Timeline of aviation - 19th century
Encyclopedia
| Timelineof aviation Timeline of aviation This article does not contain direct references or citations but it builds upon other articles in Wikipedia which you can find in the links and in the year by year articles to the left. Those articles have references and citations... |
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| 18th century Timeline of aviation - 18th century This is a list of aviation-related events during the 18th century :-18th century aviation:**The kite is popular during the century.*1709... |
| 19th century |
| 20th century begins 1901 in aviation This is a list of aviation-related events from 1901:-Events:*At the start of the 20th century, the French Navy is a major user of shipboard balloons and man-lifting kites.... |
| 21st century begins 2001 in aviation This is a list of aviation-related events from 2001:-January:* January 31 – Two Japan Air Lines airliners – a Boeing 747-446 operating as Flight 907 and a Douglas DC-10-40D operating as Flight 958 – nearly collide over Suruga Bay, Japan, passing within 100 meters of one another... |
This is a list of aviation-related events during the 19th century (1 January 1801 – 31 December 1900):
1800s
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- 1803
- British Rear AdmiralRear AdmiralRear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
Charles Henry KnowlesSir Charles Knowles, 2nd BaronetSir Charles Henry Knowles, 2nd Baronet GCB was an officer of the Royal Navy, who saw service during the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, eventually rising to the rank of Admiral...
proposes to the AdmiraltyAdmiraltyThe Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
that the Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
loft an observation balloonObservation balloonObservation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....
from a ship in order to reconnoitre FrenchFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
preparations in BrestBrest, FranceBrest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
to invade Great BritainGreat BritainGreat Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. His proposal is ignored. - 18 July – Etienne Gaspar Robertson and Lhoest climb from Hamburg (Germany) up to 7,280 m in a balloon.
- 3–4 October – Frenchman André-Jaques Garnerin covered a distance of 395 km from Paris to Clausen with his Montgolfière.
- Count Francesco Zambeccari publishes a five-volume work on ballooning and aeronatics.
- British Rear Admiral
- 1804
- Sir George CayleyGeorge CayleySir George Cayley, 6th Baronet was a prolific English engineer and one of the most important people in the history of aeronautics. Many consider him the first true scientific aerial investigator and the first person to understand the underlying principles and forces of flight...
builds a model glider with moveable control surfaces. - August/September – experiments by physicists Joseph Louis Gay-LussacJoseph Louis Gay-Lussac- External links :* from the American Chemical Society* from the Encyclopædia Britannica, 10th Edition * , Paris...
and Jean Baptiste Biot disproved the theory that the Earth's pull decreases with height. - 7 September 7 – Zambeccari and two companions, Grasetti and Andreoli, ascend in BolognaBolognaBologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
attempting to cross the AdriaticAdriatic SeaThe Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...
, but have to be rescued after one day at sea. - J. Kaiserer suggests making a Montgolfière manoeuvrable with the help of tame eagles.
- Sir George Cayley
- 1806
- Lord CochraneThomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of DundonaldAdmiral Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald, 1st Marquess of Maranhão, GCB, ODM , styled Lord Cochrane between 1778 and 1831, was a senior British naval flag officer and radical politician....
flies kiteKiteA kite is a tethered aircraft. The necessary lift that makes the kite wing fly is generated when air flows over and under the kite's wing, producing low pressure above the wing and high pressure below it. This deflection also generates horizontal drag along the direction of the wind...
s from the Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
32-gun frigateFrigateA frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
HMS PallasHMS Pallas (1804)HMS Pallas was a 32-gun fifth rate Thames-class frigate of the Royal Navy, launched in 1804 at Plymouth.-History:Pallas was one of the seven Thames class frigates ordered for the fleet in early 1804. Her keel was laid at Plymouth Dockyard in June 1804 and she was launched on the afternoon of 17...
to spread propagandaPropagandaPropaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
leaflets along the coast of FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. It is the first use of an aerial device in EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an maritime warfare.
- Lord Cochrane
- 1807
- Jakob Degen, a watchmaker from Vienna, experiments with an apparatus with valve-flap, flapping wings.
- 1808
- Degen tries to combine a Montgolfière with the flapping wings.
- 1809
- Degen propels a hydrogen-filled balloon by flapping large ornithopter-style wings.
- September – Sir George Cayley published his seminal paper On Aerial Navigation, setting out for the first time the scientific principles of heavier-than-air flight.
1810s
- 1811
- 31 May – Albrecht Ludwig BerblingerAlbrecht BerblingerAlbrecht Ludwig Berblinger , also known as the Tailor of Ulm, is famous for having constructed a working flying machine, presumably a hang glider.- Early life :...
, the "tailor of UlmUlmUlm is a city in the federal German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the River Danube. The city, whose population is estimated at 120,000 , forms an urban district of its own and is the administrative seat of the Alb-Donau district. Ulm, founded around 850, is rich in history and...
" (Germany) crashes in his apparatus, a copy of Degen's, into the Danube. It was presumably a workable hang glider.
- 31 May – Albrecht Ludwig Berblinger
- 1812
- 19 July – lamp gas used to fill a Montgolfière (Green).
1820s
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- 1824
- Englishman Thomas HarrisThomas Harris (aviator)Thomas Harris was a pioneering English balloonist who was killed in an accident. There is little information about his early career, but he invented the gas discharge valve, a device to release all the gas in a gas balloon to prevent the balloon from dragging after landing.-Life:Thomas Harris was...
jumps to his death from a balloon in order to save his fiancée's life when relieving all ballast cannot stop the precipitous plunge after an accidental drop in pressure. - Jan WnękJan WnekJan Wnęk is believed to have been an aviation pioneer.Jan Wnek was born in Kaczówka. He was illiterate but known to be very intelligent. Trained as a carpenter, this Polish peasant had a keen sense of detail and was also able to restore paintings...
reportedly performs several public gliding flights from the Odporyszow village church tower. (Austria/Hungary border).
- Englishman Thomas Harris
1830s
- 1836
- 7-8 November – flight of a coal gas balloon by Charles GreenCharles Green (balloonist)Charles Green was the United Kingdom's most famous balloonist of the 19th century. He experimented with coal gas as a cheaper and more readily available alternative to hydrogen for lifting power. His first ascent was in a coal gas balloon on 19 July 1821. He became a professional balloonist and...
covering 722 km from London to WeilburgWeilburgWeilburg is, with just under 14,000 inhabitants, the third biggest town in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany, after Limburg an der Lahn and Bad Camberg.- Location :...
, with passengers HollandRobert HollondRobert Hollond was an English balloonist and politician. He funded and then took part in establishing a distance ballooning record with Thomas Monck Mason and Charles Green. He later served as a Whig politician representing the constituency of Hastings.-Biography:Hollond was born in 1808 to...
and MasonThomas Monck MasonThomas Monck Mason was a flute player, writer and balloon aeronaut. He wrote concerning the balloon trip and on theology. He was impoverished after renting London theatres to stage opera.-Biography:...
