In the preceding text, we dealt with the development of the idea of flying through history and with all more or less successful attempts to make the man finally climb into the sky. From the first ideas and stories from ancient mythology to the first concrete attempts. This exciting history of the development and rise of human civilization is abounding in many exciting moments, which have in many determined a further course of events in the world. With the appearance of the internal combustion engine, stuff rose to rev-up in the range of aviation.
Combustion, also known as burning, is the fundamental chemical process of liberating energy from a fuel and air mix. In an internal combustion engine (ICE), the ignition and combustion of the fuel occur inside the engine itself. The engine then partly transforms the energy from the combustion to work. The engine consists of a settled cylinder and a moving piston. The expanding combustion gases push the piston, which in turn twists the crankshaft. Finally, through a system of gears in the powertrain, this action pushes the vehicle’s wheels.
At this moment we probably come to the most famous name when it comes to the history of flying and aviation, the Wright brothers. Beginning in 1899, the Wrights brothers invented and built a set of gliders to test their diverse ideas on the flying machine. They created a wind tunnel that enabled them to test designs without having to develop a full-size model. In 1902, the Wright brothers sent out a solicitation for bids to various engine makers for an 8-hp, “vibration-free”, gas-fueled engine, that would weigh no more than 200 lb. No one answered the proposal. They were forced to create their own gasoline-powered motor for their aircraft.
After months of analyzing how propellers work, the Wright Brothers composed a motor and a new aircraft firm enough to support the motor’s weight and vibrations. They began operating on their first powered aircraft through the winter of 1902 to 1903. They developed their own 12-horsepower motor and assembled a pair of very effective propellers still valued today for their design. The Flyer I was the name of this aircraft. It had a similar design to the gliders, but was larger, with a wingspan of 40 feet, 4 inches.
Following two efforts to fly this machine, one of which ended in a lesser crash, Orville Wright piloted the Flyer for a 12-second, provided flight on December 17, 1903—the first successfully-powered and piloted flight in history. In 1903 Orville Wright triumphantly makes a flight in a heavier-than-air machine that took off by its own power, flew consistently at even speeds, and descended without waste. This was the childbirth of the first true airplane.
In 1904, the first flight enduring more than five minutes took place on November 9th. The Flyer II was flown by Wilbur Wright. In 1908, passenger flight took a turn for the worse when the first fatal air crash occurred on September 17. Orville Wright was piloting the plane. Orville Wright survived the crash, but his passenger did not. It was the first victim of a plane crash in history. Wright Brothers had been permitting travelers to fly with them since May 14, 1908.
The U.S. Government bought its first airplane, a Wright Brothers biplane, on July 30, 1909. The airplane sold for $25,000 plus a bonus of $5,000 because it exceeded 40 miles per hour. In 1912, an airplane created by the Wright brothers was armed with a machine gun and shuttled at an airport in College Park, Maryland as the first armed flight in the history.
By 1908 the brothers would obtain worldwide recognition for their efforts and be written into history as the first to fly a controllable, heavier-than-air mechanism that could take off and fly under its own power. Even though the Wright Plane Company remained to endure after Wilbur’s death, Orville traded his shares and retired. For the next 30 years, Orville worked as an adviser on diverse aviation boards and organizations.
In the following articles, learn how this progress in aviation has reflected on the further development of the industry.
