Background Story and Concept
Model of Thundercloud.
The Donderwolk (Thundercloud) is a strong but light aircraft, with hybrid characteristics. It at one and the same time a propeller plane, driven by a motor positioned at the rear, and a glider – provided with a delta-shaped Rogallo-wing. The closed, compact cabin, that resembles that of an old fighter plane, is made of aluminum. The dome is of plexiglas. Above the craft’s hull there is a delta-shaped wing, the so-called ‘Rogallo-Flexwing’, named after the American NASA engineer who developed the Flexwing to help space capsules return safely to Earth.
‘For my Rogallo-wing, I looked for a material that looked like a kind of membrane. That turned out to be a cotton impregnated with rubber. Because of the rubber’s dark color, it looked like a thundercloud. My mother sewed that sail together on her own small sewing machine. That’s the only thing she ever did: sew those slits for inserting the delta’s tubes.’ – Panamarenko
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