Flight is almost a universal human aspiration, at some point a in person’s life they will wish to elevate themselves physically above their environment. The Wright brothers invented and flew the first airplane in 1903, according to many online sources, it was recognized as 'the first sustained and controlled heavier-than-air powered flight.’ Airplanes are important because they are capable of transporting parcels as well as people to and from different destinations across the planet. Before the dawn of safe and convenient travel by airplane, journeys took much longer and were more difficult. The invention of airplanes did not come without trials and failures; however, over the years a lot has been done to perfect these machines and the industry by; henceforth becoming the safest form of transportation helping to propel us towards the future; even though, these inventions have harmed our planet on an environmental level.
Wilbur Wright was born on April 16th, 1867 in Millville, Indiana and his younger brother Orville Wright on August 19th, 1871 in Dayton, Ohio. The wright brothers were ambitious, career driven, and very innovative. A bright and studios child Wilbur excelled in school, with dreams of going to Yale University after high school. In 1885 an accident happened that would change the course of his life, plunged him into depression, and resulted in him not completing his high school diploma. Wilbur retreated to his family home. In 1889 the brothers started their own newspaper company, the West Side News. Wilbur edited the paper and Orville published it. The brothers also shared a passion for bicycles—a new craze that was sweeping the country. In 1892, Wilbur and Orville opened a bike shop, fixing bicycles and later selling their own designs. Within their spare time, the brothers became obsessed with another form of transportation, flying. Always working on different mechanical projects and keeping up with scientific research, the Wright brothers closely followed the research of German aviator Otto Lilienthal. When Lilienthal died in a glider crash, the brothers decided to start their own experiments with flight.
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It is very seldom in history to see anybody take such a complicated problem as the Wright brothers did and make such tremendous progress in a very brief time. In 1901 the brothers gathered all the aerodynamic data they needed to build a successful flying machine and flew the largest glider ever flown in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina however, many problems occurred, so they decided to build a wind tunnel based on Francis Wenham research to test a variety of wing shape and there effect on lift. In 1902 they built their last glider based on this data. They had identified a wing shape that was efficient, produced the expected lift, and engineered controls that were responsive, the glider would also use a trailing rudder for yaw enabling the brothers to navigate in all three dimensions. Following their success, the brothers moved on to powered flight. They needed a powerful yet light enough engine for their airplane, but no automobile could supply an engine that met their criteria, so they had to design and built their own engine. The flyer was designed in a biplane configuration. After two attempts to fly their new engine powered glider, one of which resulted a minor crash, Orville Wright successfully took the flyer on a twelve-second sustained flight on December 17, 1903, in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina This is first successful controlled powered and sustained heavier than air flight in history. On November 9, 1904, Wilbur Wright broke that record after flying for more than five minutes.
In the beginning flying was the providence of the true pioneers, as it became possible to buy an airplane, the brave, the rich, and the government became attracted too. Flying had become the ultimate adventure. It was not long before airplanes attracted the attention of the military. The Wright brothers received their first military contract in February 1908 from the United States government calling for an aircraft able to seat two persons, with speeds of up to forty miles per hour for a distance of one hundred and twenty-five miles. In June 1909 they delivered an aircraft that was listed “Airplane No. 1, Heavier-than-air Division, United States aerial fleet.” Orville Wright demonstrated the world’s first military aircraft to the United States Army. Wright was accompanied by lieutenant Frank Purdy Lahm; the aircraft flew for one hour and twelve minutes. Over the years these aircrafts have evolved from just planes with riffle or machine gun outlet into many different types, falling into three categories: fighter jets, which take control over specific air spaces destroying other enemy aircraft; bomber jets, which are heavier, larger and less maneuverable these aircrafts are used to attack surface targets, releasing bombs or missiles and attack aircraft, which operate a low altitudes and attack ground troops. Guilmartin, John F., and John W.R. Taylor. “Military Aircraft.” Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 31 Oct. 2018, https://www.britannica.com/technology/military-aircraft. Attempts to start airmail service had begun as early as 1912. Recommendations were made to Congress that year to appropriate $50,000 to start an experimental service. Many government permits were issued to make short exhibition flights with mail, but it was not until 1916 that enough funds were made available to begin scheduled operations. Advertisements for bids were issued but none was received. However, the war in Europe caused improvements in aircraft to be made rapidly, and in the fiscal year ending. Airmail really began on May 15, 1918, when the world’s first regularly scheduled airmail route was inaugurated under U.S. government auspices between New York and Washington, D.C. The distance of the route was 218 miles, and one round trip per day was made, six days a week. Army Air Service pilots flew the route until August 10, 1918, when the Post Office Department took over the entire operation with its own planes and pilots. In today’s world airmail is booming with large carriers owning Boeing’s 737 to transport mail and parcels across continents. On January 1, 1914, the first commercial flight took place in Florida, operating between St. Petersburg and Tampa, Fla. The first commercial aircraft was a small wooden aircraft that could only accommodate two persons. A hundred and five years later Commercial aircraft a now jet powered with more capacity to seat passengers, more luxurious, and more range. The aviation industry is one of the fastest growing industries with an estimated 4 billion passengers flew last year. These new fleet of aircraft are more powerful than ever and will help to usher in the new era of aviation.
