Famous aviators of early 19th century

In the early 19th century many aviators and inventors contributed in developing the aviation system. Among them Charles Lindberg, Glenn Curtiss, Louis Bleriot, Orvil and Wilbur wright, Gabriel and Charles Voisin were the leading pioneers of aviation in the early 19th century.

Orville and Wilbur Wright

The first flight of wright brothers

Orville Wright was born in 1871. Wilbur was born in 1867. As young boys, the Wright Brothers watched birds and built and flew kites. After graduation from high school, the Brothers began racing and repairing bicycles. In 1892 they opened a bicycle shop. They later used the bicycle shop to work on their gliders and airplanes. After reading all they could find about flight, the Wright Brothers decided to build a glider. During their tests, they had problems controlling their glider. To solve these problems, the Wright Brothers build a wind tunnel. They also built their own engine and propellers. They needed a place where the wind was strong and steady to test their glider. The Weather Bureau suggested the sand dunes around Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. In the winter of 1903, the Wright Brothers returned to North Carolina with their airplane which they named the Flyer. On December 17, 1903, the Flyer flew successfully. This was the first controlled power flight of a heavier-than-air airplane in history. In 1908, the Wright Brothers signed a contract to conduct flight tests for the U.S. Army. The tests were successful and the Army bought one of their airplanes. Also in 1908, they started building airplanes in France.

Gabriel and Charles Voisin

Gabriel and Charles Voisin were among Europe's leading pioneer aviators. Gabriel began his formal aviation career in 1903 when he was engaged by a prominent French aeronautical promoter, Ernest Archdeacon, to build gliders for him. In 1905 Gabriel formed the first commercial aircraft manufacturing company in Europe with the soon-to-be famous Louis Blériot. Numerous disputes between the two quickly arose, however, and Voisin bought out Blériot's interest in the venture in 1906. Gabriel immediately reformed the company with his brother Charles, thus establishing the highly successful Appareils d'Aviation Les Frères Voisin. The firm's first truly successful airplane appeared in 1907. The classic Voisin pusher biplane design of 1907 was one of the most significant aircraft of the pre-World War I era.

Many of Europe's leading aviators flew the Voisin. On January 13, 1908, Henri Farman made the first one-kilometer circuit in Europe with a Voisin biplane, winning a 50,000-franc prize and much acclaim for the Voisin product. By 1912, Les Frères Voisin had produced more than 75 airplanes that were based on the simple and sturdy 1907 design.

Glenn curtiss

Curtiss’s aviation adventures began in 1907 when an engine designed and built by him was used to power the first successful American dirigible, the “California Arrow”. It wasn’t until May 1908 that Curtiss flew for the first time in an aircraft named the “White Wing”. That was followed by his success with an aircraft designed and built by him, called the “June Bug”. On July 4, 1908 Glenn Curtiss flew the June Bug into aviation history and was thereby established as America’s “foremost aviation pioneer.”Glenn Curtiss’s aviation accomplishments and contributions are too numerous to discuss here. But, examples of his genius are that he went on to become known as the Father of Naval Aviation, and the founder of the American Aircraft Industry.

Louis Blériot

His airplane was an Antoinette IV, an elegant tractor monoplane (in fact, with both engine and propeller in front) with an effective wing-warping system of control (though Latham was more comfortable with the ailerons with which the Antoinette was usually fitted), and with the Antoinette engine as the power plant. The plane and the engine were the work of a burly red-bearded engineer, Leon Levavasseur. The engine was a water-cooled V-8, meticulously crafted and able to produce 50 horsepower with a power-to-weight ratio of 1 to 4.

Charles Lindberg

While he was working at this job, he heard about a contest to be the first pilot to fly across the Atlantic Ocean between New York and Paris. Six pilots had already died trying to cross the Atlantic. Charles believed the best plane for the trip would be a one person, single engine airplane which the Ryan Company built for him. After 33 ½ hours of flying, he spotted Paris. Charles was the first person to cross the Atlantic Ocean alone in an airplane.