🙋Aloha Air Travel Career Enthusiasts!
Welcome to Day 1 of our Aviation Career Paths Insights Mini-Workshop Training.
📍For day 1 ;
we are starting with basics descriptions, meanings, definitions, and of course History!
📍Question:
WHAT IS AVIATION
🎯Answer:
When you hear the word aviation, what comes to mind immediately are pictures of the sky, non-static white clouds, airplanes, and helicopters, then; pilots, flight attendants, and curiosity about how the aircraft sustains continuous motion in the air without falling, how the people inside the aircraft feel, etc (in fact; growing up; I have an uncle who would always query if people are actually inside the airplane cruising through the air above our veranda!).
AVIATION as a word comes from the Latin word AVIS which means “Bird,” and is adopted as the term used to refer to flying, and the mechanical transportation instruments, machines; the equipment put in place to enable journeying through the air (i.e to travel/fly in the air) safely.
Aviation is everything about the science and skilled art of flying aircraft and ensuring safety in the air from research to design, production, testing, rollout/release, to maintenance of aircraft; Aviation is the production and operation and aircraft.
So when you come across the word “Aviation” it covers everything related to flying/journeying through/in the air, and the equipment created (both manned and unmanned aircraft) for such purposes e.g: Airplanes, Helicopters, Parachutes, Drones, etc.
Birds have an inborn ability to fly, they were created as flying creatures. When and how did humans devise means to also cruise through the air successfully, I guess even higher up than birds? Let’s take a quick peek into the history of aviation.
HISTORY OF AVIATION
Air Travel has an ancient history and story filled with the success, failure, and perseverance of many men and women which dates back to the 5th century when China first invented kites.
The Wright Brothers, Wilbur and Orville Wright from Dayton, Ohio were credited and universally recognized as the fathers of modern aviation as they worked together and successfully built, launched, and flew the first-ever crewed heavier-than-air flight on 17th, December 1903.
They made a total of four flights in their simple aircraft, with the longest one piloted by Wilbur, covering 852 feet in 49 seconds.
December 17th, 1903 thus became the universally recognized date of the launch of modern aviation.
However, before the Wright brothers’ breakthrough, there had been several attempts made by humans at flying in the air like birds; from when men strapped birdlike wings made of various materials and devils even cloaks to fly like birds, to when men started taking to the air in hot balloons, to when daredevil flyers launched themselves into the air in unpowered gliders and much more to date; let’s take a cruise through air travel history line and have fun!
Tower jumping
Since antiquity, there have been stories of men strapping birdlike wings, stiffened cloaks, or other devices to themselves and attempting to fly, typically by jumping off a tower.
The Greek legend of Daedalus and Icarus is one of the earliest known; others originated from ancient Asia and the European Middle Ages. During this early period, the issues of lift, stability, and control were not understood, and most attempts ended in serious injury or death.
The Andalusian scientist Abbas ibn Firnas (810–887 AD) is claimed to have made a jump in Córdoba, Spain, covering his body with vulture feathers and attaching two wings to his arms.
The 17th-century Algerian historian Ahmed Mohammed al-Maqqari, quoting a poem by Muhammad I of Córdoba‘s 9th-century court poet Mu’min ibn Said, recounts that Firnas flew some distance before landing with some injuries, attributed to his lacking a tail (as birds use to land).
Writing in the 12th century, William of Malmesbury stated that the 11th-century Benedictine monk Eilmer of Malmesbury attached wings to his hands and feet and flew a short distance, but broke both legs while landing, also having neglected to make himself a tail.
Many others made well-documented jumps in the following centuries. As late as 1811, Albrecht Berblinger constructed an ornithopter and jumped into the Danube at Ulm.
Kites
The kite may have been the first form of man-made aircraft.
It was invented in China possibly as far back as the 5th century BC by Mozi (Mo Di) and Lu Ban (Gongshu Ban). Later designs often emulated flying insects, birds, and other beasts, both real and mythical. Some were fitted with strings and whistles to make musical sounds while flying.
Ancient and medieval Chinese sources describe kites being used to measure distances, test the wind, lift men, signal, and communicate and send messages. Kites spread from China around the world. After its introduction into India, the kite further evolved into the fighter kite, which has an abrasive line used to cut down other kites.
Man-carrying kites
Man-carrying kites are believed to have been used extensively in ancient China, for both civil and military purposes and sometimes enforced as a punishment. An early recorded flight was that of the prisoner Yuan Huangtou, a Chinese prince, in the 6th century AD.
Stories of man-carrying kites also occur in Japan, following the introduction of the kite from China around the seventh century AD. It is said that at one time there was a Japanese law against man-carrying kites.
