot from being thrown forward, which could cause head injuries in even a minor incident, and holds both pilot and passenger securely in a seat designed to handle an impact of up to 5-G's. All Paladin planes are designed for the OPTIMUM of pilot and passenger safety.

3. Will I have to readjust the Center of Gravity when I fly solo?

Not necessarily. It is the pilot's weight -- situated out toward the nose, -- that offsets the weight of the engine and prop for the most part. The passenger is actually sitting very close to the CG, so his weight (or lack thereof) is going to have very little effect on the flight characteristics of the plane. This is a very important point, because if your CG is altered it could conceivably interfere with a proper takeoff or landing. The Golden Eagle's weight design eliminates that problem, as does the TiltBar^TM, which we'll discuss later. To recap, the Golden Eagle requires no readjustment to the CG whether you're flying with a passenger or solo. Just get in, strap up and fly off!

However, the higher power levels and more extreme rate-of-climb of the Hercules made it desirable to allow for a fine-tuning of the front-to-back center of gravity. Therefore, the parachute attach points have been redesigned to allow for adjustment based on pilot weight. This is now standard on the Golden Eagle as well.

4. I've seen the discrepancies between manufacturer's claims on build time and the hours it actually takes to get into the air. So, how long will it REALLY take me to build one of your kits?

The average build time on a Golden Eagle or Hercules really is about 50 hours. A lot of work goes into each part here at the factory to make the airframe kit as close as 'bolt together' as possible. Each tube and bracket is pre-measured and pre-drilled, to go together easily, and the instructions are the most explicit in the business. You will probably spend about 25-30 hours constructing the airframe, with the rest devoted to engine mounting, wiring, etc.

5. Your TiltBar^TM is different than any other steering method on the market. How does it work? Are there any advantages?

An absolutely unique method of steering and suspension for a powered parachute, whose main advantages are smooth coordinated turns, counter torque effect, and the overhead attachment, which adds greatly to stability. Most people today are aware of how a powered parachute turns: steering lines are connected from foot levers to either side of the canopy. Tugging on those lines causes a drag on one side of the chute, rotating it and the cart. This also however brings about a resultant loss of lift, forcing the pilot to add power to maintain altitude. It can also, cause a progressive stall across the chute if the pilot maintains multiple 360 degree turns.
The TiltBar^TM steering uses a different concept entirely to turn the cart. Our primary steering lines are not directly connected to the parachute. Pushing the foot lever drags down one side of the overhead tilt bar, shifting the weight of the craft under the parachute. Pendulum effect dictates that the aircraft will seek up-and-down balance; therefore, the weight shift initiates a turn until the pressure is released and balance is achieved. The result -- smooth turns, and since the canopy inflation remains constant there is NO loss of power or altitude with the turn. Also, the system uses a small amount of trailing edge drag to help bank the parachute and prevent "skidding" in a turn. If either system were to fail due to a broken cable or parachute steering line, then the other half would still be operative, making the system redundant.
Another feature of the TiltBar^TM is the extra stability it gives the powered parachute. The high, wide attach points and the way the weight is distributed under the tilt bar also make both the Golden Eagle and Hercules resistant to change caused by turbulence and thermals.
6. I've heard the TiltBar steering also affects the engine torque effect?
Torque absorption is a bonus with TiltBar steering - THERE IS NO TORQUE EFFECT EVEN DURING A FULL-POWER CLIMB OUT. Basically, what happens here is that the engine produces a certain amount of torque that rolls the airframe. In most powered parachutes this produces a turn, but in a Paladin aircraft with a lateral pivot point, it simply produces a roll under the TiltBar, which is in effect an equal turn in the opposite direction than the torque is turning the plane. The tilt bar system is laterally stabilizing. That is, if all the steering cables were disconnected then the bar would tilt itself into a straight ahead flying position by itself. This, in addition to the normal stability offered by the pendulum effect makes for a very stable ride. Also, the overhead attachment is far enough above the C.G., that a higher force must be exerted on the airframe to get it to move away from steady flight, as compared with a conventionally rigged powered parachute
Because primary steering lines are connected to the TiltBar^TM, additional lines are run to the flare/nose steering lever. Left or right movement on the stick moves the nose wheel in the indicated direction; pull back on the stick flares the chute, forward on the stick to release the flare. Air steering is of course still controlled by the swing bar under your feet.

