Yes, do try this at home, school…wherever!

Members of the Indian Lake Central School Paper Airplane Club performing test flights in 2009. Archive Photo of the Day: George DeChant

It’s been plenty cold this winter, meaning lots of indoor hibernation. So here’s a cool thing to try that gets you on your feet and moving. Perfect for cooped-up kids, aviation buffs or just the young-at-heart.

As written up by Bruce Deachman for the Ottawa Citizen, with little more than a slip of newspaper and a side of cardboard, seemingly anyone can make – and fly –  paper airplane walkalong gliders. The article “Winged wonders: Paper plane meetup lands in Ottawa” includes a fun video of such a thing in action.

I haven’t tried it yet, but it looks pretty easy. The Citizen article focuses on Darcy Whyte:

Whyte, a 48-year-old Ottawa artist and aviation enthusiast, is holding what he believes is Ottawa’s first paper plane walkalong glider meetup, where similarly minded enthusiasts and curious novices will gather to build simple aircraft and fly them. More events are planned for Thursday, as Arts Court and the Canadian Aviation and Space Museum will open their doors to the public for would-be paper pilots to engage in miniature acrobatics and such.

See the source article for specific time & place details for those Ottawa events, happening today (Wednesday) and Thursday. Whyte’s enthusiasm sounds infectious:

“I love science,” he adds, “and, you know, you’re at a social function where people are talking about sports or the weather or whatever, and you bring out a walkalong glider and the next thing you know, people are talking about aerodynamics, the science of the weather, birds’ flight.

“Flight is a miracle. Everyone wants to do it, and this is a great way to learn about it. It’s beyond just a conversation piece.”

Webmaster and photo library curator Dale Hobson reminded me that some schools already give model planes time and space, like Indian Lake Central’s paper airplane club. (Does that still function?) He steered me to a photo of the day with pupils and their planes from 2009.

Here’s more about  about making and flying walkalong gliders including a video by the students of Slater Harrison at the Jersey Shores Middles School. Go nuts!

P.S. If you build and fly any, photos would be appreciated.

Tags: aviation, canada, Darcy Whyte, indoor recreation, model planes, Ontario, walkalong gliders, winter