AVIATION HISTORY PHOTO ESSAY
Early attempts at Flying
For centuries humans have spent much time watching birds fly — with much envy. Man has always been highly fascinated by the freedom of flight, and many attempts have been made to emulate the freedom of our feathered companions. According to legends, myths and other documented tales, the quest to achieve ‘freedom of flight’ had cost many lives, but records of such early attempts of flight are sketchy. There are tales of men who have attempted ‘Tower jumping’ — using poorly improvised wings. Icarus — a minor character in Greek mythology and the son of the famous Athenian craftsman Daedalus, is one of such stories. Both Daedalus and his son Icarus tried ‘Tower Jumping’ to escape from the Island of Crete — where they were trapped. To this end, Daedalus fashioned two pairs of wings, made from fallen sea-bird feathers which he waxed onto a framework — which in theory would allow father and son to fly off Crete — to freedom.
Before the escape, Daedalus warned Icarus not to get close to the sun in case the wax softens due to heat and the feathers fall off. They set off from their prison, father and son, together. However, Icarus, overcome by the exhilaration of flight, forgot his father’s advice, got closer to the sun, and his feathers fell off. Thus, Icarus fell from the sky, and he was swallowed by the swelling sea below. The sea he fell into is, today, called Icarian sea and the island close to it is known as Ikaria.
An early attempt at gliding from a high point took place in Cordoba, Spain in 875 CE. Inspired by the sight of a man who glided down from a minaret using a suit of silk reinforced with wooden rods, Abbas ibn Firnas (Arabic: عباس بن فرناس), a polymath of the same standing as the fabled Daedalus, attempted to do the same. He constructed a pair of wings out of silk and wood with actual feathers sewn in. From the hills of Jabal Al-‘Arus he jumped off a cliff and, according to some writers, glided for some time. Eilmer of Malmesbury was a monk who attempted the same feat and broke his legs in the process, some 200 years later.
Hezârfen Ahmed Çelebi was an Ottoman scientist from Istanbul who also attempted to achieve sustained unpowered flight. His title, ‘hazaaru’ means 1000, and ‘fannu’ is skills in Persian. The 17th century writer Evilya Celebi states that “First, he practiced by flying over the pulpit of Okmeydanı eight or nine times with eagle wings, using the force of the wind. Then, as Sultan Murad Khan (Murad IV) was watching from the Sinan Pasha mansion at Sarayburnu, he flew from the very top of the Galata Tower and landed in the Doğancılar Square in Üsküdar, with the help of the south-west wind. Then Murad Khan granted him a sack of golden coins, and said: “This is a scary man. He is capable of doing anything he wishes. It is not right to keep such people,” and thus sent him to Algeria in exile. He died there.”
Also, Leonardo Da Vinci, the famous 16th century Italian Renaissance genius and an outstanding scientific theorist, did much research on the flight of birds. He then designed flying machines based on his research and theories. He wrote extensively about flight and his work of art with over 100 drawings that illustrated his theories on flight is well documented. Da Vinci’s Ornithopter flying machine was never actually created. It was a design that he created to show how man could fly.
The First Practical aircraft
Gliding from a high point was attempted by the Spanish, German, French and a few other European pioneers, but it was Karl Wilhelm Otto Lilienthal, a German, who perfected early Gliders. Lilienthal, born in Pomerania in 1848, was a trained steam engineer by profession and was highly fascinated by the flight of birds. An ardent believer that ornithology (study of birds) held the key to human flight, he became famous for his pioneering work in hang-gliding techniques, which he experimented for the first time in 1891. Between 1891 and 1896 he designed and built 16 different gliders and carried out more than 2000 flights, the longest covering 1,150 feet. Records of his endeavours were published in newspapers in several countries as publishing was widespread at the time. Though his demonstration flights did not have flight control systems these flights had without any doubt proved that human flight was possible.
His 11th glider model was most successful and popular among gliding enthusiasts, and became the first such design that went into mass production. However, there were serious limitations to his ‘wing flapping’ theory as they did not have a flight control mechanism, and was succeeded by better versions of fixed wing gliders. Lilienthal died on 10 August 1896 following a crash in a glider.
Clement Ader, a French inventor and engineer is also well recognized for his pioneering work on aviation during the latter part of the nineteenth century. He built steam powered winged vehicles, though they only remained airborne for only a few seconds.
An English engineer and aviator George Cayley (1773–1857) was a leading figure who pioneered scientific research on the principles and forces of flight, which contributed to the development of the concept of the airplane. He identified the significance of weight, lift drag and thrust on a heavier than air flying machine and his work was followed by many early aviation enthusiasts — leading to many similarities in the concept of the first powered aircraft. Many more fascinating experiments and scientific work followed. Aviation pioneers, such as Samuel Pierpont Langley (1834–1906) an American who went on to experiment with powered gliders — by fixing a small engine to the gliders in 1887 and French American civil engineer Octave Chanute (1832–1910, who experimented with stable gliders with movable control systems in 1896 — are two noteworthy pioneers.
