Smoke Canisters on strut - C172

[Flybypic]

Good afternoon all,

 

A buddy of mine is hosting a gender reveal party at a local airport. He is booking the restaurant which sits right next to one of the runways. He asked me if I could do a low pass and release smoke to reveal the gender of the baby. Trying to figure out if I could just buy a couple smoke canisters hook them on the struts and have a string connected to the canisters so that my passenger could pull them as we fly by. I hope I can pull this off as I think it would be fun......... Any major issues you can see with this? Please share any suggestions/ideas 

 

Thank you!

[facthunter]

There's probably pages of laws you may be breaking. Maybe in the US you would get more sense applied.   Nev

[Flybypic]

Are you familiar with specific laws that I would break by doing this? I know that low passes over the runway are legal....is there something specific on the use of smoke? I know that there are planes using smoke to create different writing in the sky. Since you are implying this would be an illegal behavior I would like to hear the specifics of it as I wouldn’t want to break any laws by doing this. 
 

thank you!

Edited March 28, 2021 by Flybypic

[facthunter]

It's common with aerobatic s but they used to use the engines exhaust system. which is a dirty way of achieving it. No I'm certainly not familiar with the law especially in your country. I would contact people who arrange airshows who probably operate under some kind of dispensation.  If you are in  a part of t he country  where a lot of things are done rather wildly. (you are) Perhaps just do it.. Nev

[Flybypic]

Thank you for the tips sir! I will look into the aerobatic circle and ask for their opinion 

[onetrack]

I would hazard a guess that attaching a smoke grenade to a wing strut would require FAA approval. A better idea, I would suggest, is to utilise a skydiving smoke grenade, attached to piece of wood that your passenger can poke out of a window.

I'm not sure if you would be able to get the color you seek in a grenade (I'm guessing blue for a boy, pink for a girl). Discuss your needs with the supplier linked to, below.

 

https://sportsmoke.com/smoke-grenades/skydiving/sky-diver-smoke-grenade

[Flybypic]

I’ll check that out for sure! Thank you for the suggestion!

[IBob]

I don't know what's used now, but skydiving smoke used to be a pyrotechnic can that could run quite hot: we used to just duct tape it to the side of a boot, but occasionally someone would get a very hot foot that way.

 

Whatever you use, I would reccomend a test-firing on the ground so you and any crew know what to expect. If attaching it to a strut, I would be putting something between the can and the strut to avoid marking the strut. I would also think about getting it out far enough that it's not smoking the tail, as some of these smokes do stain. Oh, and don't fire it in the aircraft, where the smoke will go round and round, making it hard to see where you are going...

 

Post pics!

[onetrack]

The skydiving smoke grenade that I posted the link to, is described as "a 'Cool-burning' Non-Pyrotechnic" grenade.

[IBob]

You may want to check the duration of the smoke too, so as to best time your pass/es.
The old cannisters were quite brief....maybe a minute?

The other thing I recall was it was quite a stiff cross-pull to fire them, so the cannister had to be fastened so that it didn't skew when pulled sideways at the top.

Again, I'd definitely be doing a test firing, on the ground and away from the aircraft, to get the feel of the thing.

[FlyBoy1960]

3 hours ago, onetrack said:

(I'm guessing blue for a boy, pink for a girl).

 

or,  white for Jabiru    😇

[APenNameAndThatA]

I would ask CASA. When I asked then about landing in the desert they were sensible but a tiny bit non committal. I would avoid the forgiveness rather than permission approach.  

 

I would test on the ground and in the air. And check that the smoke is visible from the ground. 

 

I would have a separate person to operate the canister so that the pilot can just fly the plane. I would use at least two canisters in case one failed. 

 

I would have predetermined, written minimums that someone would hold me to because if you are the gender reveal centre piece the get there itis will be intense. Make sure the party host has a canister of there own in case you cannot fly that day. 

 

Don’t use a system to hold the cannisters outside the airplane to get around rules about attaching stuff to the airplane. You might drop the canister or fill the airplane with smoke. 

 

DISCLAIMER   I have 119.1 hours and know *nothing* about this topic. 

[onetrack]

If you looked, you'll see the original poster is located in the USA. CASA has no power in the USA, his aviation authority is the FAA.

[APenNameAndThatA]

20 hours ago, onetrack said:

If you looked, you'll see the original poster is located in the USA. CASA has no power in the USA, his aviation authority is the FAA.

Duly noted. 

[Blueadventures]

Channel 7 are reporting a plane crash into water in Mexico (looks like a low speed  / stall) for a gender reveal party terrible news and condolences for those involved. Hope it was not Flybypic's friend.

 

https://abcnews.go.com/International/dead-plane-crashes-gender-reveal-stunt-mexico/story?id=76824951

Edited April 3, 2021 by Blueadventures

[Peter Piper]

This is a shot from the video. Florida is not really near Mexico. So, here's hoping. The left wing is not visible, maybe because of a shutter issue.

Edited April 3, 2021 by Peter Piper

[onetrack]

I never ceased to be amazed at the stupidity of a lot of Americans, when it comes to manufacturing, and setting off, home-made explosive devices. Attaching them to a light aircraft ranks pretty high amongst the stupidest of ideas.