The history of flight is the story, stretching over several centuries, of the development of heavier-than-air flying machines. Important landmarks along the way to the invention of the airplane include an understanding of the dynamic reaction of lifting surfaces (or wings), building reliable engines, and solving the problem of flight control.

Aerospace industry - History, Wright Brothers, World War I: The origin of the aerospace industry dates to 1903 when Wilbur and Orville Wright demonstrated an airplane capable of powered, sustained flight (see Wright flyer of 1903).

History of flight - Aviation Pioneers, Aircraft Design, Flight Records: Following World War I, a number of adventurous pilots began using airplanes for “utility aviation”—commercial photography, surveying, law enforcement, agricultural purposes such as seeding and crop dusting, and myriad other activities.

2024年12月24日 · By the 1920s the first small commercial airlines had begun to carry mail, and the increased speed and range of aircraft made possible the first nonstop flights over the world’s oceans, poles, and continents. In the 1930s more efficient monoplane (single-wing) aircraft with an all-metal fuselage (body) and a retractable undercarriage became ...

From the very invention of flight at the beginning of the 20th century, military aircraft and engines generally led the way, and commercial aviation followed. At first this was also the case in the jet age, which began with the invention of jet engines under military sponsorship in …

Airplane History. Humankind’s desire to rule the skies has been the driving force behind one of history’s greatest adventures. In prehistoric times dragonlike flying reptiles and later birds sailed through the air. When humans appeared on Earth, they probably watched and envied the birds flying in the sky.

In the 1700s and 1800s humans flew in lighter-than-air ships such as balloons, but not until 1903 did people build the first heavier-than-air craft—the airplane. The term airplane, which is often shortened to plane, usually refers to any type of power-driven aircraft that has fixed wings and is heavier than air.

History of flight - Propulsion, Aviation, Aeronautics: At the beginning of the 19th century, sustained powered heavier-than-air flight remained an impossibility because of the lack of suitable power plants.

2025年1月22日 · An airplane is any of a class of fixed-wing aircraft that is heavier than air, propelled by a screw propeller or a high-velocity jet, and supported by the dynamic reaction of the air against its wings. Learn more about the different types of …

An airplane’s essential components are the body or fuselage, a flight-sustaining wing system, stabilizing tail surfaces, altitude-control devices such as rudders, a thrust-providing power source, and a landing support system.