Hot air balloons were widely used during the 18th century and it was another milestone in the history of flight. The Montgolfier Brothers of France were best known as inventors of the first hot air balloons piloted by a man. When the first practical aircraft were produced, in the form of hot-air and hydrogen balloons in 1783, they were adopted quickly for military duties.
The records of early attempts of flying are sketchy and all drawings are artists’ impressions. The invention of photography, the availability of paper and widespread literacy made late records more reliable. Also, we know that within the atmosphere as you ascend higher, there is a decrease in temperature. For a person weighing an average human weight of 62kg, the wingspan required would be about 6 metres. With artificial wings, one can safely escape from a high point, especially with a favourable headwind. Due to the power required, it may not be possible to climb but gliding to a distance is certainly achievable. Indeed, in the history of mankind, many would have attempted flying — with varying degrees of success.
Pioneer Aviators Of the 20th Century
By the dawn of the twentieth century the dream of achieving a practical powered flight was close to becoming a reality. While there were several who claimed to be the first to fly a powered aeroplane, much controversy has surrounded these claims — which still surfaces from time to time. There have been many breakthroughs by pioneers who meticulously and methodically studied all aspects of flight and carried out powered flights — albeit for only a few seconds in the air. However, such attempts have been dismissed as ‘powered hops’ by various segments of the world population.
Gustav Weißkopf, a German machinist who worked for Otto Lilienthal, was the son of a bridge-construction engineer. When Gustave was 13 years old his mother died. In 1890, three years after his mother died, he left his hometown and after a series of adventures arrived in the USA in 1893. He Anglicized his name to Gustave Whitehead and started work on building gliders and engines. Early in 1901, Whitehead had built his 21st manned aircraft and that year — more than two years before the Wright Brothers — he made history’s first manned, powered, controlled, sustained flight in a heavier-than-air aircraft.
“Jane’s All the World’s Aircraft”, the world’s foremost authority on aircraft, formally recognized Gustave Whitehead as inventor of aeroplane on 8th March 2013. Whitehead retained his German citizenship throughout his life and never became a US naturalized citizen. The story is detailed in Gustave Whitehead and the Wright Brothers (ISBN: 9781532899393).
Smithsonian Museum historians made a deal for the Wright’s plane which they bought for $1 in 1948. They are required to claim that the Wright brothers invented the plane by the agreement (widely available) of the purchase.
In former times it was believed that the two American aviation pioneers — Orville and Wilbur Wright made the first breakthrough, when they built and flew a powered aeroplane on 17th December 1903 in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, USA — although this claim is rejected by some countries and regions today.
The first flight with Orville Wright at the Wright Flyer controls flew 120 feet above the ground and lasted 12 seconds in the air. The machine was fitted with rudder and elevators and thus the Wright Brothers were credited with perfecting roll, pitch and yaw controlled flight. Mr. John Daniels photographed the first flight with Orville’s camera. Following the first historical flight, two more flights were conducted, one flying up to 175 feet while the next one achieved reaching 200 feet. On 20th September 1904 WilburWright flew the Wright Flyer on a complete circle covering 4080 feet in one minute and thirty seconds, which was another great flying achievement.
The two brothers perfected the three primary axes of roll, pitch and yaw. The aircraft was also fitted with rudders and elevators. Following the first flight, two more flights were conducted, one flying up to 175 feet and the other reaching 200 feet. On 20th September 1904 Wilbur flew a complete circuit, covering 4080 feet in one minute and thirty seconds. The Wright Brothers also went into mass production of their aircraft, and sold it for transport and warfare activities. By 1907 more than 50 approved versions of their Model A aircraft were built in Germany alone. However, despite their pioneering efforts in aviation, some Americans as well as Europeans were still skeptical about the achievements of the brothers.
In 1908, their third aircraft could carry two people — thus beginning the concept of passenger aircraft. On 14th May 1908 Wilbur carried aircraft mechanic Mr. Charles Furnas- the first non-fare paying passenger on an aircraft and successfully landed at Kitty Hawk beach, North Carolina, paving the way for future commercial flights.
In August 1908, Wilbur Wright brought his ‘Flyer’ to Europe, and made demonstration flights for months — beginning in France. On 8th August 1908 he flew the aircraft near Le Mans in western France at a height of 30 feet for one minute and 45 seconds, thereby changing the negative perception of his critiques. In one of the demonstration flights Wilbur achieved a non-stop flight for 77 miles (124 kilometres) lasting 2 hours and 20 minutes. In all, about 200 demonstration flights were conducted in Europe dazzling the spectators and persuading many aviation enthusiasts and competitors to change their minds about these pioneer brothers of powered controlled flight.
The Wright’s two-winged biplane was popular during the pioneering years of aviation as they did not require large and heavy engines for power. However this popularity was short-lived as the biplanes created a great deal of drag than a monoplane.
On 17 September 1908 Orville Wright was involved in a serious accident at Fort Meyer, Virginia when one of the propeller blades of his aircraft got damaged causing the aircraft to crash to the ground from a height of 75 feet, killing his passenger lieutenant Thomas Selfridge. Selfridge thus became the first passenger to be killed in an aeroplane crash.
