Originally Posted by
Tu.114
Well... it was an aircraft that used nothing but one turbojet engine for propulsion, and it did fly a good while before the Gloster. So yes, for all practical purposes I consider the 178 a "practical demonstration of jet-powered flight".
Whittle was without doubt one of the world's greatest engineers and his invention changed our world for the better. At a time when his engines could run for 30 hours between overhaul, German engines could only run for 30 minutes before being stripped down and completely rebuilt. So yes, Whittle's engines were the first practical demonstration of jet propulsion.