Kites & Airborne Wind
While all proponents of novel wind systems are emotionally invested in their favorite concept, the advocates of kites and “airborne wind energy” are the most vociferous. It’s as if they’ve swallowed some magical kool-aid that gives them rabid powers to see the promise of kites and other airborne wind schemes and any who question them as part of a global conspiracy to stop them from achieving the future they deem their due. Because of this, and their ability to raise money from otherwise sharp people, I devoted a small section of my 2016 book Wind Energy for the Rest of Us to kites and their offspring as excerpted below.
Making sense of Makani’s [Kite] Claims for Paul Gipe
By
Paul Gipe
I am an advocate of the rapid development of massive amounts of renewable energy. I don’t see kites in that anytime soon. . .
Makani Kite Turbines Response
By
Paul Gipe
I haven’t paid much attention to Makani, just as I haven’t paid much attention to other kite designs. And yes, there are quite a few “kite wind turbines” besides Makani, either in the press, under development, seeking financing, or already bust.
