You have probably all seen planes on the beaches in the summer, dragging a banner with an advertising message. But have you ever wondered how those banners ended up hanging on the back of the planes? Me neither! I thought the banners were just hung and the plane just took off.
Well it's not!
The banners are caught by the planes using a hook at the end of a rope, while they are already in flight!
The maneuver is really nice, because the pilot has to be very precise to hook the cable while approaching the ground... a bit like fighter planes on aircraft carriers that hook a cable to abruptly stop their course.
This is what it looks like on video, enjoy!
Article updated on November 8, 2023 by Byothe
If you've read Buck Danny, you probably remember that during the Pacific War, this is how the Americans (sometimes) recovered their pilots lost on an island.