Hydrogen
 In
1766, Henry Cavendish discovered that 'the inflammable
air', now known as Hydrogen, was lighter than air. On
the 7th August, 1783, the physicist, Jacques Alexander
Cesar Charles together with the Roberts brothers sent
up a Hydrogen filled balloon. On the 1st December, 1783,
one of the Roberts' and Charles made the first ascent
in a Hydrogen filled balloon. In the following year, these
same Frenchmen constructed the first 'airship' (an elongated
version of the balloon), using oars for propulsion (of
a kind) and a rudder to steer.
Winged
Flight
 The modern airplane was evolved from the ideas of an Englishman,
Sir George Cayley who in 1809 contributed an article
to Nicholson's Journal outlining how powered flight
should work. Cayley explained many of the theories which
were later adapted by others . He outlined the wings,
steering surfaces in both horizontal and vertical modes,
and the screw propellor. Cayley, a visionary, also noted
the 'stream-line' form and 'explosion' motor.
In 1842 Henson and Stringfellow, both Englishmen, constructed
a steam-driven model on this principle while Wenham
in 1866 contributed a paper on the subject to the Royal
Aeronautical Society.
In 1895, a massive steam propelled aeroplane was built
by Sir Hiram Maxim (inventor of the first fully automatic
machine gun, 1883) but crashed through the restraints
holding it down and lifted only a few feet. In 1896,
in Germany, Otto Lilienthal constructed a fixed wing
glider and made many short flights. He studied the birdman
designs of Leonardo da Vinci and was successful in gliding
using a flexible tail attached to his body. Lilienthal
crashed to his death near Berlin in 1896. In the USA,
Chanute emphasized the bi-plane principle in his glider.
In 1896, Ader, a Frenchman, built an 'avion' which is
claimed to have risen from the ground at Satory, but
this is doubtful.
The
Wright Brothers
The acclaim for the evolution of a heavier-than-air,
man-carrying airplane goes to the American brothers,
Wilbur and Orville Wright of Dayton, Ohio. The Wright
brothers are the pioneers of the first truly powered
flight. The first powered flight, in the history of
the world, was made by Orville Wright at 10:30am on
the morning of the 17th December, 1903 at Kitty Hawk,
North Carolina when he flew their machine 120ft. To
achieve this, they experimented with bi-plane gliders
on the sand-hills at Kitty Hawk, and later fitted
a petrol engine of their own design and manufacture.
The Wright brothers made many more flights during 1903
and succeeded in making the first turn in the air in
1904. The Wright brothers made their first public flights
in France in 1908.
Orville Wright's historic first flight showing
Wilbur Orville on right. (picture taken by John T Daniels)
Air Disaster
The first person to die in an airplane accident
(1908) was Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge. The
accident happened during a demonstration flight
for the US Army. The pilot, Orville Wright suffered
injuries in the crash which was caused when
one of the propellors separated and damaged
the control wires on the rudder. Orville Wright
lost control of the airplane. |
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