History of Aviation and Flight

Way back in 1480s, Leonardo da Vinci was one of the first few who studied the theories  of aviation. He had over 100 drawings that illustrated his theories. The Ornithopter flying machine was never actually created, but the modern day helicopter is based on this concept.

On November 21, 1783 Pilatre de Rozier and Marquis d'Arlandes made the first manned balloon flight from Paris. On its first flight, the balloon soared 3,000 feet. The hot air that filled the balloon is what made it rise.

In 1900, Wilbur and Orville Wright began flying gliders at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The Wright brothers flew their new aircraft Flyer II near Dayton Ohio. This new aircraft was more manoeuvrable than it predecessor, Flyer I. On September 20 Wilbur flew Flyer II in a complete circle, thus proving that an aircraft could be fully manoeuvrable. On October 5, 1905 Wilbur flew his aircraft for 38 minutes, covering 24 miles. The aircraft, Flyer III was an enhanced version of their earlier planes and was powered by a 15/16 horse power engine.

On August 9, 1908 Wilbur Wright demonstrated his flying before a crowd of distinguished French aviators. The flight took place at Le Mans in front of a crowd who had been highly sceptical of the Wright claims. The flight put all the questions to rest regarding the accomplishments of the Wrights. Wilbur demonstrated control flight much superior to anything done in Europe. Ernest Archdeacon, a vociferous early critic of Wright claims was quoted as saying: "For too long a time the Wright Brothers have been accused in Europe of a bluff. They are today hallowed in France."

On July 25, 1909 Loius Bleriot became the first person to fly across the English Channel. He flew a Type XI Monoplane. The flight took 37 minutes. Winds pushed him off course, but by flying at a height of 150 feet he followed ships toward Dover where he landed.

On November 5, 1911 thousands of people showed up in Pasadena, California to witness the first coast to coast flight and the arrival of Calbraith Rodgers after a 49 day flight across the United States. Rodgers made 69 stops along the way and was followed by a special train carrying spare parts.

Many people have contributed in making aviation a reality, and these are only a few major landmarks in the history of aviation.