.
- 7-8 November – flight of a coal gas balloon by Charles Green
- 1837
- Robert CockingRobert CockingRobert Cocking was the developer of an early unsuccessful parachute design and the first person to be killed in a parachuting accident.-Parachute design:...
jumps from a balloon piloted by Charles GreenCharles Green (balloonist)Charles Green was the United Kingdom's most famous balloonist of the 19th century. He experimented with coal gas as a cheaper and more readily available alternative to hydrogen for lifting power. His first ascent was in a coal gas balloon on 19 July 1821. He became a professional balloonist and...
at a height of 2,000 m (6,600 ft) to demonstrate a parachute of his own design, and is killed in the attempt.
- Robert Cocking
- 1838
- The American John WiseJohn Wise (balloonist)John Wise was a pioneer in the field of ballooning. He made over 400 flights during his lifetime and was responsible for several innovations in balloon design...
introduces the ripping panel which is still used today. The panel solved the problem of the Montgolfiere dragging along the ground at landing and needing to be stopped with the help of anchors.
- The American John Wise
- 1839
- Charles GreenCharles Green (balloonist)Charles Green was the United Kingdom's most famous balloonist of the 19th century. He experimented with coal gas as a cheaper and more readily available alternative to hydrogen for lifting power. His first ascent was in a coal gas balloon on 19 July 1821. He became a professional balloonist and...
and the astronomer Spencer Rush climb up to 7,900 m in a free balloon.
- Charles Green
1840s
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- 1840
- Louis Anslem Lauriat makes the first manned flight in Canada, at Saint John, New BrunswickSaint John, New BrunswickCity of Saint John , or commonly Saint John, is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick, and the first incorporated city in Canada. The city is situated along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River. In 2006 the city proper had a population of 74,043...
, in his balloon Star of the East.
- Louis Anslem Lauriat makes the first manned flight in Canada, at Saint John, New Brunswick
- 1842
- November – English engineer William Samuel HensonWilliam Samuel HensonWilliam Samuel Henson was a pre-Wright brothers aviation engineer and inventor.Henson was born on 3 May 1812 , in Nottingham, England. Henson was involved in lace-making in Chard, which increasingly was mechanized at that time, and he obtained a patent on improved lace-making machines in 1835...
makes the first complete draft of a power driven aeroplane with steam engine drive. The patent follows the works of Cayley. The English House of Commons rejects the motion for the formation of an "Aerial Transport Company" with great laughter.
- November – English engineer William Samuel Henson
- 1843
- William Samuel HensonWilliam Samuel HensonWilliam Samuel Henson was a pre-Wright brothers aviation engineer and inventor.Henson was born on 3 May 1812 , in Nottingham, England. Henson was involved in lace-making in Chard, which increasingly was mechanized at that time, and he obtained a patent on improved lace-making machines in 1835...
and John Stringfellow filed articles of incorporation for the world's first air transport company, the Aerial Transit Company
- William Samuel Henson
- 1848
- William Samuel Henson and John Stringfellow build a steam powered model aircraft, with a wingspan of 10 ft (3.5 m) which successfully flies a distance of 40 m before crashing into a wall. This was the world's first heavier-than-air powered flight.
- 1849
- 12–25 July – While blockadingBlockadeA blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...
VeniceVeniceVenice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, the Austrian Navy launches unmanned balloonBalloonA balloon is an inflatable flexible bag filled with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, or air. Modern balloons can be made from materials such as rubber, latex, polychloroprene, or a nylon fabric, while some early balloons were made of dried animal bladders, such as the pig...
s (Montgolfières) equipped with explosive charges from the deck of the steamship Vulcano in an attempt to bombard Venice. Although the experiment is unsuccessful, it is both the first use of balloons for bombardment and the first time a warshipWarshipA warship is a ship that is built and primarily intended for combat. Warships are usually built in a completely different way from merchant ships. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster and more maneuvrable than merchant ships...
makes offensive use of an aerial device. - Sir George CayleyGeorge CayleySir George Cayley, 6th Baronet was a prolific English engineer and one of the most important people in the history of aeronautics. Many consider him the first true scientific aerial investigator and the first person to understand the underlying principles and forces of flight...
launches a 10-year old boy in a small glider being towed by a team of people running down a hill. This is the first known flight by a person in a heavier-than-air machine. - 7 October – Frenchman Francisque Arban flies over the AlpsAlpsThe Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
in a free balloon (Marseille-Subini near Turin).
- 12–25 July – While blockading
1850s
- 1852
- 24 September – French engineer Henri GiffardHenri GiffardHenri Giffard was a French engineer. In 1852 he invented the steam injector and the powered airship.-Career:Baptiste Henri Jacques Giffard was born in Paris in 1825...
flies 27 km (16.8 mi) in a steam-powered dirigible, reaching a speed of about 10 km/h. - Formation of the first society for promoting aerial navigation (Société Aérostatique et Météorologique de France).
- 24 September – French engineer Henri Giffard
- 1853
- Late June or early July – Sir George Cayley's coachman successfully flies a gliderGlider aircraftGlider aircraft are heavier-than-air craft that are supported in flight by the dynamic reaction of the air against their lifting surfaces, and whose free flight does not depend on an engine. Mostly these types of aircraft are intended for routine operation without engines, though engine failure can...
, designed by his employer, some proportion of the distance across Brompton Dale in YorkshireYorkshireYorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
, becoming the world's first adult aeroplane pilot. Unimpressed with this honour, the coachman promptly resigns his employment.
- Late June or early July – Sir George Cayley's coachman successfully flies a glider
- 1855
- Joseph Pline is the first person to use the word "aeroplane" in a paper proposing a gas filled dirigibleAirshipAn airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
glider with propellers.
- Joseph Pline is the first person to use the word "aeroplane" in a paper proposing a gas filled dirigible
- 1856
- December – French Captain Jean Marie Le Bris flies 600 ft (182.9 m) in his Artificial Albatross glider.
- 1857
- Félix Du TempleFélix du Temple de la CroixFélix du Temple de la Croix was a French naval officer and an inventor, born into an ancient Normandy family...
flies clockworkClockworkA clockwork is the inner workings of either a mechanical clock or a device that operates in a similar fashion. Specifically, the term refers to a mechanical device utilizing a complex series of gears....
and steam-powered model aircraft, the first sustained powered flights by heavier-than-air machines. - French brothers du Temple de la Croix apply after successful attempts with models for a patent for a power-driven aeroplane.
- Félix Du Temple
- 1858
- French airman NadarNadar (photographer)Félix Nadar was the pseudonym of Gaspard-Félix Tournachon , a French photographer, caricaturist, journalist, novelist and balloonist. Some photographs by Nadar are marked "P. Nadar" for "Photographie Nadar" .-Life: born in April 1820 in Paris...
takes the first aerial photographs.
