Free Paper Airplane Designs

February 3, 2010 2:20 PM

I fly like paper, get high like planes
If you catch me at the border I got visas in my name
If you come around here, I make 'em all day
I get one down in a second if you wait

Making paper planes and flying them is fun, but their also serious business. For instance, in late 2009, Japanese engineer Takuo Toda set a world record flying a paper plane, keeping it aloft for 27.9 seconds, beating the previous world record holder, American man Ken Blackburn, who had managed 27.6 seconds (previously). And there's even a book on how to make an advanced kind of paper plane called the Paperang (previously).

So if you want to start breaking records, check out some of the free links above the fold (terrible pun intended). Also, if you're particuarly interested in making The Spirit of America plane, this site will tell you how to do it. The OpenDirectory Project has lots more links to more sites about making paper planes. You should also check out the Paper Airplane Flight Simulator to get an idea of how far your design will fly.

Finally, if all these free paper plane designs aren't conducive in helping you make great paper planes, OrigamiTube has heaps of free videos which guide you through the process. Happy flying!

posted by Effigy2000 (11 comments total)

From the "keeping it aloft for 27.9 seconds" link:

Founder of the association in 1980, he has lobbied scientists and professors to take his proposal seriously and was finally rewarded last year when the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency announced that it would fund a three-year, 90 million yen (£617,000) study into the feasibility of launching paper darts from the International Space Station and, hopefully, recovering them when they return to Earth about a week later.

WTF? How could a paper dart possibly reenter Earth's atmosphere and remain intact?
posted by Perplexity at 2:25 PM on February 3, 2010

WTF? How could a paper dart possibly reenter Earth's atmosphere and remain intact?

Well, that's the 90 million yen question, isn't it?
posted by Slap Factory at 2:30 PM on February 3, 2010 [7 favorites]

Aaaargh, typos. "...but their they're also serious business."

Also;

"WTF? How could a paper dart possibly reenter Earth's atmosphere and remain intact?"
posted by Perplexity at 8:25 AM on February 4

Perplexity, indeed.
posted by Effigy2000 at 2:32 PM on February 3, 2010

I would think that the drag coefficient of a paper airplane in relation to it's mass, would prevent it from hitting speeds that would incinerate it.
But IANA(P|AE)
posted by bashos_frog at 2:57 PM on February 3, 2010

What's this "Letter" business? A4 4 Life
posted by Fiasco da Gama at 3:01 PM on February 3, 2010 [3 favorites]

Founder of the association in 1980, he has lobbied scientists and professors to take his proposal seriously and was finally rewarded last year when the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency announced that it would fund a three-year, 90 million yen (£617,000) study into the feasibility of launching paper darts from the International Space Station and, hopefully, recovering them when they return to Earth about a week later.

I've never been to Japan so I don't have firsthand knowledge of this. Do they have electronic mail in Japan? That might be a better way to send a message through several atmospheres.
posted by hal_c_on at 7:11 PM on February 3, 2010

WTF? How could a paper dart possibly reenter Earth's atmosphere and remain intact?

By fluttering, of course.
posted by axiom at 8:24 PM on February 3, 2010 [1 favorite]

No, this isn't a post about a terrible rap song ...

No, it's a post about paper airplanes using the text from an amazing rap song.
posted by wemayfreeze at 12:07 AM on February 4, 2010 [1 favorite]

Effigy2000: No, this isn't a post about a terrible rap song ...

wemayfreeze: No, it's a post about paper airplanes using the text from an amazing rap song.

Oooo... you're both going to hate this...
posted by twine42 at 2:38 AM on February 4, 2010

And it's thanks to The Wire that I understand the line, "Hit me on my burner prepaid wireless".
posted by Sutekh at 4:47 AM on February 4, 2010

"WTF? How could a paper dart possibly reenter Earth's atmosphere and remain intact?
"
That all depends on the initial velocity relative to the atmosphere it's entering. The reason the shuttle (or whatever) heats up on re-entry isn't because it's falling straight down, it's because it's slamming into atmosphere at orbital velocity laterally.
posted by TravellingDen at 10:57 PM on February 4, 2010