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FLIGHT. A brief history of flight. Mythology – 2 Greek Myths. There are several myths around the world dealing with the notion of flight.
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FLIGHT A brief history of flight.
Mythology – 2 Greek Myths There are several myths around the world dealing with the notion of flight. Daedalus and Icarus – Greek myth that notes how the inventor Daedalus flew to Naples with wings made of wax and feathers. His son Icarus flew too close to the sun and fell to his death when the wax melted. Pegasus – A winged horse that Bellerophon, the king of Corinth, flew to fight the three headed Chimera. Alexander the Great – It was said he tied 4 Griffons to a basket and used them to fly around his vast realm.
Early Experiments • The Chinese are credited with some of the earliest contributions to flight with the invention of the kite (around 400 B.C.) • Hero of Alexandria (Ancient Greek engineer) invented a device known as the Aeoliphile. Using steam he invented a device that could create sustained, rotational thrust. At the time this had few applications. • For centuries humans tried to attain flight by building wings and mimicking birds. Our muscles were not sufficient and our bodies ill designed for the task.
1485 – Leonardo da Vinci’s Ornithopter • Over the years Leonardo da Vinci created hundreds of illustrations and designs dealing with the concept of flight. • His most famous contribution is the Ornithopter. • Though this device was never built its concept led to the creation of the modern day helicopter.
1783- Montgolfier Brothers • Joseph and Jacques Montgolfier designed and constructed the first known hot air balloon (utilizing the principle that hot air rises). • A silk balloon was filled with warm smoke (air) and attached to a basket. • In 1783 the first passengers to take flight in a balloon were a rooster, a sheep and a duck. • They attained a height of 6000 feet and flew about a mile. • Nov. 21, 1783, Jean-Francois Pilatre de Rozier and Francois Laurent, became the first humans to fly in a balloon.
1799 – 1850 George Cayley • George Cayley spent many years exploring the concept of gliders and building many designs that used human movement to control flight. • Over 50 years he worked to perfect glider designs. His work led to many wing designs that maximized air flow, rudder attachments for directional control and the concept of a biplane style glider (two wings; one atop the other). • He hypothesized that powered flight was necessary for long distance sustained flight.
1891 - Otto Lilienthal • Otto Lilienthal was a German engineer who was fascinated with flight. • His work led to the first gliders that could carry a person. • Over the years he wrote a definitive book on aerodynamics, improved his glider designs and made over 2500 flights. • He tragically died during one of his flights. • His designs, book and flights were pivotal to the efforts of the Wright Brothers.
1891 - Samuel P. Langley • Samuel P. Langley was one of the first people to successfully add a power plant (engine) to a glider design. • His miniature, steam powered glider flew for ¾ mile before it ran out of fuel (called it an aerodrome). • He was given a grant of money from the U.S.A. to create a full sized version of his model. • It was too heavy to fly and after several failures Langley abandoned the project.
1903 – Orville and Wilbur Wright • The Wright Brothers were very determined to achieve flight. • They meticulously studied the history of flight, the failures and successes of the past, read all the available literature and even retested past designs. • Cayley’s designs were carefully examined. • They built a wind tunnel to test wing designs. • After deciding on a design they added a 12-horsepower engine. • On December 17th, 10:35 a.m. 1903 Orville Wright made the first recorded, powered flight at Kitty Hawk.
Chuck Yeager and the X-1 • Chuck Yeager is in many respects an archetypical hero. • Served as a pilot during WWII where he became one of the Allies ace pilots and one of the few people to shoot down a Me-262 jet plane. • He then became one of the most well known test pilots in the history of aviation. • Oct. 14, 1947 - Piloting the X-1 plane, Chuck became the first person to break the sound barrier (travel faster than sound). • He would return to military service for awhile. • Oct. 14 1997 – On the 50th anniversary of his achievement, Yeager was able to repeat his triumph while piloting a modern F-15 fighter jet.