- French airman Nadar
- 1859
- 1–2 July – John Wise and three companions complete a Montgolfière flight over a distance of 1,292 km (St. Louis - Henderson, USA).
1860s
- The first use of observation balloonObservation balloonObservation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....
s in naval warfare takes place during the American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
(1861–1865). - 1861
- First telegraph message is sent from the air, by Thaddeus Lowe in the balloon EnterpriseEnterprise (balloon)The Enterprise was a gas inflated aerostat built by Prof. Thaddeus S. C. Lowe along with his father Clovis Lowe in 1858. It was the second balloon built by Lowe at his Hoboken, N.J. facility and named with the express approval of his wife Leontine because of the money and time they put into...
. - The Union Army Balloon CorpsUnion Army Balloon CorpsThe Union Army Balloon Corps was a branch of the Union Army during the American Civil War, established by presidential appointee Thaddeus S. C. Lowe...
is formed under Lowe's command, for observation and artillery direction. Balloons would see major use in the U.S. Civil War over the next four years. - 3 August – The United States ArmyUnited States ArmyThe United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
steamship Fanny becomes the first ship to loft a captive manned balloon when a civilian aeronaut, John La MountainJohn La MountainJohn LaMountain was a ballooning pioneer. He was privately contracted as an aerial observer by General Butler at Fortress Monroe during the American Civil War and is accredited with having made the first report of useful intelligence on enemy activity...
, ascends from her deck to observe ConfederateConfederate States of AmericaThe Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
military positions at Hampton RoadsHampton RoadsHampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
, VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. He ascends again a few days later either from Fanny or a ship named Adriatic. - The United States NavyUnited States NavyThe United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
bargeBargeA barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
George Washington Parke CustisUSS George Washington Parke Custis (1861)USS George Washington Parke Curtis was a barge acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War for the purpose of using her as a balloon-launching platform in order to spy on Confederate defenses a long distance off....
becomes the first ship configured to conduct air operations, transporting and towing observation balloonObservation balloonObservation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....
s along the Potomac RiverPotomac RiverThe Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
. She continues these operations into early 1862.
- First telegraph message is sent from the air, by Thaddeus Lowe in the balloon Enterprise
- 1862
- Late March – Civilian aeronaut John H. Steiner takes United States NavyUnited States NavyThe United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
officers aloft in an observation balloonObservation balloonObservation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....
from the deck of a flatboatFlatboatFil1800flatboat.jpgA flatboat is a rectangular flat-bottomed boat with Fil1800flatboat.jpgA flatboat is a rectangular flat-bottomed boat with Fil1800flatboat.jpgA flatboat is a rectangular flat-bottomed boat with (mostlyNOTE: "(parenthesized)" wordings in the quote below are notes added to...
on the Mississippi RiverMississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
so that they can direct the fire of U.S. Navy mortarMortar (weapon)A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
boats against the ConfederateConfederate States of AmericaThe Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
-held Island Number TenIsland Number TenIsland Number Ten was a former island in the Mississippi River near Tiptonville, Tennessee and the site of a major eponymous battle in the American Civil War....
It will be the last aerial guidance of naval gunfire anywhere in the world until 1904. - March–May – The United States NavyUnited States NavyThe United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
bargeBargeA barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Some barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats...
George Washington Parke CustisUSS George Washington Parke Custis (1861)USS George Washington Parke Curtis was a barge acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War for the purpose of using her as a balloon-launching platform in order to spy on Confederate defenses a long distance off....
transports and tows observation balloonObservation balloonObservation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....
s along the York RiverYork River (Virginia)The York River is a navigable estuary, approximately long, in eastern Virginia in the United States. It ranges in width from at its head to near its mouth on the west side of Chesapeake Bay. Its watershed drains an area including portions of 17 counties of the coastal plain of Virginia north...
in VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
during the Peninsula CampaignPeninsula CampaignThe Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B...
. - April – John B. Starkweather ascends several times in a balloon from the deck of the UnionUnion (American Civil War)During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
paddle steamerPaddle steamerA paddle steamer is a steamship or riverboat, powered by a steam engine, using paddle wheels to propel it through the water. In antiquity, Paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses were wheelers driven by animals or humans...
May Flower to observe ConfederateConfederate States of AmericaThe Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
positions at Port RoyalPort Royal, South CarolinaPort Royal is a town in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Largely because of annexation of surrounding areas , the population of Port Royal rose from 3,950 in 2000 to 10,678 in 2010, a 170% increase. As defined by the U.S...
, South CarolinaSouth CarolinaSouth Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
. - June – The Confederate States NavyConfederate States NavyThe Confederate States Navy was the naval branch of the Confederate States armed forces established by an act of the Confederate Congress on February 21, 1861. It was responsible for Confederate naval operations during the American Civil War...
chooses the steamerSteamboatA steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
CSS TeaserCSS TeaserCSS Teaser had been the aging Georgetown, D.C. tugboat York River until the beginning of the American Civil War, when she was taken into the Confederate States Navy. Later, she was captured by the United States Navy and became the first USS Teaser.-CSS Teaser:Teaser was built at Philadelphia,...
to embark a balloon for use in observation of Union ArmyUnion ArmyThe Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
positions along the James RiverJames River (Virginia)The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is long, extending to if one includes the Jackson River, the longer of its two source tributaries. The James River drains a catchment comprising . The watershed includes about 4% open water and an area with a population of 2.5 million...
in VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. - 1–3 July – The Confederate States NavyConfederate States NavyThe Confederate States Navy was the naval branch of the Confederate States armed forces established by an act of the Confederate Congress on February 21, 1861. It was responsible for Confederate naval operations during the American Civil War...
steamer TeaserCSS TeaserCSS Teaser had been the aging Georgetown, D.C. tugboat York River until the beginning of the American Civil War, when she was taken into the Confederate States Navy. Later, she was captured by the United States Navy and became the first USS Teaser.-CSS Teaser:Teaser was built at Philadelphia,...
operates a coal-gas silk observation balloonObservation balloonObservation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....
to reconnoitre Union ArmyUnion ArmyThe Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
positions along the James RiverJames River (Virginia)The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is long, extending to if one includes the Jackson River, the longer of its two source tributaries. The James River drains a catchment comprising . The watershed includes about 4% open water and an area with a population of 2.5 million...
in VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, the only use of a balloon by the Confederate States Navy. Her capture on July 4 by the steamer USS MaratanzaUSS Maratanza (1861)USS Maratanza was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was used by the Union Navy as a gunboat to patrol navigable waterways of the Confederacy to prevent the South from trading with other countries....
ends Confederate naval balloon operations. - 5 September – After a dramatic take-off, aeronaut CoxwellHenry Tracey CoxwellHenry Tracey Coxwell , was an English aeronaut. He was the son of a naval officer, educated for the army, but became a dentist. From a boy he had been greatly interested in ballooning, then in its infancy, but his own first ascent was not made until 1844...
and English physicist GlaisherJames GlaisherJames Glaisher FRS , was an English meteorologist and aeronaut.Born in Rotherhithe, the son of a London watchmaker, Glaisher was a Junior assistant at the Cambridge Observatory from 1833 to 1835 before moving to the Royal Greenwich Observatories, where he served as Superintendent of the Department...
reach 9,000 m (29,527 ft).
