Assisted Take Off - Carrier Aircraft

Carrier Aircraft

Probably the ultimate form of gravity assistance is when an aircraft is released from a larger mother ship or mother craft. This may be because the daughter craft is incapable of taking off normally e.g. the atmospheric flight tests of the Space Shuttle.

Usually the rationale for such a system is to free the daughter craft from the need to climb to its release height on its own devices. This allows the daughter craft to be designed with fewer weight and aerodynamic restrictions allowing for exotic configurations to be used or tested, for example the recent SpaceShipOne, and previously the Bell X-1 and other X-planes.

In the interwar years in order to achieve long ranges with the technology of the time, trials were undertaken with float planes piggy backed atop flying boats. With the float plane carried part of the way to its destination and freed from having to use any of its own fuel in the initial climb these combinations could deliver light but time critical cargos faster and farther than a single individual aircraft (see Short Mayo Composite).

Hot air balloons have acted as "motherships" to hang gliders and para gliders in altitude and distance record attempts.