7. What kind of parachutes do you use?

The standard canopy on the Golden Eagle is the APCO 500 PowerWing. It has proven its capabilities for some years now, and our dealer in Israel has worked closely with the manufacturer to fine-tune this canopy to work best with the TiltBar steering in use on all Paladin products. It will allow a Golden Eagle to lift up to approximately 500 pounds payload. It is available in a wide variety of colors and patterns and parachute painting is also available either at time of manufacture or aftermarket.

The much larger Hercules requires a larger parachute. For it we have chosen APCO's 550 square foot PowerWing. This wing is also available for the Golden Eagle and will boost the payload to 520 pounds.

Both sizes allow for quick inflation, kiting easily in a short amount of runway. High efficiency on the chute means better lift and smoother, more gentle power-off landings than are generally available from competitors. We've used this design for years and are very pleased with its performance. We think you will be, too.

8. I've noticed that your engines are pointed at a downward angle rather than straight backwards like your competitors. Why is that?
To answer that, let me quote from the Engineers Notes: The GE Mk IV thrustline is optimized with 2 important factors in mind. 1. Maximizing lift on an aircraft with an inefficient wing (parachute). 2. Making the airframe pitch-stable with throttle changes. For the first part, a trigonometric analysis shows that the loss in the horizontal component of thrust times the efficiency of the wing is less than the vertical component of the thrust produced when the engine is tilted. Therefore, there is a net gain in lift. The optimal tilt angle is dependent on the Lift over Drag (L/D) ratio of the wing. (In this case, the parachute.) For the second part it is important to understand that with changing thrust the airframe will in effect rotate around two points. The first is the center of gravity, which is low on the airframe, and the second is the center of lift, where the canopy attaches to the frame. At first glance it would appear that the plane will nose down with increased thrust because the thrust line shoots so high over the center of gravity, but since the largest part of the aircraft's total drag is the canopy, it will tend to pull the cart along to an extent. Also, the cart itself will rotate nose up below the attachment points because the thrust line shoots below them, however this is minimized somewhat with a four-point attach system. Taking all of these factors into account, the optimal thrust line that produces minimal pitch changes in the cart can be found. Taking this angle, along with the angle for best lift the designer can find a good compromise between the two, minimizing pitch changes, (some are desirable from a performance standpoint) and maximizing lift. (In the case of the GE Mk IV, it is biased toward cruise.) Some interesting side benefits of the downward angled prop: 1. A larger prop can be swung in the same vertical height than a straight mount. 2. Ground control is improved longer into the takeoff run because the thrust line rotates the airframe over the rear wheels putting more pressure on the nose wheel. With respect to the "wedging" question, remember that the plane, while a 2 body system, still behaves as a single body system after all damping disappears. (i.e., no swinging, smooth air, etc.) Also, the cart is less than 10% of the drag of the whole system, so that the cart angle will tend to follow the canopy angle. (Some judicious use of thrust can aid this.) Now, because this is a four point attach system, too much nose-down attitude will hurt your climb rate because it effects the chute angle. (It's starting point is more nose down than usual.) This will result in a higher forward speed as well as wicked flare response. Conversely, if the nose is too high, the canopy starting point is higher than normal, which will result in a higher climb rate and slower forward speed. (Recipe for a stall!) On the Golden Eagle-Mk IV, a little extra payload is squeezed out by setting up the plane so that increasing loads in the back seat and fuel tank will give the plane a little more "nose up" attitude. The lower speed is counteracted by the higher weight, (causing the plane to fly faster) and the plane simply doesn't have the juice to move the chute very far back with all of that weight. Overall, it is most important for the designer to set up the balance of the plane to allow for safe flight at the extremes of loading. Because the attachments of the tilt bar are so high over the CG [center of gravity], changes in it will result in very small changes in the angle of the cart, which makes the system very stable, and eliminates the need for CG adjustments over a very large range of loads.

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