- Late March – Civilian aeronaut John H. Steiner takes United States Navy
- 1863
- The Union Army Balloon CorpsUnion Army Balloon CorpsThe Union Army Balloon Corps was a branch of the Union Army during the American Civil War, established by presidential appointee Thaddeus S. C. Lowe...
is disbanded early in the year. - Dirigible airshipAirshipAn airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
flown by Solomon Andrews over Perth Amboy, New JerseyPerth Amboy, New JerseyPerth Amboy is a city in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. The City of Perth Amboy is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 50,814. Perth Amboy is known as the "City by the Bay", referring to Raritan Bay.-Name:The Lenape...
. - Civilian aeronaut John H. Steiner takes Ferdinand von ZeppelinFerdinand von ZeppelinFerdinand Adolf Heinrich August Graf von Zeppelin was a German general and later aircraft manufacturer. He founded the Zeppelin Airship company...
, a Prussian ArmyPrussian ArmyThe Royal Prussian Army was the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power.The Prussian Army had its roots in the meager mercenary forces of Brandenburg during the Thirty Years' War...
officer assigned to the Union ArmyUnion ArmyThe Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
as an observer, aloft in a balloon. Zeppelin later will credit this ascent as his inspiration to create the rigid airshipRigid airshipA rigid airship is a type of airship in which the envelope retained its shape by the use of an internal structural framework rather than by being forced into shape by the pressure of the lifting gas within the envelope as used in blimps and semi-rigid airships.Rigid airships were produced and...
, which he first flies in 1900.
- The Union Army Balloon Corps
- 1864
- Outbreak of the War of the Triple AllianceWar of the Triple AllianceThe Paraguayan War , also known as War of the Triple Alliance , was a military conflict in South America fought from 1864 to 1870 between Paraguay and the Triple Alliance of Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay...
between the Alliance of Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay against Paraguay. The Alliance forces made much use of balloon reconnaissance over the next six years.
- Outbreak of the War of the Triple Alliance
- 1865
- Dirigible airshipAirshipAn airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
flown twice over New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
by Solomon Andrews. - Jules VerneJules VerneJules Gabriel Verne was a French author who pioneered the science fiction genre. He is best known for his novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea , A Journey to the Center of the Earth , and Around the World in Eighty Days...
describes in his novel The Journey to the Moon the launch of a rocket from Florida, from where many years later U. S. space flights actually start. - The Frenchman d'Esterno writes in his book About the flight of birds, "Gliding seems to be characteristic for heavy birds; there are no odds which are stacked against that humans can not do the same at fair wind."
- French artist and farmer Louis Pierre MouillardLouis Pierre MouillardLouis Pierre Mouillard was a Frenchman who worked on flight in the second half of the 19th century. His thesis, partly based on the investigation of birds in Alexandria, were later adopted by the Wright brothers as their own.He published numerous essays...
makes a successful gliding flight. After years of studies about bird flight he publishes his book L'Empire de l'Air in 1881. He thinks that imitation of gliding and soaring flight of birds is possible, but not the imitation of the flapping of wings.
- Dirigible airship
- 1866
- First South American military balloon reconnaissance ascent. The 6th of July, Lieutenant Colonel Roberto A. Chodasiewicz, an Argentine Army military engineer, makes the first South American military observation ascent, manning a Brazilian Army's captive ballon over Paraguayan troops, during the Triple Alliance War.
- Foundation of the Royal Aeronautical SocietyRoyal Aeronautical SocietyThe Royal Aeronautical Society, also known as the RAeS, is a multidisciplinary professional institution dedicated to the global aerospace community.-Function:...
, the world's oldest society devoted to all aspects of aeronautics and astronautics. - Jan WnękJan WnekJan Wnęk is believed to have been an aviation pioneer.Jan Wnek was born in Kaczówka. He was illiterate but known to be very intelligent. Trained as a carpenter, this Polish peasant had a keen sense of detail and was also able to restore paintings...
makes gliding flights (1866–1869) from the Odporyszów church tower. Church records only.
- 1867
- Henry Giffard installs a huge captive balloon for 20 passengers at the World Exposition in Paris.
- 1868
- M.Boulton applies for an English patent for the use of a wing flap.
- First exhibition of aviation in London's Crystal Palace.
1870s
- 1870
- Balloons are used by the French to transport letters and passengers out of besieged Paris during the Franco-Prussian WarFranco-Prussian WarThe Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
. Between September 1870 and January 1871, 66 flights – of which 58 land safely – carry 110 passengers and up to three million letters out of Paris, as well as 500 carrier pigeonCarrier pigeonA carrier pigeon is a homing pigeon that is used to carry messages. Using pigeons to carry messages is generally called "pigeon post". Most homing or racing type varieties are used to carry messages. There is no specific breed actually called "carrier pigeon"...
s to deliver messages back to Paris.
- Balloons are used by the French to transport letters and passengers out of besieged Paris during the Franco-Prussian War
- 1871
- The Englishmen Wenham and Browning do air flow experiments in a wind tunnel.
- 1872
- 2 February – French navy-engineer Dupuy de Lome achieves 9 to 11 km/h with his muscle powered airship.
- 13 December – Paul Haenlein tests the first airship with a gas engine in Brno, achieving 19 km/h. The tests were stopped because of a shortage of money.
- German engineer Paul HaenleinPaul HaenleinPaul Haenlein was a German engineer and flight pioneer. He flew in a semi-rigid-frame dirigible. His family belonged to the Citoyens notables, those notabilities who led the economy, administration and culture of Mainz.Haenlein received an education as a mechanical engineer and pattern maker...
flies a dirigible with an internal combustion engineInternal combustion engineThe internal combustion engine is an engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer in a combustion chamber. In an internal combustion engine, the expansion of the high-temperature and high -pressure gases produced by combustion apply direct force to some component of the engine...
on a tether in ViennaViennaVienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, the first use of such an engine to power an aircraft.
- 1874
- The French air pioneer Bénaud designs the first aircraft intended to take off from and land on water – a two-seat monoplaneMonoplaneA monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with one main set of wing surfaces, in contrast to a biplane or triplane. Since the late 1930s it has been the most common form for a fixed wing aircraft.-Types of monoplane:...
with retractable amphibious landing gearLanding GearLanding Gear is Devin the Dude's fifth studio album. It was released on October 7, 2008. It was his first studio album since signing with the label Razor & Tie. It features a high-profile guest appearance from Snoop Dogg. As of October 30, 2008, the album has sold 18,906 copies.-Track...
