On Sunday, August 23, 2020 at 10:00:35 PM UTC+1, Vir Campestris wrote:
On 23/08/2020 17:20, Chris Hogg wrote:
On Sun, 23 Aug 2020 15:12:20 -0000 (UTC), Jethro_uk
wrote:


The spinning mass of turbines and generators on the grid is the only
form of short term storage it has.
Don't planes also spin up their wheels before landing ?
I don't think so. I once read that it's the commonest suggestion made
to aircraft mfrs, but they don't adopt it for some reason. The fact
that there's always a pronounced shriek when the tyres hit the tarmac,
and that the first 100 ft or so of landing runway are a mass of rubber
streaks, also suggests they don't spin up the wheels.

They definitely don't. As you say, it has been suggested; I think the
problem is you have to carry the motor all the time, but only ever use
it for a few seconds. On an aircraft extra weight means more fuel
consumption.

Some aircraft had curved fins on the wheel that spun it up when it was lowered into the airflow.