CHRONICLE OF AVIATION ACHIEVEMENTS.
How feeble the start, and how wondrously rapid the growth of the art
of flying! Nothing can better convey a full idea of its beginnings
and its progress than the recorded facts as given below. And these
facts show beyond dispute that the credit of laying the foundation for
every accomplishment in the entire record must be largely due to the
men whose names stand alone for years as the only aeroplanists in the
world--the Wright Brothers.
After the first flight on December 17, 1903, the Wrights worked
steadily toward improving their machines, and gaining a higher degree
of the art of balancing, without which even the most perfect machines
would be useless. Most of their experimenting having been done in
secret, the open record of their results from time to time is very
meagre. It may be noted, however, that for nearly three years no one
else made any records at all.
The next name to appear on the roll is that of Santos-Dumont, already
famous for his remarkable achievements in building and navigating
dirigible balloons, or airships. His first aeroplane flight was on
August 22, 1906, and was but little more than rising clear of the
ground.
It was nearly seven months later when Delagrange added his name to the
three then on the list of practical aviators. In about five months
Bleriot joined them, and in a few more weeks Farman had placed his name
on the roll. It is interesting to compare the insignificant figures of
the first flights of these men with their successive feats as they gain
in experience.
Up to October 19, 1907, the flights recorded had been made with
machines of the biplane type, but on that date, R. Esnault-Pelterie
made a few short flights with a monoplane. A month later Santos-Dumont
had gone over to the monoplane type, and the little group of seven had
been divided into two classes--five biplanists and two monoplanists.
On March 29, 1908, Delagrange started a new column in the record book
by taking a passenger up with him, in this case, Farman. They flew only
453 feet, but it was the beginning of passenger carrying.
During the first six months of 1908 only two more names were added to
the roll--Baldwin and McCurdy--both on the biplane side. On July 4,
1908, Curtiss comes into the circle with his first recorded flight,
in which he used a biplane of his own construction. The same day in
France, Bleriot changed to the ranks of the monoplane men, with a
flight measured in miles, instead of in feet. Two days later, Farman
advanced his distance record from 1.24 miles to 12.2 miles, and his
speed record from about 21 miles an hour to nearly 39 miles an hour. In
two days more, Delagrange had taken up the first woman passenger ever
carried on an aeroplane; and a month later, Captain L. F. Ferber had
made his first flights in public, and added his name to the growing
legion of the biplanists.
In the latter part of 1908, the Wrights seem to take possession of the
record--Orville in America, and Wilbur in Europe--surpassing their own
previous feats as well as those of others. Bleriot and Farman also
steadily advance their performances to a more distinguished level.
The record for 1909 starts off with three new names--Moore-Brabazon,
and Legagneux in France, and Cody in England. Richardson, Count de
Lambert, Calderara, Latham, Tissandier, Rougier, join the ranks of the
aviators before the year is half gone, and a few days later Sommer and
Paulhan add their names.
Of these only Latham flies the monoplane type of machine, but at the
Rheims tournament Delagrange appears as a monoplanist, increasing the
little group to four; but, with Le Blon added later, they perform some
of the most remarkable feats on record.
The contest at Rheims in August is a succession of record-breaking and
record-making achievements. But it is at Blackpool and Doncaster that
the most distinct progress of the year is marked, by the daring flights
of Le Blon and Latham in fierce gales. Spectators openly charged these
men with foolhardiness, but it was of the first importance that it
should be demonstrated that these delicately built machines can be
handled safely in the most turbulent weather; and the fact that it has
been done successfully will inspire every other aviator with a greater
degree of confidence in his ability to control his machine in whatever
untoward circumstances he may be placed. And such confidence is by far
the largest element in safe and successful flying.
NOTABLE AVIATION RECORDS TO CLOSE OF 1910
_December 17, 1903_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Kitty
Hawk, N. C., makes the first successful flight by man with
power-propelled machine, a distance of 852 feet, in 59 seconds.
_November 9, 1904_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Dayton, O.,
flies 3 miles in 4 minutes and 30 seconds. (He and Orville made
upward of 100 unrecorded flights in that year.)
_September 26, 1905_--Wilbur Wright with biplane “White Flier,”
at Dayton, O., flies 11 miles in 18 minutes and 9 seconds.
_September 29, 1905_--Orville Wright, with “White Flier,” at
Dayton, O., flies 12 miles in 19 minutes and 55 seconds.
