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Aviation History
1958
1958 - 0007.PDF
FLIGHT, 3 January 1958 DREAM OR NIGHTMARE? Aviation and Mankind: Some New Angles on a Perennial Argument By MAURICE ALL WARD IN 1670 the Jesuit priest Francesco de Lana-Terzi put forwardthe world's first scientific suggestion for a practical flyingmachine. De Lana, as he is more simply known, was one of the most distinguished men of science of his day, and his"aerial-ship," as he called it, was designed to be raised by four large spheres, each twenty feet in diameter and made of wafer-thincopper. Twenty years previously Otton von Guericke had invented the air pump, with which some knowledge had been gainedregarding atmospheric pressure and the vacuum. On de Lana's boat die spheres were to be evacuated of all air on the suppositionthat, being thus made lighter than the surrounding air, they would rise in it. In practice the spheres would, of course, have collapsed underthe pressure of the surrounding atmosphere, even though de Lana suggested they should be round to avoid this possibility. Intiieory, however, the idea was sound and is, indeed, remarkable as the first logical approach to the balloon problem.Almost as remarkable as de Lana's design was his prophecy of the use to which, if made, his boat would probably be put: —"I do not foresee any other difficulties that could prevail against this invention, except one; but this seems the greatest of all. For Godwould surely never allow such a machine to be successful, since it would cause much disturbance among the civil and political govern-ments of mankind. Who can fail to see that no city would be proof against surprise, as the ship could at any time be brought above itssquares, or even the courtyards of its dwellings, and come to earth so that its crew could land. In the case of ships that sail the sea, theaerial ship could be made to descend from the upper air to the level of their sails so that the rigging could be cut. Or even without descend-ing so low, iron weights could be hurled down to wreck the ships and kill their crews; or the ships could be set on fire by fireballs andbombs. Not only ships, but houses, fortresses and cities could thus be destroyed, with the certainty that the airship would come to noharm, as the missiles could be thrown from a great height." De Lana's suggestion became fact in 1783 in the form of_ aMontgolfier hot-air balloon, and mankind made the first aerial voyage in the history of the world. The effect of this major eventon the people of the day can well be imagined. It was, naturally, acclaimed as a feat of supreme courage, as indeed it was. It was also hailed as an event which heralded "a new epoch oflife on earth." Tiberius Cavallo commented: "... a man elevated to such a height, into an immense space, by means altogether new,viewing under his feet, like a map, a vast tract of country with one of the greatest towns existing, the streets and environs of whichwere crowded with spectators, attentive to him alone, and all expressing in every possible manner their amusement, and theiranxiety. Reflect on the prospect . . . and the consequences; and Nightmare: De Lana's dream became fact on November 21, 1783, when a Montgolfier hot-air balloon made the first aerial voyage in history. Within ten years balloons were being used for war. This old print shows the Battle of Fleurus, 1794. De Lana's boat of 1670 was the world's first serious scientific suggestion for a practical flying machine. With the proposal the inventor made a remarkable prophecy that the "dream" might ultimately become a "nightmare." then see if your mind remains in a state of quiet indifference."But the new epoch did not materialize. It is significant that during the preliminary "tethered" trialsbefore the flight, armchair strategists of the time had already begun to suggest uses to which balloons could be put: observation,mapping, transport (including the carriage of materials to besieged cities)—and bombing! That such suggestions should be voicedso early during the development of a great invention led Horace Walpole to record: "I hope these new mechanic meteors will proveonly playthings for the learned and the idle, and not be converted into new engines of destruction to the human race, as is so oftenthe case of refinements or discoveries in science." FOR the last 287 years aviation has been playing a steadilyincreasing part in our lives. Has this impact been beneficial or harmful? Here Maurice Allward reviews in a controversial mannersome of the effects of the twin prongs afforded by aviation— speed and range. It was a vain hope. Within the short space of ten years theFrench Convention instituted the world's first air arm. One year afterwards aviation was at war, die first use of the balloon formilitary purposes being recorded on June 2, 1794, at Maubeuge. Many valuable observation ascents were made, particularly duringthe Battle of Fleurus on June 26, 1794. The military observer used a telescope and signalled to his ground forces with flags.From then onwards the balloon has been used in virtually every war, right up to the present time. Having seen some of their predictions materialize, dreamersthen put forward some very ambitious suggestions. For military attack, giant Montgolfiers, each carrying 3,000 soldiers, were pro-posed to enable Napoleon to over-pass the Royal Navy when he invaded England. A contemporary print on the same theme showsa Channel tunnel for underground attack, together widi a great fleet of French troop-carrying balloons. From the shores ofEngland rise a number of man-carrying kites, each supporting a defender firing blunderbusses at the invaders. Both these pro-posals, it seems, alarmed few people other than their own authors; so far as general society was concerned die impact of balloonswas slight. In particular, their military usage did little to change the localized character of war. * * * Heavier-than-air developments may be considered as beginningin 1804. In that year Sir George Caley produced a clean, modern- looking model glider, with an adjustable tail unit—die world's firstproper aeroplane. Nearly 100 years later Professor Samuel Pierpont Langley, head of die famous Smithsonian Institution in Washing-ton, flew a powered model three-quarters of a mile—the first successful powered aeroplane in history.In 1898 die United States went to war widi Cuba and, aldiough it was to be five years before man conquered die air in a heavier-than-air machine, an indication of what the world would do widi this priceless conquest was given by the invitation of PresidentMcKinley to Langley to: "construct a flying machine with possi- bilites as a weapon of war." Langley accepted, but—throughdamage caused by the launching catapult—just failed to produce the world's first real aeroplane.In the following year the Hague Peace Conference went on record to the effect that aircraft "present or projected, would notby international law be permitted to take a combatant part in war." The discharge of projectiles or explosives from the air wassolemnly prohibited; air vehicles were to be limited in use to "reconnaissance or equally passive r61es."On December 17, 1903, the ingenuity, tenacity and skill of the Wright brothers gave the world the first practicable aeroplane,sometimes claimed as the greatest scientific achievement of all
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