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First Hot Air Balloon
Invented by the Montgolfier Brothers in Annoy, France, the Montgolfier Balloon was the very first hot air balloon. It was made out of a giant piece of silk. When they heated the air under the balloon with a flame, they thought they had created a new gas and named it Montgolfier gas even though it was merely air. During its first flight it rose 6 562 feet into the air. -
First Successful Gliding Flights
Otto Lilienthal was a German-born pioneer of aviation who was known as the Glider King. He was the first person to make repeated and well-documented glider flights. A hand glider designed in 1891 consisted of a triangular control frame to steer. He always worked with his brother. -
First Successful Airplane
The first successful airplane that achieved sustained and controlled flight was built and flown by the Wright Brothers. It was constructed of ash covered muslin. With a weight of 274 kg. without any pilot, it flew for 12 seconds. -
Era of Powered Flight Launched
The Silver Dart built in 1909 made many successful flights in Hammondsport, New York. The structure of the Silver Dart was made of steel tube, bamboo, friction tape, wire and wood. Its engine produced about 35 horsepower -
Mail is Carried Coast to Coast for the First Time
Robert Leckie flies in a relay from Halifax to Vancouver and delivers mail. He learned to fly in Toronto and joined the Royal Naval Air Service in 1915. -
First Liquid-Propellant Rocket
Made by Robert H. Goddard, the first liquid-propellant rocket was very poorly known that it hardly had any influence on future technology. It was 3.4 metres in length and produced about 9 lbs. of thrust. It reached an altitude of 12 metres and a distance of 56 metres. With this, Goddard recognized that liquid propellants produce more energy than gunpowder and other solid fuels at the time. -
First Solo Transatlantic Flight
Charles A. Lindbergh completed the first non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean on his "Spirit of St. Louis". For his flight from New York to Paris, Charles A. Lindbergh won a prize of $25 000, offered by a New York hotel owner. He covered a distance of 5 810 km in 33.5 hours. -
Trans-Canada Airlines Opens
On April 10, 1937, the Trans-Canada Airlines Opens for business and starts with only 2, 10-passenger planes. In 1965, the named changed to Air Canada. -
First Aircraft to Fly Under Turbojet Power
The first turbojet powered aircraft was called the Heinkel He 178 built in Germany. It was first flown by Erich Warsitz. The aircraft was a success but speeds were limited to 598 kph. In 1936, a young engineer named Hans von Ohain suggested an idea to use the exhaust from a gas turbine for propulsion. Another person named Heinkel agreed to develop his design. -
First Aircraft to Travel at the Speed of Sound
The first aircraft to travel at the speed of sound was called the Bell X-1. Piloted by Capt. Charles E. Yeager, it reached a speed of 1.45 Mach. It was launched off the bomb bay of a Boeing B-29 and used its own engine to propel itself to the test flight height. An interesting design was that its fuselage was shaped like a .50 caliber bullet. -
First Artificial Satellite is Launched
Sputnik 1 was first artificial satellite to orbit Earth launched by the Soviet Union. The launched of this craft also started the Space Age. The craft traveled at a neck-breaking speed of 29 000 kph so it only takes 96.2 minutes to complete an orbit around the earth. The the mission duration of 3 months, it completed 1 440 orbits of the earth. -
First Spacecraft to Land Humans on the Moon
The Apollo 11 successfully landed humans on the Moon. It represented the victory of the United States in the Cold War Space Race against the Soviets to the Moon. It was launched in Florida on July 16 and landed on the Moon on July 20. The 3 person consisted of Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins and Neil Armstrong. -
First Artificial Satellite to Exit the Solar System
The Pioneer 10 was the first artificial satellite to go past the asteroid belt and make direct observations of Jupiter. There has been excessive radiation near the vicinity of Jupiter and the probe has suffered many instrument and communication problems. The last contact made with the Pioneer 10 was in 2003. In 2006 there was an attempt, but failed so there is no longer any communication. -
Personal Aircraft Available and Affordable
Civilians might have small, compact aircraft of their own as a solution to overpopulation and traffic. It will still take a while until such small and affordable flying devices can be made. -
Travel Around the World in Less Than 4 Hours
I predict that there will be aircraft that can carry you around the world in less than 4 hours in around the year 2050. It will take much more advance technology to propel an aircraft at such high speeds. -
Spacecraft Explores Outside Solar System
Very advanced communication methods will be required in order to send spacecraft to explore other parts of our galaxy and still be able to keep in touch with people on earth. You will also need strong materials to withstand the low pressure of space.