By this time, the Wright Brothers were facing challenges and competition from European and American pioneers who were doing relentless research on aircraft design and building. There were European designers of aircraft — the most famous being a Brazilian resident in France, famous for his airship exploits, named Alberto Santos-Dumont. Some people even consider him as the inventor of the ‘heavier than air powered’ aeroplane, after he flew his 14-bis in the Bagatalle field in Paris for the first time in 1906. Serial numbers before that referred to balloons and airships. His most successful was Demoiselle No: 20 which was produced in numbers and sold. Dumont’s pioneering achievements were greeted in Europe as a breakthrough in early aircraft building technology.
Glen Hammond Curtiss (1878–1930) was a twentieth century American aviation pioneer who made the first public flight in the USA in 1908 in the ‘June Bug’. The aircraft was built by Curtiss with the backing of the Aerial Experiment Association of USA in 1908. The June Bug performed so well that it travelled 3,420 feet (1,040 meters) at the speed of 35 miles per hour. Flying demonstrations of the June Bug had an extraordinary impact on the public, making Glen Curtiss a major figure in aviation. He sold his Curtiss airplane for US$ 7,500.00. It was the first commercial sale of an airplane in the United States.
The monoplane with one pair of wings was the next step in the developing aviation scenario. Louis Charles Bleriot (1872–1936) is credited for pioneering the single wing monoplane in 1908. It was on this modified Bleriot XI monoplane that he crossed the English Channel (37 kilometres) from Calais France to Dover England, in 36 minutes, in his — on 25th July 1909 — which was considered an aviation milestone back in the early 1900s. For this achievement he won a prize of 1000 Sterling Pounds offered by the London Daily Mail. Between 1909 and 1914 leading up to the First World War, his aircraft factory produced more than 800 Bleriot XI aircraft. He is also credited for introducing new aircraft control systems to his Bleriot VIII.
Bleriot XI monoplane with a 25 HP engine. By the end of WWI in 1918 biplanes were ending their practical use for carrying heavier loads, and technological advances enabled a shift towards development of monoplanes.
On 12th June 1909, Blériot XII set a world record for carrying two passengers in an aircraft, one of whom was Santos-Dumont. Flying heavier than air machines was rapidly losing its novelty by this time. Several US, British, German, and other European aviators were building and flying aircraft by 1910.
On November 7, 1910, a Wright Model B airplane piloted by Philip Parmalee carried ten bolts of fabric from Dayton, Ohio, to Columbus, Ohio. Parmalee completed the 65-mile journey from Dayton’s Huffman Prairie Testing Ground to the Driving Park in Columbus in 71 minutes. It was the first time cargo was shipped by airplane. The photograph on the left shows Parmalee seated in the plane with packages of fabric secured next to him while Orville Wright oils the Model B airplane’s engine.
The first postal flight was made on February 18, 1911, during an agricultural and industrial exhibition held in Allahabad, India. Henri Pequet, a 23-year-old pilot, had gone to India to take part in an acrobatic show, and, during the course of the event, he transported 6,500 letters from Allahabad to Naini, two cities located 10 kilometres apart in his Humber Sommer biplane. Each letter was marked with the special seal: First Aerial Post, U.P. Exhibition Allahabad 1911.
Passenger Aircraft
The first 4 engine purpose-built passenger aircraft — the Sikorsky Russky Vityaz — with a passenger capacity of 7, was designed and built by Russian aircraft engineer Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky in 1913. Later, the Rusky was badly damaged due to an accident and Sikorsky went on to develop advanced versions of the Sikorsky. The Sikorsky Ilya Muromets were widely used for commercial transport.
By the end of the First World War in 1918, German engineer Hugo Junkersbuilt the world’s first all metal passenger aircraft — the single engine Junkers F13. It had enclosed accommodation for 4 passengers and could fly 1400 kilometres (870 miles) at a speed of 160 kilometres (100 mph) per hour. This versatile F13 used fixed conventional split landing gear with a rear skid. However, some variants landed on floats or skis. The aircraft was well received by potential airline customers.
In 1924, the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker, built the first all metal three engine Fokker F.VII. This aircraft had a better payload, performance and reliability. Later the Ford Motor Company also built a similar model in 1926 but with a greater passenger capacity.
Commercial and Military Airships
An airship is a lighter than air large dirigible balloon or aircraft which is a type of aerostat that navigates through the air under its own power. These aerostats gain their lift from lifting gases such as hydrogen or helium, that is less dense than the surrounding air. The German military made extensive use of airships for bombing of enemy territories during the First World War.
The man whose name was most synonymous with airships and air power was the German inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin. The airship Zeppelin- named after this aristocratic inventor was used initially in the military before its induction into commercial aviation.