Rotor wings (Bamboo-Copters)
The use of a rotor for vertical flight has existed since 400 BC in the form of the bamboo copter, an ancient Chinese toy. A similar “moulinet à noix” (rotor on a nut) appeared in Europe in the 14th century AD.
Hot air balloons
From ancient times the Chinese have understood that hot air rises and have applied the principle to a type of small hot air balloon called a sky lantern. A sky lantern consists of a paper balloon under or just inside which a small lamp is placed.
Sky lanterns are traditionally launched for pleasure and during festivals. According to Joseph Needham, such lanterns were known in China from the 3rd century BC.
Their military use is attributed to the general Zhuge Liang (180–234 AD, honorific title Kongming), who is said to have used them to scare the enemy troops. There is evidence that the Chinese also “solved the problem of aerial navigation” using balloons, hundreds of years before the 18th century.
Renaissance
Eventually, after Ibn Firnas‘s construction, some investigators began to discover and define some of the basics of rational aircraft design. Most notable of these was Leonardo da Vinci, although his work remained unknown until 1797, and so had no influence on developments over the next three hundred years. While his designs are rational, they are not scientific.
He particularly underestimated the amount of power that would be needed to propel a flying object, basing his designs on the flapping wings of a bird rather than an engine-powered propeller. Leonardo studied bird and bat flight, claiming the superiority of the latter owing to its unperforated wing. He analyzed these and anticipated many principles of aerodynamics. He understood that “An object offers as much resistance to the air as the air does to the object.
Isaac Newton would not publish his third law of motion until 1687. From the last years of the 15th century until 1505, Leonardo wrote about and sketched many designs for flying machines and mechanisms, including ornithopters, fixed-wing gliders, rotorcraft (perhaps inspired by whirligig toys), parachutes (in the form of wooden-framed pyramidal tent) and a wind speed gauge.
His early designs were man-powered and included ornithopters and rotorcraft; however, he came to realize the impracticality of this and later turned to controlled gliding flight, also sketching some designs powered by a spring.
In an essay titled Sul volo (On flight), Leonardo describes a flying machine called “the bird” which he built from starched linen, leather joints, and raw silk thongs. In the Codex Atlanticus, he wrote, “Tomorrow morning, on the second day of January 1496, I will make the thong and the attempt.
According to one commonly repeated, albeit presumably fictional story, in 1505 Leonardo or one of his pupils attempted to fly from the summit of Monte Ceceri.
Let’s read what Spartan University wrote concerning the history of Air Travel:
From the first hot air balloon flight to the first commercial airline, there are plenty of accomplishments and milestone achievements to celebrate during air travel history; celebrating the past achievements and contributions of the people that have led to modern-day aviation.
In honor of this celebration, let us look back on the history of air travel, the Wright brothers, and how it evolved from military applications (’20s-’40s) to mostly civilians through today.
(Air Travel is referred to as Aviation in the context of the overall Air Travel Industry).
Enjoy the read.
How Aviation Got Started
The history of aviation dates to the 5th century with the invention of kites in China. The famous artist Leonardo da Vinci created the first drafts of a rational aircraft in his paintings in the 15th century. In 1647, Tito Livio Burattini developed a model aircraft featuring four pairs of glider wings. But it never supported the weight of a person. Later, in 1970, Francesco Terzi, the Father of Aeronautics, published a theory that showed the possibility of lighter-than-air aircraft made of copper foil cylinders.
The discovery of hydrogen in the 17th century led to the development of the first hydrogen balloon. In 1783, the Montgolfier brothers, including Jacques-Étienne and Joseph-Michel, flew the first unmanned hot air balloon over Annonay, France.
The same year, they flew a piloted, tethered hot air balloon with Giroud de Villette, Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier, and Jean-Baptiste Réveillon onboard. Later, they launched their first untethered hot air balloon flight, which flew nine kilometers in about 25 minutes.
The hot air balloon became exceptionally popular during the late 18th century, which led to the discovery of the relationship between altitude and atmosphere. However, the main downside of hot air balloons was a lack of maneuverability.
The invention of airships came to solve the issue of hot air balloons. Unlike hot air balloons, airships used hydrogen or helium gas to lift and were the first ones to carry passengers over long distances.
Alberto Santos-Dumont was the first person to fly an untethered airship designed with an internal combustion engine. In 1901, Santos-Dumont launched his airship known as “Number 6” over Paris in less than thirty minutes. In 1899, Ferdinand von Zeppelin started building the first Zeppelin airship, which featured two Daimler engines.
In 1902, Leonardo Torres Quevedo launched his version of The Zeppelin, which dealt with the balancing problems of the first Zeppelin. However, the fatal crash at Lakehurst, New Jersey, in 1937 marked the end of the airship era.