_October 3, 1905_--Wilbur Wright, with “White Flier” at Dayton,
O., flies 15 miles in 25 minutes and 5 seconds.
_October 4, 1905_--Orville Wright with biplane “White Flier,” at
Dayton, O., flies 21 miles in 33 minutes and 17 seconds.
_October 5, 1905_--Wilbur Wright with “White Flier,” at Dayton,
O., flies 24 miles in 38 minutes. (He made many unrecorded
flights in that year.)
_August 22, 1906_--A. Santos-Dumont with biplane at Bagatelle,
France, made his first public flight with an aeroplane, hardly
more than rising clear of the ground.
_September 14, 1906_--Santos-Dumont with biplane, at Bagatelle,
flies for 8 seconds.
[Illustration: Santos-Dumont flying at Bagatelle in his cellular
biplane.]
_October 24, 1906_--Santos-Dumont with biplane, at Bagatelle,
flies 160 feet in 4 seconds.
_November 13, 1906_--Santos-Dumont with biplane, at Bagatelle,
flies 722 feet in 21 seconds. This feat is recorded as the first
aeroplane flight made in Europe.
_March 16, 1907_--Leon Delagrange with first Voisin biplane, at
Bagatelle, flies 30 feet.
_August 6, 1907_--Louis Bleriot with a Langley machine, at Issy,
France, flies 470 feet.
_October 15, 1907_--Henry Farman with biplane, at Issy, flies 937
feet in 21 seconds.
_October 19, 1907_--R. Esnault-Pelterie with monoplane, at Buc,
France, makes short flights.
_October 26, 1907_--Farman with biplane, at Issy, flies 2,529
feet in a half circle, in 52 seconds.
_November 17, 1907_--Santos-Dumont with biplane, at Issy, makes
several short flights, the longest being about 500 feet.
_November 21, 1907_--Santos-Dumont with monoplane at Bagatelle,
makes several short flights, the longest being about 400 feet.
_January 13, 1908_--Farman with biplane, at Issy, makes the
first flight in a circular course--3,279 feet in 1 minute and 28
seconds.
_March 12, 1908_--F. W. Baldwin with biplane “Red Wing,” at
Hammondsport, N. Y., flies 319 feet.
_March 21, 1908_--Farman with biplane, at Issy, flies 1.24 miles
in 3 minutes and 31 seconds.
_March 29, 1908_--Delagrange with biplane, at Ghent, Belgium,
makes first recorded flight with one passenger (Farman), 453 feet.
_April 11, 1908_--Delagrange with biplane at Issy, flies 2.43
miles in 6 minutes and 30 seconds, winning the Archdeacon cup.
_May 18, 1908_--J. A. D. McCurdy with biplane “White Wing” at
Hammondsport, flies 600 feet.
_May 27, 1908_--Delagrange with biplane, at Rome, in the presence
of the King of Italy, flies 7.9 miles in 15 minutes and 25
seconds.
[Illustration: The early Voisin biplane flown by Farman at Issy.]
_May 30, 1908_--Farman with biplane, at Ghent, flies 0.77 miles
with one passenger (Mr. Archdeacon).
_June 8, 1908_--Esnault-Pelterie with monoplane, at Buc, flies
0.75 miles, reaching an altitude of 100 feet.
_June 22, 1908_--Delagrange with biplane, at Milan, Italy, flies
10.5 miles in 16 minutes and 30 seconds.
_July 4, 1908_--Glenn H. Curtiss with biplane, at Hammondsport,
flies 5,090 feet, in 1 minute and 42 seconds, winning _Scientific
American_ cup.
[Illustration: The “June Bug” flown by Curtiss winning the _Scientific
American_ cup, July 4, 1908.]
_July 4, 1908_--Bleriot with monoplane, at Issy, flies 3.7 miles
in 5 minutes and 47 seconds, making several circles.
_July 6, 1908_--Farman in biplane, at Ghent, flies 12.2 miles in
19 minutes and 3 seconds, winning the Armengand prize.
_July 8, 1908_--Delagrange with biplane, at Turin, Italy, flies
500 feet with the first woman passenger ever carried on an
aeroplane--Mrs. Peltier.
_August 9, 1908_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Le Mans, France,
makes several short flights to prove the ease of control of his
machine.
_August 8, 1908_--L. F. Ferber with biplane, at Issy, makes first
trial flights.