Zeppelin and his business colleague Alfred Colsman founded the world’s first commercial airline DELAG (German acronym for German Airship Travel Corporation) on 16 November 1909. Based in Frankfurt Germany, DELAG operated a fleet of Zeppelin airships. The very first international passenger flight was operated on 11th October 1928 from Friedrichshafen Germany, across the Atlantic Ocean to Lakehurst, New Jersey in the United States. The flight took 111 hours and 45 minutes to reach its destination — an astonishing four and half days of flying as these airships usually travel at speeds between 30 to 70 miles per hour. In addition to the cities in the United States, these magnificent airships also made scheduled passenger flights across the Atlantic Ocean to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, South America.
The German Hindenburg airship LZ 129, carrying 97 people and crew on a routine commercial flight, was destroyed in a fire on 6th May 1937 in Manchester New Jersey USA, while attempting to dock to a mooring mast, to disembark passengers. The fateful flight originated from Frankfurt Germany, and had reached its destination after 43 hours. The use of airships for the carriage of passengers was discontinued after this famous Hindenburg air disaster.
The USS Shenandoah was the first of four airships the United States Navy built in 1923. These airships flew within the USA as well as across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe from North America.
Hot air balloons were one of the first mechanisms used in air warfare. The first major scale use of military balloons was for observation purposes, during the 1896–1865 American Civil War. During WWI balloons were launched off the decks of barges, to spot enemy activities.
Aircraft mounted Machine guns were used for the first time during the First World War, heralding the beginning of air to ground, and air to air combat operations. This was a new concept of fighting the enemy.
On 5th October 1914, barely a few months after WWI commenced, two French airmen — Sergeant Joseph Franz and Corporal Louis Quinault — made history by making the first kill in air combat, when they shot down a German Aviatik Doppledecker from their aircraft mounted machine gun.
The evolution of the Aircraft Carrier
The use of hot air balloons for reconnaissance was discontinued with the introduction of seaplane carriers, which eventually evolved into the flat deck tender. During WWI it became increasingly common for ‘Observation seaplanes’ to be catapulted from battleships. Once the flying mission was completed, the seaplane would land on the water close to the mothership. Later with further modifications, they were successfully used for dropping bombs on moving ships and coastal installations.
As the war progressed, the strategic advantage of having decks on ships for the landing and takeoff of wheeled aircraft became a valued priority. Early seaplane carriers and first generation flat decked aircraft carriers were modified by removing the main upper structures of large cargo ships or ocean-going passenger liners and replacing it with a new steel deck, to enable wheeled aircraft landings. There was sufficient hangar space on these decks for holding aircraft unlike the older versions where the aircraft were placed in the cargo hold.
The British seaplane carrier HMS Engadine which was modified from a cargo ship was fitted with a hangar to hold up to four seaplanes. Cranes were mounted near the hangar to hoist the sea planes in and out of the sea.
In 1918, the Royal Navy’s HMS Argus was the first aircraft carrier that was modified from a large ocean liner. The 15,000-ton ship’s full length was converted to a flight deck to facilitate wheeled aircraft to take off and land and was able to carry up to 18 aircraft.
Most of the old seaplane tender was considered the precursor to the modern aircraft carrier. Thus the balloon carrying ships were superseded by the seaplane tenders which gradually evolved to the flat deck carriers. After the end of WWI and the following two decades leading to WWII (1939–1945) the great powers of the world invested in conventional aircraft carriers to strengthen their naval air superiority. France had the 6000-ton torpedo cruiser Foudre converted as her first seaplane carrier while the Imperial Japanese Navy had the first seaplane carrier Wakamiya which was converted from a normal cargo ship.
The USS Langley was the United States Navy’s first aircraft carrier converted in 1920 from a large cargo ship. The 14,000-ton carrier had a 542 feet long aircraft landing deck and was able to carry up to 34 aircraft. The first landing of an aircraft on its deck was on 26 October 1922 by the United States Navy pilot Godfrey de Chevalier who took off in a two-seat Aeromarine 39 biplane from Cape Henry, Virginia USA.
The German navy did not have an operational flat deck aircraft carrier until towards the end of WWII. The German Navy’s 41,000-ton battleship, Bismarck, named after the first Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, carried 4 German built Arado Ar 196 float planes which was transported on board Nazi Germany’s Kriegsmarine (war time Navy) during WII. The Bismark was deliberately sunk by its crew to prevent it falling into enemy hands. The Arado Ar 196 was also deployed on the 42000-ton Graf Zeppelin in December 1938. The Imperial Japanese Navy launched its first 9,000-ton aircraft carrier Hosho in 1922 with a 552 feet long aircraft landing deck. This carrier did not fight in a battle though it was the world’s first purpose-built aircraft carrier — commissioned before the Royal Navy’s purpose-built HMS Hermes in 1924.
Seaplanes and Flying Boats — interwar period
Seaplanes generally fall into two well defined categories, based on their shape and characteristics, namely floatplanes and flying boats. Seaplanes are generally smaller with two floats mounted under the fuselage and a passenger capacity of eighteen or less, whereas the flying boats have boat-like hulls with floats extending from both wings to keep the boat steady.
