‘Flyte’: New auto controlled flight 18′ Foiler

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‘Flyte’: Full auto Flight controlled Foiler preview

This was the missing link in the beachcat foiling development: An auto controlled flight full carbon racing machine a la mini TF35.

The new ‘Flyte’ is basically an A-Cat for two. Which was the actual intention behind the project.

In gral we don’t like these auto flight foilers as it takes much from the actual fun and sense of achievement to master for ie current legal A-Cat racing foil setup. We don’t like double wand systems either, as it adds too much equipment and relies on double T foils that make launching a hassle.

BUT these platform offer a good solution for those who want an esy going foiler and discard any initial hard learning curve.

In the other extreme you have the orig Martin Fischer’s Flying Phantom and the posterior launched Nacra F20FCS with their 3point J foil setup, platforms which are indeed not suited for mass adoption.

For double trap foilers the Nacra 17 design team had an excellent decision on going Z 4point Foils setup and this is exactly what this new Flyte Foiler has done.

Great bet going Z + auto flight combo.

Costs of course will be high for the new Flyte but the right selection of foil system for the intended use is something to applaud. Given the need for an auto controlled flight alternative this would be our preference…, Costs aside!

To whom is targeted this new Flyet Foiler?
To any cat sailor that can trapeze. That’s the solution the auto flight systems brings to the table. The Stunt 9 was the first of its kind, then many followed suit like the White Formula, IFly 15 and all the paltforms we’ve been publishing for years now.

In constrast to these double T foilers above, this new Flyte platform will be able to handle long distance racing and blue ribbons collection.
At least its what they are announcing as one of their design goals.

So its not a recreational advance foiler to target only One Design eventual regattas, as none of the current auto flight foilers aimed to the weekend sailor can dare to go after an FP, or F20FCS , N17 or even an A-Cat course racing.

We’ll see if the Flyte can revamp the Blue Ribbon frenzy we had on the golden era of the new racing foiling cats.
The great aspect this time around is that anyone will be able to fly it in recreational mode, something the FP or the F20C or even A-Cats cannot deliver.

My view right now: Offer an alternative electronic system free platform, as this size , weight and setup is the dream of many. The Scorpion F18 convertible was cost effective heavy weight Z foil solution , but the Flyte its about the perfect high performance platform.

Our friends from Exploder & D3 Applied Technologies are involved. This is a quick preview on the web launch.
We will get more details and insights soon.

Meanwhile check the new project official web at: https://www.flyte.cat/ check it for more info and actual sailing videos.

The launch of the new ‘Flyte’ Foiler will stir the beachcat scene as the most advanced foiler to date.

Specs:

Crew: 2 or 1 (70-180 kg)
Length: 5.4 m / 18 ft
Beam: 2.55 m
Platform: 76 kg
Ready-to-sail 148 kg incl. rigging, sails, foils, snuffer, displays, computer, battery, mechatronics
Mast Height: 9m
Mainsail: 16 m² (incl. mast)
Jib: 5 m²
Gennaker: 20 m²
Compute: 2 dual-core processors
Drives: 4 rake actuators
Speed: 25 kn in 11 kn TWS, 30+ kn top speed
Yardstick: 442 (rated 4 points faster than Olympic Nacra 17)

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