_September 6, 1908_--Delagrange with biplane, at Issy, flies
15.2 miles in 29 minutes and 52 seconds, beating existing French
records.
_September 8, 1908_--Orville Wright with biplane, at Fort Myer,
Va., flies 40 miles in 1 hour and 2 minutes, rising to 100 feet.
_September 9, 10, 11, 1908_--Orville Wright with biplane, at
Fort Myer, makes several flights, increasing in duration from 57
minutes to 1 hour ten minutes and 24 seconds.
_September 12, 1908_--Orville Wright with biplane, at Fort Myer,
flies 50 miles in 1 hour, 14 minutes and 20 seconds, the longest
flight on record.
_September 12, 1908_--Orville Wright with biplane, at Fort Myer,
flies for 9 minutes and 6 seconds with one passenger (Major
Squier), making a new record.
_September 17, 1908_--Orville Wright with biplane, at Fort Myer,
flies 3 miles in 4 minutes, with Lieutenant Selfridge. The
machine fell: Selfridge was killed and Wright severely injured.
_September 19, 1908_--L. F. Ferber with biplane, at Issy, flies
1,640 feet.
_September 21, 1908_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Auvours,
flies 41 miles in 1 hour and 31 minutes.
_September 25, 1908_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Le Mans,
France, flies 11 minutes and 35 seconds, with one passenger,
making a new record.
_October 3, 1908_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Le Mans,
France, flies 55 minutes and 37 seconds, with one passenger,
making new record.
_October 6, 1908_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Le Mans, flies
1 hour 4 minutes and 26 seconds, with one passenger, breaking all
records.
_October 10, 1908_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Auvours,
flies 46 miles in 1 hour and 9 minutes, with one passenger (Mr.
Painleve). Also carried 35 others on different trips, one at a
time.
_October 21, 1908_--Bleriot with monoplane, at Toury, France,
flies 4.25 miles in 6 minutes and 40 seconds.
_October 30, 1908_--Farman with biplane at Chalons, France, makes
a flight across country to Rheims--17 miles in 20 minutes.
_October 31, 1908_--Farman with biplane, at Chalons, flies 23
minutes, reaching a height of 82 feet.
_October 31, 1908_--Bleriot with monoplane, at Toury, flies 8.7
miles to Artenay, in 11 minutes, lands, and returns to Toury.
_December 18, 1908_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Auvours,
flies 62 miles in 1 hour and 54 minutes, rising to 360
feet--making a world record.
_December 31, 1908_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Le Mans,
flies 76.5 miles in 2 hours 18 minutes and 53 seconds, making a
new world record, and winning the Michelin prize. The distance
traversed (unofficial) is claimed to have been actually over 100
miles.
_January 28, 1909_--Moore-Brabazon with biplane, at Chalons,
flies 3.1 miles, in practice with a Voison machine.
_February 14, 1909_--Legagneux with biplane, at Mourmelon,
France, flies 1.2 miles, and in a second flight of 6.2 miles (10
kilometres), traces two circles.
_February 22, 1909_--S. F. Cody with biplane, at Aldershot,
England, flies 1,200 feet in a 12-mile wind.
_February 23, 1909_--J. A. D. McCurdy, with the biplane “Silver
Dart,” at Baddeck, Cape Breton, flies 2,640 feet.
_February 24, 1909_--McCurdy, with the biplane “Silver Dart,” at
Baddeck, flies 4.5 miles.
_February 24, 1909_--Moore-Brabazon, with biplane, at Issy, flies
1.2 miles, tracing two circles.
_February 28, 1909_--Moore-Brabazon made several flights at Issy.
_March 8, 1909_--McCurdy, with biplane “Silver Dart,” at Baddeck,
made five flights, the longest about 8 miles in 11 minutes and 15
seconds.
_March 10, 1909_--Santos-Dumont, with monoplane “Libellule,” at
Bagatelle, flies 1,300 feet.
_March 11, 1909_--W. J. Richardson with a new form of aeroplane,
at Dayton, O., flies for 38 minutes, rising to a height of over
300 feet.
_March 11, 1909_--McCurdy with biplane “Silver Dart,” at Baddeck,
flies 19 miles in 22 minutes.
_March 17, 1909_--Count de Lambert (pupil of Wilbur Wright) made
his first flight alone in biplane, at Pau, France. He remained in
the air 3 minutes.
_March 18, 1909_--McCurdy, with biplane “Silver Dart,” at
Baddeck, flies 16 miles, completing a record of an even 1,000
miles in the air within a period of 10 months.