Unless you’ve avoided television or the internet entirely over the past few years, it has been almost impossible to not be aware of the recent tragic airplane crashes, it’s enough to make even regular flyers wonder if flying is getting steadily less safe. If you look at the records, you’ll see that the airline industry actually as a good safety record despite the few high profile crashes we have heard about the industry is getting better not worst. When we were first introduced to airplanes they only had, a wooden air frame, propellers and an engine now they have been upgraded with technology that can assist the pilot in conducting a safe and smooth flight. According to the International Air Transport Association in 2015 there was one commercial jet accident per four million five hundred thousand flights this was in line with 2014 when the number was one accident per four million four hundred thousand flight and better than 2013 one accident per two million four hundred thousand flights. The Federal Aviation Administration is the agency of the United States Department of Transportation responsible for the regulation and oversight of civil aviation within the U.S., as well as operation and development of the National Airspace System. Their mission is to provide the safest, most efficient aerospace system in the world. They are different departments responsible for both the safety of the aircraft design and system and while the aircraft in airborne. The Air traffic Organization are the ones responsible to make sure aircraft collisions does nor happen. The aviation safety department protects the air space by inspecting, certifying and developing standard and policies that affects aircraft and their operators. At the beginning of all commercial flights the flight crew with inform passengers about the safety protocols and what to do if there is an emergency
Friends of the earth says commercial jet aircraft generates more pollution than all human activity in Africa. A single flight from New York to San Francisco or Europe creates two to three tons of green house causing gases. A Boeing 747 uses about one gallon of fuel per second or about five gallon per mile and they are about seven thousand flights over the United states at any given moment. The price has tumbled but air travel still comes at an environmental cost. Air pollutions from airplanes is set is raise by half in the next two decades, aircraft emissions of nitrogen oxide or nots are linked to lung damage and they have doubled since 1930 and are forecasted to rise 43% by 2035. Aircraft manufacturers have reduced their planes emission of nots in the last decade, by improving airplanes weight, fuel-efficiency and introducing biofuel but the improvements are coming too slowly. The United Nations aviation body forecasts that airplane emissions of carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas, will reach just over 900 million metric tons in 2018, and then triple by 2050. But the new research, from the International Council on Clean Transportation, found that emissions from global air travel may be increasing more than 1.5 times as fast as the U.N. estimate. The researchers analyzed nearly 40 million flights around the world last year. In order to proactively combat air pollution governing bodies will have to come to an agreement to either discontinue over-land short haul fights or set laws in place to have aircraft manufactures, manufacture biofuel airplanes. Since the introduction of planes their engines were always loud and got even louder in 1939 when jet engines were introduced. Jet engines were designed to act as a suction for air, once that air got in a combustion chamber will heat that air and releasing cause a great amount of thrust, moving the airplane forward. This process of combustion is very loud as the turbine spins. Over the years it has been a problem for people who live, work and go to school near airports. Some airports have a noise requirement to airplane and manufactures must meet the requirement.
The invention of airplanes is a engineering marvel despite the challenges success came quickly due to lesson learned from others and research; however, despite years of engineering to prefect these machines, they still pose a threat to out environment.
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