Journey Into Aviation History
Lesson 1-1
Discovering Flight
Early Ideas about Flight
• People wanted to fly as far back as 2,000
years before Christ (B.C.)
• At first fantasy, magic, and legend used,
later trial-and-error method
• In the past 500 years people with interest in
flying began to develop machines that would
carry them through the air
Ancient Chinese Legends
• Emperor Shun escaped prison by putting
on work clothes of a bird and flying to
freedom
• Kei Kung, Chinese god of thunder and
lightning, was believed to be able to fly
using bat wings
• Ki-Shun-Shi flew on a chariot--levitation
Chinese Contributions to Flight
• Two significant Chinese inventions:
– Kites invented around 1000 B.C.
• Used in 17th century to carry soldiers
– Gunpowder developed in the ninth century
• Wan Hoo, fastened 47 rockets around a
large chair to fly to the moon
Greek and Roman Legends
• Greek god, Hermes
and Roman god,
Mercury had wings
on their sandals by
which they could
travel through the
heavens
Greek and Roman Legends
• Eros, the Greek god of
love, and Cupid, the
Roman god of love
had wings
• Pegasus, the winged horse
Other Legends
• In the 4th century B.C.,
Alexander the Great,
King of Macedonia was
believed to have ridden
in a cage pulled by griffins
(half eagle and half lion)
Griffin
Daedalus and Icarus
• Imprisoned by Minos, the
King of the Greek island
of Crete
• Daedalus made two pairs
of wings and covered
them with bird feathers
and wax; he and his son
flew away from the prison
Daedalus and Icarus
• Despite his father’s
warnings, Icarus flew
too close to the sun
and the wax they
used to attached the
wings to their
shoulders melted
causing the wings to
fall off and Icarus
fell to his death in
the sea
Desire to Fly
• People had the desire to fly, but didn’t
understand the science necessary to fly
• As time progressed, a glimmer of
understanding began to surface
• Franceso de Lana developed
an “aerial boat” using
evacuated hollow copper
spheres to provide lift
Aerial Boat
Ancient Attempts to Fly
• In A.D. 852, Armen Firman, a Moor,
donned a huge cloak and jumped to his
death from a high tower in Cordoba, Spain
• Several attempts were made to fly by means
of strapped-on wings and bat-like garments
made of cloth and wood
• All were failures due to lack of scientific
knowledge and power
Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)
• Considered by some the first
aeronautical engineer
• Designed parachute, model
helicopter, and ornithopter
• It wasn’t until 300 years
after his death that his
manuscripts were found and
made known to the world
Work of Leonardo da Vinci
Ornithopter (powered by arms and
legs of passenger)
Early Parachute
Helicopter Design
Leonardo da Vinci
Contributions to Aeronautical Engineering
• Center of Gravity
• Center of Pressure
• Streamlining