_March 18, 1909_--F. W. Baldwin with biplane “Silver Dart,” at
Baddeck, made a short flight.
_March 20, 1909_--Wilbur Wright, with biplane, at Pau, succeeds
in rising from the ground without the starting device previously
used. He makes several flights.
_March 24, 1909_--Count de Lambert with biplane, at Pau, flies
15.6 miles in 27 minutes and 11 seconds.
_April 10, 1909_--Santos-Dumont with monoplane “Demoiselle,” at
St. Cyr, France, flies 1.2 miles.
_April 13, 1909_--Count de Lambert with biplane, at Pau, flies
for 1 minute and 30 seconds, with one passenger (Leon Delagrange).
_April 16, 1909_--Wilbur Wright with biplane, at Rome, Italy,
made many flights, taking up many passengers, one at a time.
_April 27, 1909_--Legagneux with Voisin biplane, at Vienna, flies
2.5 miles in 3 minutes and 26 seconds.
_April 28, 1909_--Lieutenant Mario Calderara (pupil of Wilbur
Wright) with biplane, at Rome, made his first public flight,
remaining in the air 10 minutes.
_April 30, 1909_--Moore-Brabazon with biplane, in England, flies
4.5 miles.
_May 14, 1909_--S. F. Cody, with the army biplane, at Aldershot,
flies 1 mile.
_May 19, 1909_--Hubert Latham, with Antoinette monoplane, at
Chalons, flies 1,640 feet.
_May 20, 1909_--Paul Tissandier (pupil of Wilbur Wright) with
biplane at Pau, flies 35.7 miles.
_May 23, 1909_--Delagrange, with biplane, at Juvissy, flies 3.6
miles in 10 minutes and 18 seconds, winning the Lagatineri prize.
_May 23, 1909_--Henri Rougier, with biplane, at Juvissy, flies
18.6 miles (30 kilometres).
_May 30, 1909_--Bleriot, with monoplane at Issy, flies 8.7 miles.
_June 5, 1909_--Latham, with monoplane, at Chalons, flies for 1
hour 7 minutes and 37 seconds in wind and rain.
_June 6, 1909_--Latham, with monoplane, at Juvissy, flies 10
miles across country.
_June 12, 1909_--Latham, with monoplane, at Juvissy, flies 30
miles in 39 minutes, winning the Goupy prize.
_June 12, 1909_--Delagrange, with biplane, at Juvissy, makes
cross country flight of 3.7 miles.
_June 12, 1909_--Bleriot, with monoplane, at Juvissy, flies 984
feet, with two passengers--Santos-Dumont and Fournier.
_June 13 1909_--Ferber, with Voisin biplane, at Juvissy, flies
3.1 miles in 5 minutes and 30 seconds.
_June 19, 1909_--Santos-Dumont, with monoplane, at Issy, makes
several flights.
_July 4, 1909_--Roger Sommer with biplane, at Chalons, flies 3.75
miles on Farman machine.
_July 10, 1909_--Louis Paulhan, with biplane, at Douai, France,
makes his first flight--1.25 miles.
_July 13, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at Mineola, L. I., flies
1.5 miles in 3 minutes.
_July 13, 1909_--Bleriot, with monoplane, at Mondesir, makes a
flight of 26 miles across country in 44 minutes and 30 seconds.
_July 15, 1909_--Paulhan with biplane, at Douai, flies for 1
minute and 17 seconds, soaring to an altitude of 357 feet.
_July 17, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Fort Myer,
flies 16 minutes and 40 seconds, at a speed of 40 miles an hour.
_July 17, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at Mineola, makes 15
miles in 21 minutes, describing circles in both directions, as in
the figure 8.
_July 18, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at Hempstead Plains,
L. I., flies 29½ miles in 52 minutes and 30 seconds, a flight
exceeded only by the Wrights, in America, and Bleriot, Latham,
and Paulhan, in Europe.
_July 18, 1909_--Farman, with biplane, at Chalons, flies for 1
hour and 23 minutes, making his first long flight.
_July 18, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Chalons, makes his
longest flight--1 hour and 40 minutes.
_July 19, 1909_--Latham, with monoplane, at Calais, France, makes
his first attempt to cross the Channel to Dover. He flies 11
miles, and then his machine falls into the sea.
_July 19, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Douai, makes a
cross-country flight of 12.1 miles in 22 minutes and 53 seconds.
