Who MAYBE flew before the Wrights?
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Who MAYBE flew before the Wrights?
Who are the main candidates for the claim of having flown before the Wrights? There was the guy in Bridgeport, Connecticut (Whitehead?) who claims to have done it at night, when it couldn't be photo-recorded, and I seem to remember that the Kiwis have a strong farmer-candidate...any others?
I'm trying to put together material for an Aviation History Magazine article, and as always, you forum-ists are my most reliable, most broadly knowledgeable resource.
I'm trying to put together material for an Aviation History Magazine article, and as always, you forum-ists are my most reliable, most broadly knowledgeable resource.
Yes Pearse flew before the Wrights, his best effort being a ~900 yard flight mostly out of ground effect and including a turn or two. That was 11-5-1903.
He also flew a few hundred yards a few times earlier in the year.
He also flew a few hundred yards a few times earlier in the year.
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Heavier than air, of course. But powered flight only? Else Lilienthal, who did a lot of hang gliding, and of course Sir George Cayley's coachman. And apparently Sir Hiram Maxim got daylight under his wheels. Would that count, for your purposes?
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Not sure who was the first, but have distinct memories of doing the pre-flight inspection when Pontious Pilot first went solo. Mind you I was in the RAF then. Recently asked about forms of ID back then. Replied that we didn't have 1250's, I knew the other guy. 
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An Australian, of course! The American media has drowned out every other viable claim to the first flier... just as they claim they won every war in the 20th century... 
NOTE - Just to add a little more fuel to the fire, Hargarave also invented the rotary engine in 1889. He has never been credited with anything by the American media, simply because Hargrave refused to patent any design, and believed in collaraborative information sharing, and willingly disbursed all the findings of his experimentation. On that basis alone, he stands head and shoulders above those who would make claims based on financial benefit to themselves.
Lawrence Hargrave, Australian aviation pioneer, 1850-1915
HARGRAVE, Lawrence : 1850 - 1915
November 12, 1894 - Lawrence Hargrave, the Australian inventor of the box kite, linked four of his kites together, added a sling seat, and flew 16 feet. By demonstrating to a sceptical public that it was possible to build a safe and stable flying machine, Hargrave opened the door to other inventors and pioneers.
The Hargrave-designed box kite, with its improved lift-to-drag ratio, was to provide the theoretical wing model that allowed the development of the first generation of European (and American) airplanes.
November 12, 1894 - Lawrence Hargrave, the Australian inventor of the box kite, linked four of his kites together, added a sling seat, and flew 16 feet. By demonstrating to a sceptical public that it was possible to build a safe and stable flying machine, Hargrave opened the door to other inventors and pioneers.
The Hargrave-designed box kite, with its improved lift-to-drag ratio, was to provide the theoretical wing model that allowed the development of the first generation of European (and American) airplanes.
Lawrence Hargrave, Australian aviation pioneer, 1850-1915
Last edited by onetrack; 10th Jun 2010 at 04:07. Reason: sp ...
Yes Pearse flew before the Wrights, his best effort being a ~900 yard flight mostly out of ground effect and including a turn or two. That was 11-5-1903.
He also flew a few hundred yards a few times earlier in the year.
He also flew a few hundred yards a few times earlier in the year.
I also had a good chuckle at the night flight one ...oh dearie me
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Icarus
Son of Daedalus who dared to fly too near the sun on wings of feathers and wax. Daedalus had been imprisoned by King Minos of Crete within the walls of his own invention, the Labyrinth. But the great craftsman's genius would not suffer captivity. He made two pairs of wings by adhering feathers to a wooden frame with wax. Giving one pair to his son, he cautioned him that flying too near the sun would cause the wax to melt. But Icarus became ecstatic with the ability to fly and forgot his father's warning. The feathers came loose and Icarus plunged to his death in the sea.
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Percy Pilcher, Augustus Herring and Octave Chanute all deserve a mention.
Pilcher had a powered triplane very nearly ready for flight in late 1899 but was killed in a flying accident when his Hawk glider suffered a structural failure. Herring and Chanute both flew gliders and Chanute corresponded regularly with the Wright brothers whose early gliders were at least based on Chanutes work.
Pilcher had a powered triplane very nearly ready for flight in late 1899 but was killed in a flying accident when his Hawk glider suffered a structural failure. Herring and Chanute both flew gliders and Chanute corresponded regularly with the Wright brothers whose early gliders were at least based on Chanutes work.
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Another "first" flyer ???
What about Mr. Clement Ader whose "Avion" (a nicely coined name !), was loudly proclaimed by patriotic Frenchmen (and the odd British journalist) between the 2 Wars, to have beaten the Wright Brothers by years.
Mr. Ader's machine's design was based, not on birds, but bats and was powered by a steam engine, also designed by Mr. Ader. The French military authorities showed absolutely no interest, even when "EOLE" (Avion No. III) made a hop of about 300 metres on 14th October 1897, was caught by a gust and "landed hard" and Mr. Ader took his fertile brain elsewhere, to make lots of money.
An strikingly dramatic Icarus statue cautiously dedicated to "pioneer of aviation" in Mr. Ader's memory is very visible in his home town of Muret, not far from Toulouse. For "statuarists" interested in inter-war French art and design, it's well worth the detour..
Mr. Ader's machine's design was based, not on birds, but bats and was powered by a steam engine, also designed by Mr. Ader. The French military authorities showed absolutely no interest, even when "EOLE" (Avion No. III) made a hop of about 300 metres on 14th October 1897, was caught by a gust and "landed hard" and Mr. Ader took his fertile brain elsewhere, to make lots of money.
An strikingly dramatic Icarus statue cautiously dedicated to "pioneer of aviation" in Mr. Ader's memory is very visible in his home town of Muret, not far from Toulouse. For "statuarists" interested in inter-war French art and design, it's well worth the detour..
Last edited by Jig Peter; 10th Jun 2010 at 14:34. Reason: add date (tks Google)
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Gustave Whitehead's half-mile flight in Bridgeport, Conn. January 1902 seems credible, but the only photos are of his aeroplane on the ground, no airborne shots exist.
Last edited by evansb; 10th Jun 2010 at 18:18.
But Stringfellow's machine was a UAV
Indeed it was, thank you Chev, but I would like to think that he was worth a mention.
Jack
PS Wasn't there a fellow in China who straped a whole bunch of rockets to a chair and went straight up? I dont think he survived the first flight.
Was his name "Clockett"?
Indeed it was, thank you Chev, but I would like to think that he was worth a mention.
Jack
PS Wasn't there a fellow in China who straped a whole bunch of rockets to a chair and went straight up? I dont think he survived the first flight.
Was his name "Clockett"?