, counter-rotating propellerPropellerA propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modeled by both Bernoulli's...
s, a vertical fixed fin to which the rudderRudderA rudder is a device used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft or other conveyance that moves through a medium . On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw and p-factor and is not the primary control used to turn the airplane...
was hinged, dihedral angle on the wingWingA wing is an appendage with a surface that produces lift for flight or propulsion through the atmosphere, or through another gaseous or liquid fluid...
s, and an enclosed cockpitCockpitA cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft, from which a pilot controls the aircraft. Most modern cockpits are enclosed, except on some small aircraft, and cockpits on large airliners are also physically separated from the cabin...
equipped with a single control column to control the elevators and rudder, a compass, and a barometerBarometerA barometer is a scientific instrument used in meteorology to measure atmospheric pressure. Pressure tendency can forecast short term changes in the weather...
to be used as an altimeterAltimeterAn altimeter is an instrument used to measure the altitude of an object above a fixed level. The measurement of altitude is called altimetry, which is related to the term bathymetry, the measurement of depth underwater.-Pressure altimeter:...
. - 5 July – Belgian Vincent de Groof is killed in an accident as he tries to do a flight using flapping wings.
- 20 September – Felix and Louis du Temple de la Croix build a steam-powered monoplane which achieves a short hop after gaining speed by rolling down a ramp. It carries a human operator whose identity is no longer known.
- The French air pioneer Bénaud designs the first aircraft intended to take off from and land on water – a two-seat monoplane
- 1875
- Englishman Thomas Moy tests a tethered power driven aeroplane with steam engine drive and a wing span of 4 m.
- 15 April – the scientific flight of the montgolfiere "Zenith" up to 8,000 m ends in the death of two aeronauts and the deafness of Gaston TissandierGaston TissandierGaston Tissandier was a French chemist, meteorologist, aviator and editor. Adventurer could be added to the list of his titles, as he managed to escape besieged Paris by balloon in September 1870. He founded and edited the scientific magazine La Nature and wrote several books.His brother was...
.
- 1876
- Frenchmen PénaudAlphonse PénaudAlphonse Pénaud , was a 19th-century French pioneer of aviation, inventor of the rubber powered model airplane Planophore and founder of the aviation industry.-Biography:...
and Gauchot apply for a patent for a power-driven aeroplane with a device for drawing in the undercarriageUndercarriageThe undercarriage or landing gear in aviation, is the structure that supports an aircraft on the ground and allows it to taxi, takeoff and land...
, and wings with upward dihedral and a stick control.
- Frenchmen Pénaud
- 1877
- First flight of a steam-driven model helicopterHelicopterA helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
built by Enrico ForlaniniEnrico ForlaniniEnrico Forlanini was an Italian engineer, inventor and aeronautical pioneer, well known for his works on helicopters, aircraft, hydrofoils and dirigibles. He was born in Milan...
. - Imperial Japanese ArmyImperial Japanese Army-Foundation:During the Meiji Restoration, the military forces loyal to the Emperor were samurai drawn primarily from the loyalist feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū...
flying experience begins with the use of balloonsBalloon (aircraft)A balloon is a type of aircraft that remains aloft due to its buoyancy. A balloon travels by moving with the wind. It is distinct from an airship, which is a buoyant aircraft that can be propelled through the air in a controlled manner....
.
- First flight of a steam-driven model helicopter
- 1878
- Charles F. RitchelCharles F. RitchelCharles Francis Ritchel, also known as C.F. Ritchel , was an American inventor of a successful dirigible design, the fun house mirror, a toy monkey bank and the holder of more than 150 patented inventions.-Dirigible:...
publicly demonstrates of his hand-powered, one-man rigid airship, and eventually sells five of them.
- Charles F. Ritchel
- 1879
- The British ArmyBritish ArmyThe British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
gains its first balloon, the Pioneer. - Frenchman Victor TatinVictor TatinVictor Tatin was a French inventor, who created an early airplane, the Aéroplane in 1879. The craft was the first model aeroplane to lift itself by its own power after a run on the ground....
builds a power-driven model aeroplane with airscrews and a compressed air motor, successfully flying of the ground.
- The British Army
1880s
- 1880
- Alexander Fjodorowitsch Mozhaiski patents a steam-powered aircraft.
- Karl Wölfert and Ernst Baumgarten attempt to fly a powered dirigible in free flight, but crash.
- Balloons are used in British military manoeuvres for the first time at AldershotAldershotAldershot is a town in the English county of Hampshire, located on heathland about southwest of London. The town is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council...
.
- 1882
- Wölfert unsuccessfully tests a balloon powered by a hand-cranked propeller
- The Berlin-based "German Society for Promoting Aviation" publishes a magazine, the "Zeitschrift für Luftschiffahrt" (Magazine of Aviation).
- 1883
- The first electric-powered flight is made by Gaston TissandierGaston TissandierGaston Tissandier was a French chemist, meteorologist, aviator and editor. Adventurer could be added to the list of his titles, as he managed to escape besieged Paris by balloon in September 1870. He founded and edited the scientific magazine La Nature and wrote several books.His brother was...
who fits a Siemens AGSiemens AGSiemens AG is a German multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Munich, Germany. It is the largest Europe-based electronics and electrical engineering company....
electric motor to a dirigible. Airships with electric engines (Tissandier brothers, Renard and Krebs). - American AJ King invents the fast moving internal combustion engine, which is suitable for aviation because of its good power-to-weight ratio.
- John J. MontgomeryJohn J. MontgomeryJohn Joseph Montgomery was an aviation pioneer, inventor, professor at Santa Clara College.On August 28, 1883 he made the first manned, controlled, heavier-than-air flights of the United States, in the Otay Mesa area of San Diego, California...
makes a controlled heavier-than-air flight. His first two gliders did not include flight controls but his third featured aileron prototypes.
- The first electric-powered flight is made by Gaston Tissandier
- 1884
- 9 August – The first fully controllable free-flight is made in a French Army dirigible by Charles RenardCharles RenardCharles Renard was a French military engineer. After the Franco-Prussian War of 1870/71 he started work on the design of air ships at the French army aeronautical department. Together with Arthur C...
and Arthur KrebsArthur KrebsArthur Constantin Krebs was a French officer and pioneer in automotive engineering....
. The flight covers 8 km (5 mi) in 23 minutes. It was the with landing on the starting point. - Mozhaiski finishes his monoplane (span 14 m, or 46 ft). It makes a short hop after running down a launch ramp.
