Who was the first to fly?

Orville and Wilbur Wright may be the first two names to appear in your mind. But actually, the Wright brothers have been more than half a century behind.

Many pioneers have faced dangers from decades (even centuries) before to get people off the ground in many ways, from patting fake wings to trying to glide down from above. Cliff. But very few people are remembered or mentioned as often as the Wright brothers, the owner of the " airplane " - is the first motorized aircraft to make a complete flight.

They did it on December 17, 1903. The pilot was Orville, because Wilbur failed in his previous attempt. Wright's flight in the air lasted 12 seconds and traveled 36 meters. But that is not the first manned flight.

Glider has been used successfully for decades before.

The Wright brothers' achievements were sometimes mistakenly referred to as " the first motorized flight ", although that was controversial.

The bat wing device of Clément Ader, flew for the first time in 1890, 13 years before the Wright brothers.(Photo: ctie.monash.edu.au)

The first motorized flight was a steam balloon from Henri Giffard (pictured above) in 1852. On September 24 of that year, Giffard flew almost 27 km from Paris to Trappes at a speed of about 10 km / hours. Even so, this balloon can only be driven in windy conditions. And when the wind rises, it can only fly slowly.

In 1890, Clément Ader also traveled half the length of a football field on a bat-like device, considered by many to be the first manned-engine-heavier-than-air flight.

Thus, the Wright brothers' achievement is more reasonable, so it is called "The first manned flight-mounted engine - heavier than air and controlled".

Henri Giffard's steam-powered balloon (pictured above) in 1852, half a century before the Wright brothers.(Photo: Aboutfacts.net)