Heavier-Than-Air Aircraft
Despite the numerous advancements of lighter-than-air aircraft, their existence was short-lived and overshadowed by the invention of the heavier-than-air airplane. In 1869, Samuel Pierpont Langley was the first to launch an unmanned heavier-than-air aircraft on a sustained flight successfully. Langley was later funded by the US government to create a crewed version of his heavier-than-air aircraft for purposes of spying on the enemy. However, his design was not successful.
The Wright Brothers in the History of Aviation
Between 1900 and 1902, the Wright Brothers, Wilbur and Orville Wright from Dayton, Ohio, designed and tested numerous glider and kite models. They built a wind tunnel and then created various devices to measure the drag and lift on more than two hundred wing designs. Finally, their third glider was a success as it outdid its predecessors, which heavily contributed to the aeronautical engineering field.
The Wright brothers also worked together to solve the current issue of controlled, powered flight. They solved the control problem by creating wing warping for yaw control, roll control, and a steerable rudder.
On December 17th, 1903, the two brothers successfully built and launched the first crewed heavier-than-air flight.
This is also the universally recognized date that launched modern aviation. On that day, they made a total of four flights in their simple aircraft, with the longest one piloted by Wilbur, covering 852 feet in 49 seconds.
In 1906, Alberto Santos-Dumont set the world record by flying his aircraft, “14-bis,” 220 meters (about twice the length of a football field) in 21.5 seconds over Paris. He also advanced the design by incorporating moveable parts to the wings to gain lateral stability. Later, in 1908, he started working with Clement-Bayard company to build the first mass-produced aircraft, the Demoiselle No. 19.
How Aviation Evolved from Military Applications to Civilian
Aircraft became militarized as soon as it was invented. Italy was the first country to employ aircraft for military operations. They used airships and monoplanes to bomb, shell, and transportation during the Turkish-Italian War in Libya.
In 1914, Roland Garros attached a machine gun to his aircraft, making him the first “ace.” And the following year, Kurt Wintgens secured his first aerial victory using a fighter plane designed with a machine gun.
Aircraft were first used in active combat on a large scale in World War I. This played a decisive role in the First World War.
France became the leading aircraft manufacturer during the war, producing over 68,000 airplanes between 1914 and 1918.
During World War II, nearly all nations increased their production and development of aircraft and flight-based systems. The military used fighter bombers, strategic bombers, dive bombers, and ground-attack aircraft.
The invention of radar technology led to more precise, coordinated, and controlled deployment.
In 1942, Arado Ar 234, the first jet-powered bomber, was launched.
The Second World War also led to the rapid development of helicopters. By the end of the Second World War, there were airports or landing strips in many cities and towns.
During this period, civil aviation experienced tremendous growth because military aircraft were repurposed as personal or airliner planes.
Revolutionary aircraft designs, for instance, the Douglas DC-3, a reliable all-metal passenger airplane with rubberized seats to reduce vibrations and noise-deadening plastic insulation, helped make flying more comfortable and accessible for new travelers.
To standardize the safety, consistency, and efficiency of civil flights, the Convention on International Civil Aviation was established in 1944. Standardization of civil flights led to safer, more affordable airliners run by major carriers.
Modern Aviation
Digital adoption and technology techniques in the modern era have seen a massive advancement in the aviation industry. The release of computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing software in the 1970s facilitated the development of enhanced aircraft designs. Newer technologies like computer simulations have aided in producing lighter yet more robust materials for building airplanes.
Modern aircraft also come equipped with digital systems, eliminating most analog and mechanical instruments.
During the 1980s, cathode-ray displays in the cockpit were replaced with more advanced computer-based electronic displays. A notable example was the Boeing 767’s glass cockpit in 1981.
Modern displays, when integrated into automatic pilots, make cockpit resource management a crucial aspect of flight safety.
Also, the introduction of composite materials like the one used for building Boeing 787 Dreamliner has significantly cut down the weight of aircraft, leading to improved fuel efficiency.
Advanced composite has also led to the development of sweeping wing tips that reduce component weight and improves aerodynamics of an aircraft.
In Conclusion; its’ worthy of mention that November is ‘Aviation history month’ and International Civil Aviation Day is 7th of December.
The Aviation history month as well the international civil aviation day is revered as wonderful times to celebrate the people behind modern-day aviation that powers a global economy, and to help generate and reinforce worldwide awareness of the importance of international civil aviation to the social and economic development of countries, and of the unique role of aviation stakeholders in helping countries to cooperate and realize a truly global rapid transit network at the service of all mankind.
It is also revered as wonderful times to inspire many people to embrace aviation and become aviators.
END