- British ArmyBritish ArmyThe British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
balloons are taken on the expedition to Bechuanaland in South Africa. - The Imperial Russian ArmyImperial Russian ArmyThe Imperial Russian Army was the land armed force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian army consisted of around 938,731 regular soldiers and 245,850 irregulars . Until the time of military reform of Dmitry Milyutin in...
adopts the balloonBalloonA balloon is an inflatable flexible bag filled with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, or air. Modern balloons can be made from materials such as rubber, latex, polychloroprene, or a nylon fabric, while some early balloons were made of dried animal bladders, such as the pig...
for military service. - Englishman Horatio F.Philipps has a patent issued for caved profiles of wings.
- 9 August – The first fully controllable free-flight is made in a French Army dirigible by Charles Renard
- 1885
- The Prussian Airship Arm (Preussische Luftschiffer Abteilung) becomes a permanent unit of the army.
- British Army balloons are taken to SudanSudanSudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
by the expeditionary force headed there.
- 1886
- 12–13 September – Frenchmen Hervé and Alluard achieve a Montgolfiere flight over 24 hours.
- 1888
- Wölfert flies a petrol powered dirigible at Seelburg. The engine was built by Gottlieb Daimler.
- 1889
- Percival SpencerPercival SpencerPercival Spencer might refer to:*Percival Spencer , an American aviation pioneer*Percival Spencer , a Jamaican sprinter...
makes a successful parachute jump from a balloon at DrumcondraDrumcondra, DublinDrumcondra is a residential area and inner suburb on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is administered by Dublin City Council.The River Tolka and the Royal Canal flow through the area.-History:...
, Ireland - Percy PilcherPercy PilcherPercy Sinclair Pilcher was a British inventor and pioneer aviator who was his country's foremost experimenter in unpowered flight at the end of the 19th Century...
builds a human-carrying glider, the Hawk, and begins development of a light internal combustion engine. - Otto LilienthalOtto LilienthalOtto Lilienthal was a German pioneer of human aviation who became known as the Glider King. He was the first person to make well-documented, repeated, successful gliding flights. He followed an experimental approach established earlier by Sir George Cayley...
publishes in his book Der Vogelflug als Grundlage der Fliegekunst (Bird Flight as the Basis for the Art of Aviation) measurements on wings, so called polar diagrams, which are the concept of description of artificial wings even today. The book gives a reference for the advantages of the arched wing.
- Percival Spencer
1890s
- 1890
- 9 October – The first brief flight of Clément AderClément AderClément Ader was a French inventor and engineer born in Muret, Haute Garonne, and is remembered primarily for his pioneering work in aviation.- The inventor :...
's steam-powered fixed-wing aircraftFixed-wing aircraftA fixed-wing aircraft is an aircraft capable of flight using wings that generate lift due to the vehicle's forward airspeed. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft in which wings rotate about a fixed mast and ornithopters in which lift is generated by flapping wings.A powered...
Eole takes place in SatorySatorySatory is an area south of Versailles in France. It is mostly known for its military camp, housing:* Weapon-testing facilities of GIAT Industries* Barracks and facilities for gendarmerie including the GIGN headquarters and the gendarmerie armored squadron...
, FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. It flies uncontrolled approximately 50 meters (165 feet) at a height of 20 cm (8 inches) before crashing, but it is the first take-off of a powered airplane solely under its own power.
- 9 October – The first brief flight of Clément Ader
- 1891
- Samuel Pierpont LangleySamuel Pierpont LangleySamuel Pierpont Langley was an American astronomer, physicist, inventor of the bolometer and pioneer of aviation...
flies the Aerodrome No. 0, 1 & 2 powered unmanned model aircraft. - Otto LilienthalOtto LilienthalOtto Lilienthal was a German pioneer of human aviation who became known as the Glider King. He was the first person to make well-documented, repeated, successful gliding flights. He followed an experimental approach established earlier by Sir George Cayley...
flies about 25 m (82 ft) in his Derwitzer Glider. - Clément AderClément AderClément Ader was a French inventor and engineer born in Muret, Haute Garonne, and is remembered primarily for his pioneering work in aviation.- The inventor :...
makes a second flight in Eole, an uncontrolled 100-meter (328-foot) hop that ends in a crash. Ader later will experiment with an even less successful twin-engined steam-powered aircraft before giving up his aircraft experiments. - 29 April – Chuhachi NinomiyaChuhachi Ninomiyawas a Japanese aviation pioneer. He is remembered for his unique aircraft designs - the "Karasu-gata mokei hikouki" and the "Tamamushi-gata hikouki"...
flies the first model airplane in JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, a rubber-bandRubber bandA rubber band is a short length of rubber and latex formed in the shape of a loop and is commonly used to hold multiple objects together...
-powered monoplaneMonoplaneA monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with one main set of wing surfaces, in contrast to a biplane or triplane. Since the late 1930s it has been the most common form for a fixed wing aircraft.-Types of monoplane:...
with a four-bladed pusherPusher configurationIn a craft with a pusher configuration the propeller are mounted behind their respective engine. According to Bill Gunston, a "pusher propeller" is one mounted behind engine so that drive shaft is in compression...
propellerPropellerA propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modeled by both Bernoulli's...
and three-wheeled landing gear. It makes flights of 3 and 10 meters (10 and 33 feet). The next day it flies 36 meters (118 feet).
- Samuel Pierpont Langley
- 1892
- February – The first contract is awarded for the construction of a military airplane: Clément AderClément AderClément Ader was a French inventor and engineer born in Muret, Haute Garonne, and is remembered primarily for his pioneering work in aviation.- The inventor :...
is contracted by the French War Ministry to build a two-seater aircraft to be used as a bomber, capable of lifting a 75-kilogram (165-pound) bombload. - August – Clément AderClément AderClément Ader was a French inventor and engineer born in Muret, Haute Garonne, and is remembered primarily for his pioneering work in aviation.- The inventor :...
flies 200 meters (656 feet) uncontrolled in the Avion IIAder Avion IIThe Avion II was the second primitive aircraft designed by Clément Ader in the 1890s. Most sources agree that work on it was never completed, Ader abandoning it in favour of the Avion III that had a financial backer...
(also referred to as the Zephyr or Éole II) at a field in SatorySatorySatory is an area south of Versailles in France. It is mostly known for its military camp, housing:* Weapon-testing facilities of GIAT Industries* Barracks and facilities for gendarmerie including the GIGN headquarters and the gendarmerie armored squadron...
. - Otto LilienthalOtto LilienthalOtto Lilienthal was a German pioneer of human aviation who became known as the Glider King. He was the first person to make well-documented, repeated, successful gliding flights. He followed an experimental approach established earlier by Sir George Cayley...
flies over 82 meters (90 yards) in his Südende-Glider. - Austria's army gains a permanent air corps, the Kaiserlich und Königliche Militäraeronautische Anstalt ("Imperial and Royal Military Aeronautical Group")
- Horatio Phillips builds a steam-powered aircraft at HarrowHarrow, LondonHarrow is an area in the London Borough of Harrow, northwest London, United Kingdom. It is a suburban area and is situated 12.2 miles northwest of Charing Cross...
which was tethered to the centre of a circular track. It successfully left the ground, even when carrying 32 kg (72 lb) of ballast. (Some sources list 1893)
- February – The first contract is awarded for the construction of a military airplane: Clément Ader
- 1893
- Otto Lilienthal flies about 250 m (820 ft) in his Maihöhe-Rhinow-Glider.