Many countries in Europe and North America used flying boats on a wider scale during the First World War. Their scope, size and capability increased rapidly during the interwar period which culminated in their extensive use during the Second World War. These flying boats were used for commercial operations as well as transportation of military personnel and equipment, during the first fifty years of the twentieth century. They were also used for aerial bombardments during the war. Unlike the land-based aircraft, flying boats do not require runways and other expensive infrastructure — which were lacking in America and Europe at the time.
French aviator Henri Fabre (1882–1984) invented and operated the first successful Seaplane flight at Martigues near Marseilles France in his Fabre Hydravion.
Later, American aviator Glen Hammond Curtiss and French aviator Gabriel Voisin did further research on the Fabre Hydravian and developed their own models with modifications. The first practical and successful Model E flying boat was designed and built by him in 1912. He flew it over the Keuka Lake in New York state.
Curtiss went on to perfect the art of building flying boats. He established his own aircraft building firm to build seaplanes and flying boats. He achieved 52 PH after further modifications to the Model E hull. It was a Curtiss built flying boat that first landed and took off from the deck of an American warship. He became a leading supplier of flying boats to many European navies and the United States Navy during WWI. The scope size and capability of flying boats increased during the interwar period culminating in their extensive use during the Second World War to carry troops and for aerial bombardment.
Many international airlines soon began using flying boats for commercial operations on trans-atlantic and trans-pacific routes.The lack of suitable landing aerodromes at the time and the abundance of water bodies in most regions, resulted in wider use of float planes and flying boats for commercial operations. Also landing at waterdromes cost less compared to land-based aerodromes. Loading and unloading off these intercontinental flying boats, some of which had two decks was easy at the purpose-built dockyards.
Extensive production of the long range flying boats began in the decade 1930–1940. The wider application on the carriage of passengers and cargo via flying boats played a major role in transforming civil air transport — and remained so all the way upto the first half of the 20th century. This requirement gradually diminished at the end of the Second World War when a plethora of military airfields across the world were available for civilian aircraft use together with a surplus of redundant war time military aircraft.
German aviation pioneer Claudius Dornier built the first all metal twin engine Dornier Wal (whale) flying boat in 1922. It had a wide ship like hull with sponsons to provide stability on water and had a passenger capacity of 10. In 1929 Dornier launched the world’s largest aircraft — the six engine, 150 passenger capacity Dornier Do X long-range flying boat, specially built to carry mail, commercial cargo and passengers across the Atlantic. Although an engineering success, the Do X was extremely complex and was too expensive to operate.
The American built single engine Fairchild FC-2 float plane entered the market in early 1920 and was utilised for scheduled commercial operations especially for the carriage of mail and light cargo. The production of this popular model continued until the end of that decade. In October 1927 Pan American Airways (PANAM) began operating this aircraft on the Florida — Havana sector as an airmail service.
In November 1935, PANAM also went on to operate a 41 seat four engine Martin M-130, also called the China Clipper, on the San Francisco — Manila sector across the Pacific Ocean to carry mail and passengers.
The Boeing Aeroplane Company in the United States built the 74 seat, four engine Boeing 314 Clipper flying boat in 1938. Their commercial operation expanded to the Atlantic, Pacific Ocean countries, Caribbean region and South America. The four engine Boeing 314 Clipper flying boats were also delivered to the British carrier BOAC in 1940 for operations on the transatlantic routes. Another smaller entrant to the commercial flying boat business in America was the 10-seat Sikorsky S-38. (below)
The Sunderland flying boats which entered the market in 1938 continued flying until they were retired in 1959. The Short Brothers also built the Short Solent model in the later 1940s which could carry up to 35 passengers. The Consolidated PBY Catalina (below) was also built in the 1930–40 decade, but it was used exclusively for military purposes during WWII
In Nazi Germany the Luftwaffe built its largest six engine flying boat the Bohm & Voss BV 238 in 1944 during WWII which was also used only for military purposes Subsequently in 1947, American business magnate Howard Hughes built the eight-engine Hughes H-4 Hercules (also known as Spruce Goose) intended for transatlantic flights. It was the world’s largest flying boat ever built. However, the Spruce Goose was a commercial failure. Only one aircraft was built and not a single commercial flight was operated using it. Today this remarkable giant flying boat is kept at the Evergreen Aviation Museum in Oregon in the United States of America.
Aviation Trendsetters Of The Golden Age
The interwar period between 1918–1939 saw aviators breaking speed and distance records, designers revolutionising aircraft design, and manufacturers building more and better planes. Barnstormers, air shows, and flying circuses fascinated the public and drew large crowds. Oceans and continents were conquered and some of the most notable transatlantic and transpacific flights were made during this period, which was known as the “golden age of aviation”.
Charles Lindbergh — an American -was the first aviator to fly nonstop across the Atlantic Ocean. His aircraft “The Spirit of St. Louis” flew from Long Island in the Eastern United States to Paris in France on 21 May 1927. It took him 33/12 hours to cover the 3,600-mile (5,794 km) journey. When he arrived in Paris in his purpose-built single engine monoplane, he was welcomed by a huge cheering crowd.
On 15th June 1919, two British aviators John Alcock and Arthur Brown made the first nonstop transatlantic flight on a twin engine Vickers Vimy biplane. Their journey commenced from St. Johns in Newfoundland to Galway Ireland. The flight time was 16 hours.
In 1928, British Australian aviator Charles Kingsford-Smith made the historic first transpacific flight with a four-man crew, from California in the United States to Brisbane Australia. The distance, which was approximately 7,187 miles (11,566 km) , was made in three stages in a Fokker F-VII single engine aircraft via Hawaii and Fiji. Flight time was 82 hours. Australia’s Sydney Kingsford Smith International Airport is named in honour of this great aviator.
Hans von Ohain of Germany was the designer of the first operational jet engine, though credit for the invention of the jet engine went to Great Britain’s Frank Whittle. Whittle, who registered a patent for the turbojet engine in 1930, received that recognition but did not perform a flight test until 1941.
The Inter-war period (1918–1939), known as the “golden age of aviation” witnessed dramatic advances leading to revolutionary changes in the sphere of military and commercial air transport. Governments invested heavily in aircraft development and production with emphasis on aircraft speed and distance. Many types of aircraft — from land-based biplanes and monoplanes to Seaplanes, flying boats and airships — were built during this period.
In 1939, Nazi Germany’s Luftwaffe built the first jet aircraft — the Heinkel-He178 followed by a more advanced Messerschmitt Me 262 which was the world’s first jet fighter aircraft, seen in action in 1944 during the Second World War.
Airline and Airliners
On 1st January 1914, the world’s first scheduled airline using a winged aircraft was born at St. Petersburg Florida. The historic aircraft, a two-seater Benoist XIV biplane flying boat, designed and built by Thomas W.Benoist was made mainly of wood and fabric, with small pontoons fixed at the tip of the lower wing. The biplane was operated by Tampa Boat Airline based at St. Petersburg. Test pilot, Captain Antony H. Jannus flew the historic aircraft carrying the first fare paying passenger Mr. Abram C. Pheil — who was the former mayor of St. Petersburg Florida. The flight covered 22 miles in 23 minutes. During the next three months the airline carried about 1,500 passengers. Having faced financial and numerous other logistical difficulties the company finally closed.
During the ‘Golden Age of Aviation’ civil air transport became widespread. Many new commercial airlines were launched in Europe and North America. In less than one hundred years since the first single pilot — wood and fabric aircraft took to the skies, aviation has developed by leaps and bounds carrying hundreds of passengers and freight on intercontinental routes. Luxury air travel began taking its roots.
Seaplanes and Flying Boats dramatically changed the history of aviation prior to land-based aircraft. The next phase of expansion and transformation of the air transport industry came towards the first half of the twentieth century, with the turboprop pressurized aircraft, immediately followed by the jet powered airliners. Today there are few airlines in the world which have completed one hundred years of continuous operations since they were founded. Currently, the four oldest airlines in the world are: Avianca, Qantas, Aeroflot and KLM.
Avianca completed a century since its founding — in December 1919
Qantas completed a century in the year 2020. In 1979 iIt was the first airline to introduce ‘Business Class’ service.
Aeroflot — the Russian national carrier founded in 1923
On 1st October 1924, Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij (KLM) Dutch Airlines Became the world’s first national carrier when they operated an intercontinental commercial flight to Batavia (now Jakarta) in Indonesia, with seven passengers, using a Fokker F-VII. The long flight took several weeks and made more than twenty stops as it passed through the Mediterranean Sea, the Arabian Peninsula and across Asia — before finally reaching Jakarta.
Originally launched by the Dutch Government to maintain regular links between Amsterdam and its former colony of East Indies, KLM is one of the few airlines in the world still continuing uninterrupted using the original name since its founding. In 1958 KLM became the first airline in the world to introduce “economy class”
Several new international air routes began opening as governments continued to invest heavily on upgrading and expanding the civil air transport sector. Aircraft manufacturers were introducing commercial airliners with enhanced performance, passenger capacity and reliability, making long distance air travel more convenient and profitable.
The introduction of the twin radial piston engine driven Douglas DC-3 aircraft in 1935, was an epoch-making event in the history of modern aviation. With a passenger capacity of 32, the DC-3 revolutionised commercial air travel and had an enduring impact as a successful high-performance aircraft that dominated the global airline industry for an entire decade.
With the advent of World War II in 1939, many DC-3 Dakotas were supplied to the US Air Force and to the allied forces. Over 11,000 DC-3 aircraft variants were built from 1936 until towards the end of the war.
In 1938, Boeing introduced the four engine Boeing 307 Stratoliner capable of carrying up to 38 passengers
By 1945, new long range larger propeller driven airliners such as the Lockheed Super Constellation and the Boeing 377 Stratocruiser began providing luxury to the travellers. These cabin pressurised turboprop airliners were indeed the forerunners to the modern jetliners.
The British built Vickers Viscount was a four engine turboprop airliner that began operating successfully from July 1948, with British European Airways being the launch customer for the 65-passenger capacity, medium range aircraft. The turboprops were more fuel efficient and had better speed than piston engine aircraft, thus the Viscount proved to be a very popular and profitable aircraft with many airline customers. In all, about 444 Viscount aircraft were built during its successful long career.
In 1967, the author made his first flight — albeit a short hop, from Poona to Bombay, on the Viscount when he was a university student in India.
The Netherland built Fokker F-27 and its improved and stretched version the Fokker 50 and the British Hawker Siddeley HS-748 (Avro-748) were the other successful medium range 40–50 seat capacity turboprop airliners of the 1950s.
The next major advancement in modern commercial aviation was pioneered in Britain when in 1949, the de Havilland DH.106 Comet was introduced as the first passenger jet aircraft in the world. In May 1952, the British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) became the launch customer of the Comet and completed their successful inaugural flight from London to Johannesburg.
However, the early Comet models had structural failures due to metal fatigue and cabin pressurisation issues which resulted in several serious accidents. Within a year of the Comet entering airline service, three aircraft were lost in catastrophic accidents and several others grounded multiple times.The de Havilland engineers ultimately resolved these issues and the aircraft resumed normal operations. A total of 114 of these legendary aircraft were built including the first prototype models. With the successful new jetliners invading the industry, the demand for the Comet shrank significantly. In October 1969, some of the extensively modified Comets were introduced as maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare Nimrods with the British Royal Air Force.
In 1956, the twin engine Tupolev Tu-104 medium range jetliner entered commercial service with the Russian national carrier Aeroflot. The introduction of this advanced passenger jet surprised the Western nations, as the Soviet Union produced it at the peak of the cold war.
The next triumphant competitors to enter the market were the American built four engine Boeing -707, and the Douglas DC-8 — both narrow body long range airliners. The B707 prototype was built in 1954 and entered commercial service with Pan Am in October 1958 on the transatlantic New York- London route. Nearly 860 B707 aircraft were delivered to different airlines globally by 1978.
The Douglas Aircraft Company became prominent just before the dawn of the jet age with the production of its heavy lift military C-74 Globemaster. Subsequently in 1958, the Douglas DC-8 jetliner flew for the first time in May 1958 with United and Delta Airlines. With further modification and extra fuel tanks installed, the DC-8 flew nonstop on transatlantic crossings.
A uniquely striking feature of some popular short to medium range jetliners that followed the B -707 and the DC-8 were aircraft with aft mounted engines. The French Sud Aviation Caravelle, the Hawker Siddeley Trident , the Boeing 727 the British Vickers VC-10, the Dutch Fokker F28,the Douglas DC-9, the British Aircraft Corporation’s BAC One-Eleven and the Soviet Union Ilyushin IL-62, Tupolev Tu-154 and Tu-134 all had aft mounted engines — instead of wing mounted engines. The 60-seat capacity Caravelle which entered commercial service with Air France in 1955 is one of the most aesthetically designed aeroplanes. Indian Airlines operated the Caravelle during the 1960s. There was an increasing demand for these regional passenger jets at the time, as many regional airports did not have long runways or ground support equipment to handle larger aircraft.
The triple engine HS Trident was one of the jetliners in service with Air Ceylon operating on regional routes.
Indian Airlines Caravelle
Eventually, these models were superseded in the 1970s by wide-body Trijets such as the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 launched by American Airlines on 5th August 1971, the technologically advanced Lockheed L-1011 TriStar launched by Eastern Airlines on 26 April 1972 and the McDonnell Douglas MD-11 — a stretched version of the DC-10, launched in 1990.
Air Lanka TriStar L-1011
The aft mounted and wing mounted engines each have advantages and disadvantages. Under-wing engines provide easier access to service but are limited in size by the height of the landing gear. Aft-mounted engines require that the horizontal stabilizer be above the engines, usually resulting in a T-tail. There are some handling considerations with T-tail airplanes during stalls that must be addressed. Aft-mounted engines put a significant amount of weight aft, causing weight and balance considerations. Under-wing engines are near the center of lift of the wing. Occasionally, the wing distorts the airflow into the aft-mounted engines, causing compressor stalls. This does not happen on under-mounted engines.
Following the success of the first B707 and later the B727 trijet, Boeing launched a short range 150 seat twin engine airliner — the B737–200, in 1967. It was originally designed to compete with the rear engine aircraft models that were popular at the time. The B737 achieved unparalleled success and maintained a strong foothold in the airline market, delivering 10,700 aircraft globally, offering nine design variants with high tech features, new engines and other improvements as per customer requirements. Since the launching of its first successful B-707 in 1958, the Boeing Aircraft Company continued with its succession of 7x7 series — the latest being the Boeing 777-X long range twin engine wide-body airliner.
In May 2017, the fourth generation Boeing 737 Max was delivered to launch customer Malindo Air — a Malaysian domestic carrier owned by the Lion Air Group of Indonesia. In October 2018 a Lion Air B737-Max, on a domestic flight, crashed over the Java sea. On 10th March 2019 yet another B737-Max belonging to Ethiopian Airlines crashed in Nairobi Kenya killing all 157 on board. These two fatal events prompted the grounding of the B737-Max worldwide thus creating immense negative publicity and tarnishing the spectacular track record of Boeing.
