German Otto Lilienthal designed the first aircraft to be piloted by humans. He made several flights between 1891 and 1896. On one occasion, he lost his life when his plane crashed. Through his experiments, he pointed out the principles of flying and controlling the aircraft. Before him, in 1840, the Englishmen, William Henson and John Stringfellow, built an airplane with a steam engine.
Their airplane "Air Steam Carriage" served as an example for many constructors after them. The characteristics of this aircraft were: separate rudders for direction and altitude, wings made of canvas and wood that were set diagonally. It was powered by a light steam engine, the only one available at that time. He was driving two identical propellers. However, there is no official data that they flew.
The first officially successful flight of a manned heavier-than-air craft took place on December 17, 1903, near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, USA. The airplane "Flyer I" (Flyer I) constructed by brothers Wilbur and Orville Wright had two wings, upper and lower, height control used for climbing and diving, direction control used for turning. It was powered by its own light gasoline engine that was connected to two propellers. The pilot lay on the lower wing and steered. The result of this flight was three meters high and 12 seconds long. The pilot was Orville Wright. Three more flights were made that day, and the most successful and longest flight laste
d 59 seconds and covered a distance of 260 meters.
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