_July 20, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Fort Myer,
flies 1 hour and 20 minutes.
_July 21, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Fort Myer,
flies 1 hour and 29 minutes.
_July 21, 1909_--E. Lefebvre, with biplane, at La Haye, France,
flies 2 miles.
_July 21, 1909_--S. F. Cody, with biplane, at Aldershot, flies 4
miles.
_July 23, 1909_--Farman, with biplane, at Chalons, makes a
cross-country flight to Suippes--40 miles in 1 hour and five
minutes.
_July 23, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Douai, flies 43.5
miles in 1 hour 17 minutes and 19 seconds.
_July 24, 1909_--Curtiss in biplane, at Hempstead Plains, flies
25 miles in 52 minutes and 30 seconds, winning the _Scientific
American_ cup the second time.
_July 25, 1909_--Bleriot, with monoplane, at Calais, flies to
Dover, England, across the English Channel--32 miles in 37
minutes.
_July 27, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Fort Myer,
flies 1 hour and 13 minutes, with one passenger, securing
acceptance of Wright machine by U. S. Government on the duration
specifications.
_July 27, 1909_--Latham, with monoplane, at Calais, flies 20
miles in a second attempt to cross the English Channel. When near
Dover the machine fell.
_July 27, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Chalons, flies to
Vadenay and back--25 miles in 1 hour 23 minutes and 30 seconds.
_July 30, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Fort Myer,
established a world record with one passenger in a cross-country
flight to Shuter’s Hill and back--about 10 miles in 14 minutes
and 40 seconds, a speed of about 42 miles an hour--winning a
bonus of $25,000 from the U. S. Government.
_August 1, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Chalons, flies 1 hour
50 minutes and 30 seconds, at an average height of 80 feet, over
a distance estimated at 70 miles, surpassing all French records.
_August 2, 1909_--McCurdy, with a new type of machine, at
Petawawa, makes several flights.
_August 2, 1909_--F. W. Baldwin, with biplane, at Petawawa, makes
several short flights.
_August 2, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Chalons, flies to
Suippes--9 miles, at the rate of 45 miles an hour.
_August 4, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Chalons, in the effort
to beat Wilbur Wright’s record, flies for 2 hours 0 minutes and
10 seconds (Wright’s record flight was 2 hours 20 minutes and 23
seconds, made on December 31, 1908).
_August 5, 1909_--E. Bunau-Varilla, with Voisin biplane, at
Chalons, flies for 15 minutes.
_August 6, 1909_--Legagneux, with biplane, at Stockholm, flies
with one passenger, 3,280 feet.
_August 6, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Dunkerque, France,
flies for 18 minutes and 20 seconds, reaching an altitude of 200
feet.
_August 7, 1909_--Paulhan, with Voisin biplane, at Dunkerque,
flies 23 miles in 33 minutes.
_August 7, 1909_--Sommer, with Voisin biplane, at Chalons, flies
for 2 hours 27 minutes and 15 seconds, making new world record
for duration.
_August 13, 1909_--Charles F. Willard, with biplane, at Hempstead
Plains, made the longest cross-country flight on record for
America--about 12 miles in 19 minutes and 30 seconds. The
breaking of his engine caused him to come down. He landed without
mishap.
_August 22, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Rheims, France, flies
1 hour 19 minutes and 30 seconds.
_August 22, 1909_--Legagneux, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 6.2
miles in 9 minutes and 56 seconds, winning third prize for speed
over course of 10 kilometres.
_August 22, 1909_--Tissandier, with biplane, at Rheims, flies
18.6 miles in 29 minutes. (He won with this record the third
prize for speed over 30 kilometres.)
_August 22, 1909_--E. Bunau-Varilla, with biplane, at Rheims,
flies 6.2 miles in 13 minutes and 30 seconds. (With this
record he won the thirteenth prize for speed over course of 10
kilometres.)
_August 23, 1909_--Delagrange, with monoplane, at Rheims, flies
6.2 miles in 11 minutes and 4 seconds. (He won the tenth prize
for speed over 10 kilometres.)
_August 23, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 6.2
miles in 8 minutes and 35 seconds--a speed of 42.3 miles an
hour--beating the record for speed over course of 10 kilometres.
_August 23, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 18.6
miles in 38 minutes and 12 seconds, reaching an altitude of 295
feet.
_August 23, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 34.8
miles in an endurance test.
