Norwood 747 Club Members Bring Hang Gliding and Air Surfing to Town-August 9, 1972

Young Aviation Buffs Construct “Bamboo Butterfly” Hang Glider for Newest Daredevil Sport and Plan Future Ventures Into Ballooning and Rocketry

Sunbathers in Manomet recently reported sighting an unidentified flying object resembling a man with wings hovering over the beach. Reliable sources have since dispelled any cause for alarm by identifying the figure as a “sky surfer” riding a hang glider—a new daredevil sport soaring in popularity in California that has now arrived in Norwood. Members of the 747 Club, a group of young Norwood aviation buffs, decided a few weeks ago to take on hang gliding as one of their primary projects, becoming among the first to introduce the pastime to the East Coast.

While air surfing is relatively new to the modern sports world, its aerodynamic principles date back to Otto Lilienthal, who first utilized similar glider models in Berlin in 1893, and early experiments by the Wright brothers. Utilizing just five man-hours and $10 worth of Vietnamese bamboo and heavy-duty plastic, club members constructed their own delta-winged craft dubbed the “bamboo butterfly.” The kite-like glider is equipped with a crossbar for the flyer and a towing rope to assist takeoff. Club President Steve Lanzilla of 31 Columbine Road admitted the group has achieved only two or three successful flights thus far, recording a best mark of 30 seconds airborne at a height of 26 feet.

Club members expressed awe over the experience. Joe Strillchuk of 42 Garden Parkway, featured resting with the glider in a staff photograph by Kenneth F. McLean, remarked, “It’s really wild… You can feel all the adrenalin going through you and it feels like you’re just hanging there.” Fellow member Nick Caci of 16 Heather Drive added, “You feel like you’re being carried away by a bird of prey.” However, member Jim Douglas of 50 Garden Parkway has been limited to hovering two feet off the ground because he weighs around 200 pounds, whereas the bamboo butterfly is designed for pilots weighing up to 170 pounds. To accommodate heavier members, the club plans to construct an aluminum-framed “Kronkite” model with a wider wingspan at an estimated cost of $60.

To launch their gliders, club members rely on team towing using ropes or running up hills and sand dunes to catch updrafts, steering clear of the cliff-jumping stunts seen on the West Coast. President Lanzilla emphasized the group’s safety consciousness, noting that while minor crash landings have occurred during practice sessions at Norwood Airport, there have been no injuries and safety inspections are routinely performed, despite no formal Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations or licensing requirements governing the sport. Founded about two years ago with approximately 15 members—including two flight instructors donating their time and access to airport trainers—the 747 Club focuses on the social and educational aspects of flight. After wrapping up their hang gliding endeavors in a month or two, the club plans to explore ballooning and rocketry, hosting an upcoming membership meeting at 7 p.m. Friday in the conference room at Norwood Airport. (Reporting by Greg Foster for The Patriot Ledger).

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger