Well I was going to wait until I posted this tip on my own site first, (www.therangerdigest.com). But what the hell, here it goes....

Ever thought of using a kite for signaling?

Think about it, they're cheap, lightweight, and if you were stranded way out in the desert or in the boonies (or even in a liferaft) and saw a kite in the air, what would you think?

That some idiot who's bored is flying his kit? NO, that he must be needing some help, especially if it has SOS written on it and is reflecting sunlight.

I tried it already, I lightly spray painted a kite floresent orange and wrote on it the letters SOS and attached some aluminum foil to it too. I also attached a small chem-lite to it at night as well, and it works!

NOTE: If you spray too much paint on it, it won't fly because it'll be too heavy. But you may not need to spray paint it if it already has a bunch of noticeable "bright" colors on it.

Oh, by the way, while you're all thinking about this tip. I did try to market this idea, but I couldn't find a kite company who would buy off on it.

So hey Doug! If you think this is a pretty good idea, maybe with all your connections you can push it, I'll split the royalties with you.

What do the rest of you think about this tip?

"Ranger Rick" F. Tscherne

US Army, Retired (1972-93)
Author, The Ranger Digest Series
Developer, The SOS Necklace
(www.therangerdigest.com)

Sometimes a web search helps.

http://www.outdoorchallenge.co.uk/nakc2000/equipment/skystreme.htm

Matt

I have used a small tyvec (plastic impregnated paper) parafoil kite as a radio platform. In doing so, it became obvious that it is a great locating device.

I hang a very small walkie-talkie on the kite. This radio is capable of receiving on one ham band and transmitting the received signal on another ham band (called cross-band operation). Used this way, it greatly extends my ground WT range.

We left on up one night with a small strobelight on it (Can't remember which brand) and it was remarkable how far it was observed.

During daylight we had a long tail of "logging tape" 1" wide marking tape. Better would be mylar for radar, but we were not interested in that.

I was amaze at how little weight the kite would lift. The walkie and strobe were about the limit. Kite is about 3' wingspan.

Also tried to use an antenna wire as the kite string, but the copper was too heavy for the kite.

This was done in conjunction with a search and rescue training exercise and was quite useful as a visual marker in the woods where everyplace begins to look like eveyplace else.

For line I used 100 lb kevlar fishing line. All stuff we just happened to have around.

Folded with line the kite fits in a cylinderical pouch about 2" diam x 3" long. did not weigh it , but of course very light weight.

for what its worth......

Rick:

I like the idea. Maybe not for all applications but it would be a benefit in the desert, at sea, or other open areas. Using it in the woods, especially if you need a running start, won't work too well.

I would suggest a delta design but then that leaves the issue of how to store the support rods. Mine has a 3 foot wingspan and will lift a fair amount of weight. I have used it to raise wire antennas over trees (using a second string), and I've also raised a "D" cell strobe light about 100 feet with it. The trick is to carry the load about 10 to 20 feet below the kite so as not to impede the aerodynamics.

As mentioned before, kites are used somewhat in the area of ham radio. Here is a neat link on the subject: http://www.gnarc.org/pdf/kolinsky.pdf
I have flown the Scott Sled with Seabury and it is quite impressive. It will let you know who's boss if you aren't careful.


Chris

I used to build kites with about 2' wingspan. I used cheap silk cloth for them. This is very lightweight and pretty robust. It can be colored in bright colors without adding significant weight. The effectiveness as signaling device will depend on the circumstances. If kites are unexpected in the area they are going to attract attention. When someone is already looking for you it might help to put him on the right track.
I don´t think that writing SOS on it will help too much. The kite is visible long before the writing can be read. If it doesn´t raise interest at this stage it´s not likely that the person is coming closer to investigate. OTOH it wont hurt , so it could be worth trying.

YEA, I know the letters SOS wasn't really going to be seen at "great heights," but at low level it should be helpful in drawing some attention.

Especially if you got a lot of vegetation all around you. But again there's always some drawbacks, like no wind, rain, no room to run with the kite, etc. But for a couple of bucks, I don't think you can go wrong by taking a chance and carrying one, some weigh almost nothing.

As for that other flying gadget, at a quick glance I didn't notice the price, how much do they want?

Because there's a flying solar bag on the market that rises in the air on it's own and comes with a tow line too. They come in different sizes and cost only about $10. And if I remember right they sell'em as long as 25-60 feet. Now that should be able to draw some attention.

To use all you have to do is open it up and fill it with air by running with it and close the ends and the sun's ray's heats it up in minutes and raises it into the sky.

And so by attaching some small mirrors or aluminum foil and or a thin orange "silk cloth" to it... Well you get the idea.

BUT of course this would only be good for day use and not for night time launches.

It's a lot cheaper than paying for one of the helium canister and orange SOS balloon markers that some survival gear company in England sells? Unless you got the bucks to spend, I myself prefer to stick to using the "poorman's" signaling methods.

"Ranger Rick"

hot air filled black trash bag trailing a strip of aluminized mylar cut from your emergency space blanket. will you be splitting the royalties with me on that one?

I tried that when I was a kid. I found that the heat needed to generate lift was greater than the heat needed to melt the plastic. Of course, I was using a thin cardboard frame (made of punchcards from the computer lab, IIRC) but I think it would be pretty difficult to get this to fly without melting it. (And a burn from molten plastic is nasty - I have a round scar on my left hand that's still visible, a quarter of a century afterwards. <img src="images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" /> )