- Lawrence HargraveLawrence HargraveLawrence Hargrave was an engineer, explorer, astronomer, inventor and aeronautical pioneer.- Early life :Hargrave was born in Greenwich, England, the second son of John Fletcher Hargrave and was educated at Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Kirkby Lonsdale, Westmorland...
demonstrates a human-carrying glider in Australia at an aeronautical congress in Sydney. It is based on the box kiteBox kiteA box kite is a high-performance kite, noted for developing relatively high lift; it is a type within the family of cellular kites. The typical design has four parallel struts. The box is made rigid with diagonal crossed struts. There are two sails, or ribbons, whose width is about a quarter of the...
, an invention of Hargrave's. It becomes an example for several scientific kites and aeroplane constructions. - First experiments of the Englishman Philipps with a 50-wing-plane.
- 1894
- 31 July – Hiram Maxim launches an enormous biplaneBiplaneA biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two superimposed main wings. The Wright brothers' Wright Flyer used a biplane design, as did most aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a biplane wing structure has a structural advantage, it produces more drag than a similar monoplane wing...
test rig (wingspan 32 m, 105 ft) propelled by two steam engines. It makes a short captive hop after running down a length of railway track. - October – Samuel Pierpont Langley flies the unmanned Aerodrome No. 4 over the Potomac riverPotomac RiverThe Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
a distance of 130 ft. - November – Lawrence Hargrave demonstrates stable flight with a tethered box kite.
- 4 December – German meteorologist Arthur BersonArthur BersonArthur Josef Stanislaus Berson was a Polish meteorologist and pioneer of aerology who was a native of Neu Sandez, Galicia ....
climbs up with a balloon to 9,155 m. - Czeslaw Tanski successfully flies powered models in Poland and begins work on full-size gliders.
- Railway engineer Octave ChanuteOctave ChanuteOctave Chanute was a French-born American railway engineer and aviation pioneer. He provided the Wright brothers with help and advice, and helped to publicize their flying experiments. At his death he was hailed as the father of aviation and the heavier-than-air flying machine...
publishes Progress in Flying Machines, describing the research completed so far into flight. Chanute's book. a summary of many articles published in the "American Engineer and Railroad Journal", is a comprehensive account on the stage of development worldwide on the way to the aeroplane. - Otto Lilienthal's Normal soaring apparatus is the first serial production of a glider. With different aeroplane constructions he covers distances up to 250 m.
- 31 July – Hiram Maxim launches an enormous biplane
- 1895
- Percy Pilcher makes his first successful flight in a glider named Bat.
- In the book L'Aviation MilitaireL'Aviation Militaire"L'Aviation Militaire" was a book written by the French inventor Clément Ader and published in 1909 by the Paris publisher Berger-Levrault. The book was essentially based on ideas developed by Ader at the end of the 19th century, which were arranged in final form in 1907...
, Clément AderClément AderClément Ader was a French inventor and engineer born in Muret, Haute Garonne, and is remembered primarily for his pioneering work in aviation.- The inventor :...
writes ...an aircraft carrierAircraft carrierAn aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
will become indispensable. Such ships will be very differently constructed from anything in existence today. To start with, the deck will have been cleared of any obstacles: it will be a flat area, as wide as possible, not conforming to the lines of the hull, and will resemble a landing strip. The speed of this ship will have to be at least as great as that of cruiserCruiserA cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
s or even greater...Servicing the aircraft will have to done below this deck...Access to this lower deck will be by means of a lift long enough and wide enough to take an aircraft with its wings folded...Along the sides will be the workshops of the mechanics responsible for refitting the planes and for keeping them always ready for flight. - By the mid-1890s, the Imperial Russian NavyImperial Russian NavyThe Imperial Russian Navy refers to the Tsarist fleets prior to the February Revolution.-First Romanovs:Under Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich, construction of the first three-masted ship, actually built within Russia, was completed in 1636. It was built in Balakhna by Danish shipbuilders from Holstein...
has established "aerostatAerostatAn aerostat is a craft that remains aloft primarily through the use of buoyant lighter than air gases, which impart lift to a vehicle with nearly the same overall density as air. Aerostats include free balloons, airships, and moored balloons...
ic parks" on the coasts of the Baltic SeaBaltic SeaThe Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
and Black SeaBlack SeaThe Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
.
- 1896
- 6 May – Samuel Pierpont Langley flies the unmanned Aerodrome No. 5 from a houseboat on the Potomac RiverPotomac RiverThe Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
a distance of 3,300 ft (1,006 m). - June – Octave Chanute organises a flyer camp at Lake MichiganLake MichiganLake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...
during which both a LilienthalOtto LilienthalOtto Lilienthal was a German pioneer of human aviation who became known as the Glider King. He was the first person to make well-documented, repeated, successful gliding flights. He followed an experimental approach established earlier by Sir George Cayley...
-glider (reconstruction) and a biplane built by Chanute are tested. - 9 August – Otto Lilienthal crashes during a routine flight in the hills of Stölln and dies next day because of a spinal injury.
- October – Ground testing of the first rigid airshipRigid airshipA rigid airship is a type of airship in which the envelope retained its shape by the use of an internal structural framework rather than by being forced into shape by the pressure of the lifting gas within the envelope as used in blimps and semi-rigid airships.Rigid airships were produced and...
, an all-aluminium craft designed by the Austro-HungarianAustria-HungaryAustria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
engineer David SchwarzDavid Schwarz (aviation inventor)David Schwarz was a Hungarian aviation pioneer of Jewish descent.Schwarz created the first flyable rigid airship. It was also the first airship with an external hull made entirely of metal. He died before he could see it finally fly...
and built by Carl BergCarl BergCarl Edwin Berg is a real estate investor and venture capitalist who has been included in Forbes Magazine's list of the 400 richest people in America numerous times. At the time the 2007 list was released, his net worth was estimated at $1.5 billion...
, begins in BerlinBerlinBerlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. Schwarz will die of a heart attack before seeing it fly. - November – Samuel Pierpont Langley flies the unmanned Aerodrome No. 6 a distance of 4,200 ft (1,280 m).
- Germans August Parseval and Hans Bartsch von Sigsfeld invent the kite balloon for observations in strong winds.
- 6 May – Samuel Pierpont Langley flies the unmanned Aerodrome No. 5 from a houseboat on the Potomac River
- 1897
- 11 June – Salomon Andrée, N. Strindberg, and K. Fraenkel attempt an ArcticArcticThe Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
expedition to the North PoleNorth PoleThe North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
by free balloon from Spitsbergen. They crash within three days but manage to survive for several months in the pack ice. Their remains are discovered in 1930 on White Island. It was possible to develop the located film material. - 12 June – Friedrich Hermann Wölfert and his mechanic are killed when their petrol-powered airship cataches fire at a demonstration at the Tempelhof field.
