An article by Gerry Charlebois in US Hang gliding magazine
The Mosquito harness is the brainchild of Swedish inventor Johan Åhling. His company, Swedish Aerosports, is producing these harnesses and having a hard time keeping up with the demand.
Mine took three months to arrive. As always, when waiting for a new toy each day seems to last 42 hours instead of 24. Delivery times are now shorter.
Johan’s first powered harness was flying as far back as 1987, but it had only 10 horsepower and a few bugs to be worked out. Swedish aviation laws govern all aircraft strictly, and he had to submit his equipment to the Swedish governmental agency which is the equivalent of the FFA in the U.S.
After meeting their safety requirements the harness was approved for use in Sweden, and that enabled him to do more R&D and sell his product. Ten years and many design improvements have culminated in the 1998 version which features a twocycle, 15-horse-power motor spinning a super-light carbon/kevlar prop. The whole apparatus weighs 50 pounds without a parachute and folds neatly into a five-foot-long harness bag with a handle that allows it to be carried like luggage. I commute on planes constantly to the other Hawaiian islands and check it without ever incurring an excess baggage charge.
Judging by all the calls and e-mails I received after one of my photos flying with the Mosquito was featured in the January ‘98 centerfold of Hang Gliding magazine and the cover of Skywings in Great Britain, many pilots are intrigued with this new twist in free flying. With launch sites closing and the drive to the mountains getting longer, pilots want to in the air more conveniently.
And as some of us get older and take on more responsibilities, it seems like time for personal recreation becomes more limited all the time. This harness allows you to go to the nearest field or beach and set up your glider, hook in and take off. If the thermals are not working you can push out with the power at full throttle and climb until it runs out of gas. This usually happens as I reach about 9,000 feet (after launching at sea level). I then enjoy a nice, quiet sled ride back to land beside my truck.
The engine is somewhat noisy at full throttle so I wear a set of those small foam earplugs and they seem to suffice. The fuel source is a one-gallon aerodynamic fiberglass tank that attaches to the top of the downtubes. Ninety minutes is the longest I have stretched out a tank with continuous use. However, I usually launch, fly to the nearest ridge, pull into the lift and shut the engine down. In this case, after a two-hour flight fuel consumption amounts to six or seven ounces.
Getting into the harness seems to be the most awkward aspect of using the Mosquito, due to the fact you have to attach the carabiner and then the limiter lines that go from the side of the harness to the crossbar/leading edge junction. These lines serve a restraints to keep the prop from ever swinging into your trailing edge. An assistant is handy at this point because the glider needs the nose held up while you back yourself into the legs loops, pull it up and zip the back up. The keel has been cut off so the glider does not rest in its normal position. The hand throttle is located by your left hip and it is easy to bump it to full throttle when getting in. The result is that your engine and prop to go max rpm when you pull-start the motor. Make sure to add this to your checklist before pullstarting.
I was having a lot of fun flying from level ground when I got the idea to fly the Mosquito off a mountain ( a big mountain). Let’s go to Maui! Standing on top of a 10,000-foot volcano getting ready to launch is an awesome feeling, but knowing that you are going to get above takeoff is even better. This launch site is famous for its ability to give you a 45-minute sled ride to the beach, at the very least. Unfortunately, getting over the top is a very rare occurrence. I was about to put the Mosquito to the test and had a nice 12-mph breeze coming up the face, so I ran off with the motor idling. Once I was prone it was time to go full throttle. Circling back to launch I quickly fell below the top. At this altitude the climb rate was diminished, but going up was not a problem. Fuel-to-air ratio is critical for two-strokes, and with no carb adjustments I was soon in the air that was too thin to provide any horsepower. The engine still sounded fine, but at 12,200 feet it was no longer pushing me skyward. It did, however, maintain me at zero to 50 down.
I hung out and waited for a thermal, and 400 up came before long so I turned into it and started ascending again. The turning characteristics of the glider are definitely affected by the thrust and weight aft of your hang point, but after a few flights you tend to get used to the slower roll. At full power the P-factor of the prop is something you need to pay attention to. With a clockwise rotation it wants to yaw your glider the right. This may not sound like a big deal, but during launch you have to pay serious attention to this, as it feels like the glider wants to lock out to the right if you leave the ground with your right wing low with full rpm.
I found that if I ease up on the power when it starts pulling, it will respond to my input. I neglected to do that once and found myself 10 feet up and not able to stop the rotation, and the results were a broken downtube. There is also a mouth throttle that is used during takeoff. If your launch doesn’t feel good just spit it out and fly the glider back to the ground. I strongly advise using a large field for launching until you are familiar with your gear. After an hour of thermaling above 12,000 feet I headed for the coast and had shut my power off. The best way to do this is to apply full power , then pull the choke tab. This floods the carb, leaving fuel to make for an easier air start. Pulling on my VG I wanted to see what effect a freewheeling prop would have on my glide angle. I did not have a GPS on board that day to get a precise glide measurement, but could not detect any drastic reduction in my glide after a 6,000-foot descent.
When I was above the top I heard some pilots asking what conditions were like, as they were setting up gliders on the 5,000-foot launch. I radioed down and told them of my altitude over the top. They were astounded, and I thought I would keep the Mosquito a secret a little while longer. I was about eight miles away and 1,000 feet below where they were setting up, so I figured it was time to fire up my little iron thermal and pay them a visit. Pointing down toward them, I flew in a straight line, pushing out, and was back up to 7,000 feet in no time. It was 11:30 AM and the air was getting really buoyant. As I approached them I cut the power to idle so they could not hear me and told them of my position. There was some headscratching going on because conditions at this level were not soarable yet. I Had some fun with them as I wanged down to launch, letting them believe I had some amazing climbing technique. As I came at them, just at launch level, I hit full power and started climbing away again. This thing really is FUN!
Those pilots had another hour to wait for it to get soarable, so I headed to the beach 12 miles away with the throttle set so my vario read zero. I was about four miles away when the fuel ran out, but I had plenty of altitude to glide there. One of the things you have to restrain yourself from is flying around with power and putting yourself in a position where an engine-out is going to hurt. Flying strikes for a living has trained me to be very alert as to where my closest LZ is at all times! An engine failure with no safe out can be very hazardous to your health. Landing seem to be easier than with a normal harness. Having the extra weight behind you, and the landing skids that drag on the ground as you skim in, causes your hips to stay well behind the CG, resulting in good flaring even in zero wind. Just be sure to get any of the lines from the skids clear of your feet, so upon touchdown you won’t pull a landing strut forward, allowing the motor and prop to hit the ground.
I now have about thirty hours on my Mosquito and am really enjoying it. I just finished filming a flying segment for the 1990’s version of Fantasy Island, and the Mosquito proved to be very useful when doing multiple takes for ground cameras. With normal flying I would have had to land and relaunch for every take.
My personal preference will always be launching off a mountain and climbing away, but this piece of gear gives the user another option. It enables me to get to soaring sites that are accessible only by aerotowing a long way, and that’s why I find it handy. I see a great future for this device with many applications. How about pylon-racing around a course at an airport, or precision team flying? At this point I would love to have another Mosquito pilot to cruise with. If you get a chance to try one you will enjoy it.