Dream of flight Flashcards
Who were the very first to fly?
Chinese! First to fly in contraptions heavier than air.
Who was Eilmer of Malmesbury? What did he do?
- English monk from the 11th century
- Attached wings to himself, believed he would fly closer to god
- got paralyzed
Who was Henri Giffard? What could his invention do?
- French Engineer
- Achieved powered flight
- Hydrogen controllable, steam engine/propeller
- Could control down, left, right motion, but not so much up
Who was Clement Ader? What did he create? Was it successful?
- French engineer
- Created an engine/propeller that kind of looked like flying bats, had a mono-wing design
- Did not fly
Did Clement Ader ever build a successful flying machine?
Yes, eventually. Succeeded in takeoff but was not controlled well.
Who was David Schwarz? What did he create? What happened to him?
- Croatian inventor
- Created dirigible airship with internal combustion engine.
- He crashed and died
What did Schwarz’s widow do when he died?
Since she had no means of supporting herself she sold her husband’s plans to a stranger (Zeppelin)
Why were Zeppelins one of the worst technologies?
- Had basically rocket fuel paint (very flammable)
- Could carry very few people
- Flew at low altitudes
What was the Wright Brothers’ profession? What did the experiment with?
- Bicycle producers
- Experimented with wind tunnels.
What were the Wright brothers the first to do?
Attain controlled flight.
What was unique about the Wright Brothers approach to flight?
Took a scientific approach.
What were planes seen as from the very start?
War machines.
What were 3 innovations the Wright Brothers attained with their planes?
- Longer narrower wings which were slightly curved, better lift
- Control system, used two sticks
- Modern propeller
Who built the combustion engine for the Wright Brothers plane?
Charles Taylor, gifted mechanic.
How long was the first powered flight? What was it called?
About 12 seconds. Flyer 1.
What happened immediately after the Wright brothers invented the airplane?
Nobody was interested and no one cared, they got discouraged. Took their airplane to France.
How did the F.III (Flyer 3) fare?
Successfully, flew for over 1 hour. Sold to US army as first war plane.
What happened to the Wright brothers’ planes by the outbreak of WWI? Why?
Their airplanes became completely obsolete. Because of countless lawsuits, had no time to improve their designs.
Where did the most advanced aircraft at the time of WWI come out of? What was it called? What were some of its details?
Russia. Sikorsky S-22.
- First large passenger aircraft
- Converted to a bomber
- 4 engines
- Capable of 110 km/h
How did commercial flight start?
With a surplus of airplanes and pilots after WWI.
Who was Henri Coanda? What did he do?
- Romanian scientist
- Made first jet plane
What makes a jet special?
Has a fan creating thrust instead of a propeller.
Who was Frank Whittle? What happened to his designs after WWII?
- Member of the British air force.
- Started his own private company selling engines
- Designs were given to Russians after WWII.
What was a flaw in Frank Whittle’s design?
Had external burners. Air wasn’t going through core of engine, it was going around.
Who was Hans von Ohain? What did he do?
- German physicist
- Created HeS3 in 1935
- Would become model for all jet engines
What was the world’s first successful jet aircraft? Who made it?
The Heinkel He 178. Hans von Ohain.
What was the first jet fighter? What was significant about this?
German Me 262. Flew 100mi/hr faster than any allied aircraft.
Who were the first to experience speed of sound in flight?
Germans.
What is transonic speed?
Nose is supersonic, tail is subsonic, creates a shock wave.
Supersonic and subsonic airflows act together.
What is the coke bottle principle?
Engine needs to be in the shape of a coke bottle, it would guide air in such a wave that it eliminates shockwave effect.
What was the arrow Cf-105? Why was it built?
- A Canadian aircraft
- Government wanted airplane that could intercept Russian bombers in arctic.
What was a first about the arrow CF-105?
First aircraft powered by onboard computer. Would lock rocket onto its target.
Why was the Arrow cancelled and destroyed? At what stage of its production did this happen?
Final trials done, it was finished. Right at this moment government cancelled and said they should be building boats and home appliances.
Similar to Harrison and his clocks.
What was the SR-71 Blackbird? Who designed it? What was it built out of?
- The world’s fastest of all conventional airplanes to this day
- Kelly Johnson
- Titanium
How many rockets were aimed at blackbird and missed?
over 4100.
What is the limitation of the high speed aircraft?
- Human limitation. Humans can’t withstand the G forces of some of these super fast planes.