- 14 October – Clément AderClément AderClément Ader was a French inventor and engineer born in Muret, Haute Garonne, and is remembered primarily for his pioneering work in aviation.- The inventor :...
later asserts that on this date he made a 300 m (984 ft) flight in his steam-powered uncontrolled Avion III also referred to as Aquilon or the Éole III. His claim is disputed. The French ArmyFrench ArmyThe French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
is not impressed and withdraws funding. - 3 November – The first flight in a rigid airshipRigid airshipA rigid airship is a type of airship in which the envelope retained its shape by the use of an internal structural framework rather than by being forced into shape by the pressure of the lifting gas within the envelope as used in blimps and semi-rigid airships.Rigid airships were produced and...
is made by Ernst Jägels, flying an all-aluminium craft designed by the Austro-HungarianAustria-HungaryAustria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
engineer David SchwarzDavid Schwarz (aviation inventor)David Schwarz was a Hungarian aviation pioneer of Jewish descent.Schwarz created the first flyable rigid airship. It was also the first airship with an external hull made entirely of metal. He died before he could see it finally fly...
and built by Carl BergCarl BergCarl Edwin Berg is a real estate investor and venture capitalist who has been included in Forbes Magazine's list of the 400 richest people in America numerous times. At the time the 2007 list was released, his net worth was estimated at $1.5 billion...
. It reaches an altitude of 80 feet (24 m), proving metal-framed airships can become airborne, but cannot be controlled in flight and is damaged beyond repair in an emergency landing. Count Ferdinand von ZeppelinFerdinand von ZeppelinFerdinand Adolf Heinrich August Graf von Zeppelin was a German general and later aircraft manufacturer. He founded the Zeppelin Airship company...
buys the wreck and its plans from Schwarzs widow Melanie. - Carl Rickard Nyberg starts working on his FluganFluganFlugan was an early aeroplane designed and built by Carl Richard Nyberg outside his home in Lidingö, Sweden. Construction started in 1897 and he kept working on it until 1922. The craft only managed a few short jumps and Nyberg was often ridiculed, however several of his innovations are still in use...
.
- 11 June – Salomon Andrée, N. Strindberg, and K. Fraenkel attempt an Arctic
- 1898
- Santos-Dumont flies his first balloon design, the Brésil.
- The Langley Aerodrome is commissioned by the United States Army Signal CorpsUnited States Army Signal CorpsThe United States Army Signal Corps develops, tests, provides, and manages communications and information systems support for the command and control of combined arms forces. It was established in 1860, the brainchild of United States Army Major Albert J. Myer, and has had an important role from...
. - The Aéro-Club de FranceAéro-Club de FranceThe Aéro-Club de France was founded as the Aéro-Club on 20 October 1898 as a society 'to encourage aerial locomotion' by Ernest Archdeacon, Léon Serpollet, Henri de la Valette, Jules Verne and his wife, André Michelin, Albert de Dion, Alberto Santos-Dumont, Henry Deutsch de la Meurthe, and Henry de...
is founded. - The French NavyFrench NavyThe French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
torpedo boat tenderTorpedo boat tenderThe torpedo boat tender was a type of warship developed at the end of the 19th century to help bring small torpedo boat to the high seas, and launch them for attack....
Foudre operates a spherical balloon experimentally during naval maneuvers in the Mediterranean SeaMediterranean SeaThe Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
.
- 1899
- April – Gustave WhiteheadGustave WhiteheadGustave Albin Whitehead, born Gustav Albin Weisskopf was an aviation pioneer who emigrated from Germany to the U.S., where he designed and built early flying machines and engines meant to power them....
claimed to have flown his steam-powered aircraft a distance of 500 m (1,640 ft) in PennsylvaniaPennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
with a passenger. - The Wright brothersWright brothersThe Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur , were two Americans credited with inventing and building the world's first successful airplane and making the first controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air human flight, on December 17, 1903...
begin experimenting with wing-warping as a means of controlling an aircraft. - Samuel CodySamuel CodySamuel Franklin Cowdery was born in Birdville, Texas, USA. He was an early pioneer of manned flight, most famous for his work on the large kites known as Cody War-Kites that were used in World War I as a smaller alternative to balloons for artillery spotting...
begins experiments with kites big enough to lift a person. - Percy Pilcher flies various gliders and is close to completing a powered machine but is killed when his glider crashes at Stanford Hall, England after a tail strut fails. The flight had been intended as a display of powered flight, but when the engine was not ready in time, Pilcher used a team of horses to pull the glider into the air.
- April – Gustave Whitehead
1900
- 2 July – Count Ferdinand von ZeppelinFerdinand von ZeppelinFerdinand Adolf Heinrich August Graf von Zeppelin was a German general and later aircraft manufacturer. He founded the Zeppelin Airship company...
pilots his experimental first ZeppelinZeppelinA Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
, LZ1, over Lake ConstanceLake ConstanceLake Constance is a lake on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps, and consists of three bodies of water: the Obersee , the Untersee , and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein.The lake is situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria near the Alps...
, reaching an altitude of 400 meters (1,312 feet) with five men on board. Although the flight lasts only 18 minutes, covers only 5.6 kilometres (3.5 mi), and ends in an emergency landing on the lake, it is the first flight of a truly successful rigid airshipRigid airshipA rigid airship is a type of airship in which the envelope retained its shape by the use of an internal structural framework rather than by being forced into shape by the pressure of the lifting gas within the envelope as used in blimps and semi-rigid airships.Rigid airships were produced and...
. - 12 September – The Wright brothersWright brothersThe Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur , were two Americans credited with inventing and building the world's first successful airplane and making the first controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air human flight, on December 17, 1903...
arrive at Kitty HawkKitty Hawk, North CarolinaKitty Hawk is a town in Dare County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 3,000 at the 2000 census. It was established in the early 18th century as Chickahawk....
, North CarolinaNorth CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, to begin their first season of gliderGlider aircraftGlider aircraft are heavier-than-air craft that are supported in flight by the dynamic reaction of the air against their lifting surfaces, and whose free flight does not depend on an engine. Mostly these types of aircraft are intended for routine operation without engines, though engine failure can...
experiments there. - 3 October - Probably on this date, Wilbur Wright makes the Wright brothers first glider flight at Kitty Hawk. During their tests, they will fly the 1900 glider both as a glider and as a kite under various wind conditions.
- 17 October – On her second flight, the Zeppelin LZ-1 remains aloft for 80 minutes.
- 23 October – The Wright brothers abandon their 1900 glider in a sand hollow and break camp at Kitty Hawk to return home to DaytonDayton, OhioDayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
, OhioOhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
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