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Kites were invented in China!
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The Ornithoper was a design by Leonardo da Vinci. It was never actually built but the modern day helicopter is based on this design!
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Joseph MIchael and Jacques Etienne Montgolfier invented the first hot air balloon. Smoke from a fire was used to blow hot air into a silk bag attached to a basket. The hot air began to rise and the basket along with it. The first human passengers were Jean-Francois Pilatre de Rozier and Francois Lauren.
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Jacques Charles was a French scientist who along with M.Robert made the first flight in a hydrogen filled balloon over Paris.
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George Cayley designed gliders that used body motions to control. Over 50 years he changed the shape of the wings for better air flow and designed a tail to help with stability. He recongized that power was needed to sustain long term flight.
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Sir George Cayley- a British engineer who was the first person to discover how aircrafts could fly. He established the basic designs of wings and a tail fitted to a long body with his model glider.
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Otto Lilienthal studied areodynamics and was the first person to design a glider that could carry a person and fly a long distance. After more than 2500 flights, he was killed when a sudden wind caused him to lose control and crash into the ground.
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Samuel Langley created the Aerodrome, a model of a plane that included a stem engine. The model flew for 3/4 of a mile before running out of fuel. He tried to build a full size version but it was too heavy to fly and crashed.
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Octave Chanute published "Progress in Flying Machines" in 1894. He gathered and analyzed all technical knowledge of aviation accomplishments. The Wright brothers used this book as the basis for a lot of their experiments and Chanute often commented on their progress.
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After working with kites to determine that wind can help in flight, the Wright brothers started to work with gliders to perfect the wing and tail shape.
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After perfecting the wings and tails of the gliders, the Wright brothers started working on a propulsion system to create thurst to fly. They designed and build an engine with 12 horsepower!
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The flyer III flew for 39 minutes and about 24 miles around the Huffmann Prairie. It was piloted by Wilbur and he flew the first practical airplane until it ran out out gas. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5o-fhBKf8Y
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Alberto Santos Durmont makes first powered and sustained flight in Europe. (This was first officially recognized world distance record)
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Charles Furnas becomes the world's first air passenger, when taken for a half minute flight by Wilbur Wright. Madame Peltier is the first woman passenger in Italy.
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Samuel Cody was an American airman living in Britan. He designd and flew people lifting kites and then built and flew the first British airship in 1907.
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The world's first air-race meeting is held in France
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Louis Bleriot (1872-1936)
- Louis Bleriot was a French airman who made the first airplane flight across the English Channel on October 31, 1909 in his monoplane -
Captain John Alcock and Lieutenant Whitten Brown, two Canadian pilots make the first non-stop flight across the Atlantic. They took off in Newfoundland and landed in the Republic of Ireland, 3,200 km and 16 hours later.
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Two airliners hit each other between London and Paris. This collision forced authorities to devise the air lane system, which created regular routes, schedules and times.
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Richard Byrd makes first flight over the North Pole in a Fokker FV 11 monoplane
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Charles Lindbergh was a United States airman who made the first solo non-stop flight across teh Atlanic Ocean. Lindbergh's flight took 33 1/2 hrs from New York to Paris.
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Amy Johnson was a British pilot who was the first women to fly solo from Britain to Australia. Her flight took 10 days.
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The first practical helicopter, a German twin-rotor takes to the air.
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The first jet propelled aircraft the Hel178 is built and flown in Germany by the Heinkel company
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The Bell X-1 rocket plane becomes the first supersonic aircraft
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The Huges H4 Hercules flying boat makes its first and only flight. It had the longest wingspan of any aircraft ever built (97.5 m) and had eight engines but it flew only 1 km.
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The four engined Havilland Comet becomes the world's first jet-airliner to offer regular passenger service.
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Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager fly the Voyager aircraft 40212 km on the first non stop flight around the world without refueling. The flight took over 9 days at an average speed of 186 km/h
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The Solar Challenger is the first solared-powered aircraft to cross the English Channel. The flight took 5 hours and 23 minutes.