On 22nd January 1970, the world’s first four engine Boeing 747–100 widebody double decker commercial service was launched by Pan American Airways. The revolutionary creation of this huge long-range aircraft was celebrated both in Washington and London. The aircraft was christened by the American First Lady Mrs. Patricia Nixon by spraying champagne on the nose of the B747. The inaugural flight was from Dulles Washington to London.
B-747 Inaugural flight
In December 1976, the former USSR’s first wide body four engine commercial passenger jet, the Ilyushin IL-Il86 entered commercial service with Aeroflot. It was the world’s second four engine wide body commercial jet. In the mid 1970s.
By the early 1980s, Boeing began to fall behind in being a technological leader. Boeing was losing ground with the emergence of Airbus Industries — a European Consortium. The entry of Airbus Industrie, with the A300 — the first twin engine wide-body aircraft in the world was a turning point. With the launch of the A300 with Air France on 23 May 1974, Airbus made remarkable strides to conquer the heavily American dominated airline market. Despite its excellent economic performance in comparison to other rival widebody aircraft at the time, the Airbus A300 was slow to be accepted by customers mostly because it was a new entrant to the market. However, with the introduction of the medium capacity A310 followed by the smaller A320 regional airliner, Airbus soon proved to be an instant success, slicing off a large chunk of the market.
The A310
With better operating economics in mind, the short to medium range Airbus A320 — the world’s first full fly-by-wire twin jet passenger aircraft was formally launched with Air France on the Paris-Dusseldorf-Berlin route on 18th April 1988. The fly-by-wire concept set the standard for future airliners and since its introduction the A 320 has offered 15,000 aircraft with different variants to over 300 customers.
The very first A320, registration F-GFKA, was delivered to Air France on 26th March 1988, seen here during the Le Bourget Air show in 1987.
The A320 Fly-By-Wire Flight Deck
Airbus Industrie Toulouse Blagnac airport
Meanwhile, in 1968 a new player entered the aviation arena. The four engine Tupolev Tu-144 — the world’s first long haul supersonic passenger airliner, of the former Soviet Union, flew for the first time on 31st December 1968. The Tu-144 is the first commercial transport aircraft to achieve Mach 2.00 speed in 1969, although the sound barrier was broken by the experimental military aircraft during the mid-forties. However, the Tu-144 project suffered a shattering setback on 3rd June 1973 when a Tu-144 crashed at the Paris Air show. The aircraft disintegrated while the pilot was trying to pull out of a steep dive during the demonstration flight.
The TU-144
A few months after the TU-144, the Anglo-French supersonic airliner — the Concorde — made its entry to the industry in March 1969. The sleek delta wing Concord service was inaugurated on 21st January 1976 with British Airways and Air France. Aviation enthusiasts worldwide were mesmerised by its cruising speed of Mach 2.04 which is twice the speed of sound. The flight time to complete the New York — London sector was approximately three and half hours. 20 Concorde aircraft were built of which 14 were operated by Air France and British Airways mostly on transatlantic routes. Sadly, the Anglo-French Concorde was never a long-term commercial success because of the exorbitant development costs. Its operations were further hampered due to route and noise restrictions, overflying restrictions imposed by some countries and decreasing revenues.
British Airways operated their last Concorde flight from New York City’s John F. Kennedy Airport to London’s Heathrow Airport on 24th October 2003 thus ending nearly three decades of supersonic air transport.
Singapore Airlines and British Airways began operations of a Concorde flight from London Heathrow to Singapore, but had to suspend these supersonic flights due to noise complaints from the government of Malaysia.
On 25 July 2000, while taking off from Paris on a flight to New York, the Air France Concorde ran over debris on the runway blowing a tyre, which threw chunks of tyre into the underside of the left wing and into the landing gear bay with great force, causing the aircraft to burst into flames. All 109 passengers and crew perished in the crash.
The entry of hundreds of large wide body aircraft with 300–400 passenger capacity brought vast changes and a previously unimagined array of services provided at all major airports. Air travel was no longer confined to the rich and affluent. It was affordable to all.
In order to harmonise the expanding commercial air travel, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) was established in April 1945 to regulate and support airlines worldwide.
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbas_ibn_Firnas
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alberto_Santos-Dumont
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Bl%C3%A9riot
The Zeppelin: An Illustrated History by Phil Carradice
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindenburg_disaster
Attrition in Air Warfare: Relationship with Doctrine, Strategy & Technology. Arun Kumar Tiwary. Page 56.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consolidated_PBY_Catalina
http://bite-software.co.uk/whittle-timeline/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan_Am
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sud_Aviation_Caravelle
How Airbus Surpassed Boeing: A Tale of Two Competitors; William Alexander Burns University of Tennessee — Knoxville accessed via https://trace.tennessee.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1284&context=utk_gradthes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbus
