All I Know about Single Line Kites after 75 years Making and Flying Them

• Single line kites can fly only if their centre of weight is below their centre of lift- to point them upwards.

• Single line kite stability is a function of interactions between structural deformations, lift, drag, weight and inertial forces- which is too complex to be of general predictive use.

• For new kite designs, it’s impossible to know when to persist beyond all sense and reason, and when not to.

• When a kite misbehaves, trying what your current theories predict, and the opposite are about equally useful.  

• When a new kite design is 80% complete, you’ve done 20% of it.

• At events, the Sky belongs to those who can best use it for the benefit of the public.