_August 25, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 82
miles in 2 hours 43 minutes and 25 seconds. (With this record he
won the third prize for duration of flight.)
_August 25, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 6.2
miles in 8 minutes and 44 seconds, again reducing the time for 10
kilometres.
_August 25, 1909_--Bleriot, with monoplane, at Rheims, flies 6.2
miles in 8 minutes and 4 seconds, making a new record for speed
over the course of 10 kilometres.
_August 26, 1909_--Curtiss, in biplane, at Rheims, flies 19 miles
in 29 minutes. (With this record he won the tenth prize for
duration of flight.)
_August 26, 1909_--Count de Lambert, with biplane, at Rheims,
flies 72 miles in 1 hour and 52 minutes. (With this record he won
the fourth prize for duration of flight.)
_August 26, 1909_--Latham, with monoplane, at Rheims, flies 96.5
miles in 2 hours 17 minutes and 21 seconds. (With this record he
won the second prize for duration of flight.)
_August 27, 1909_--Farman, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 112
miles in 3 hours 4 minutes and 57 seconds. (This record won for
him the first prize for duration of flight.)
[Illustration: Latham flying in his Antoinette at Rheims. To view this
properly the picture should be held overhead.]
_August 27, 1909_--Latham, with monoplane, at Rheims, flies to an
altitude of 508 feet. (With this record he won first prize for
altitude.)
_August 27, 1909_--Delagrange, with monoplane, at Rheims, flies
31 miles. (With this record he won the eighth prize for duration
of flight.)
_August 27, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 37
miles. He won the seventh prize for distance.
_August 27, 1909_--Tissandier, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 69
miles. (This record won for him the sixth prize for distance.)
_August 27, 1909_--Lefebvre, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 12.4
miles in 20 minutes and 47 seconds, exhibiting great daring and
skill. (He was fined for “recklessness.”)
_August 27, 1909_--Bleriot, with monoplane, at Rheims, flies 25
miles in 41 minutes. (This record won for him the ninth prize for
distance flown.)
_August 28, 1909_--Lefebvre, with biplane, at Rheims, makes a
spectacular flight for 11 minutes with one passenger.
_August 28, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 12.4
miles in 15 minutes and 56 seconds, winning the Gordon Bennett
cup.
_August 28, 1909_--Bleriot, with monoplane, at Rheims, flies 6.2
miles in 7 minutes and 48 seconds. (With this record he won the
first prize for speed over course of 10 kilometres.)
_August 29, 1909_--Farman, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 6.2
miles with two passengers, in 10 minutes and 30 seconds, winning
a prize.
_August 29. 1909--Curtiss, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 18.6
miles in 23 minutes and 30 seconds. (With this record he won the
first prize for speed over course of 30 kilometres.)
_August 29, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at Rheims, flies 6.2
miles in 7 minutes and 51 seconds, winning the second prize for
speed over course of 10 kilometres.
_August 29, 1909_--Rougier, with biplane, at Rheims, rises to a
height of 180 feet, winning the fourth prize for altitude.
_August 29, 1909_--E. Bunau-Varilla, with biplane, at Rheims,
flies 18.6 miles in 38 minutes and 31 seconds. (With this record
he won the eighth prize for speed over course of 30 kilometres.)
_August 29, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Berlin, makes
several short flights.
_August 29, 1909_--S. F. Cody, with biplane, at Aldershot, flies
10 miles with one passenger.
_September 4, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Berlin,
flies for 55 minutes.
_September 6, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Nancy, France,
flies 25 miles in 35 minutes. He takes up a number of passengers;
one at a time.
_September 7, 1909_--Lefebvre, with biplane, at Juvissy, is
killed by the breaking of his machine in the air after he had
flown 1,800 feet.
_September 8, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Berlin,
flies 17 minutes with one passenger--Captain Hildebrandt.
_September 8, 1909_--S. F. Cody, with biplane, at Aldershot,
flies to Farnborough and back--46 miles in 1 hour and 3 minutes.
This is the first recorded cross-country flight in England.
_September 9, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Berlin,
flies for 15 minutes with one passenger--Captain Englehardt.
_September 9, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Tournai, Belgium,
flies 12.4 miles in 17 minutes.
_September 9, 1909_--Rougier, with biplane, at Brescia, flies 12
minutes and 10 seconds, soaring to a height of 328 feet.
_September 10, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Nancy, flies 18
miles, accompanying troops on review.
_September 11, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Nancy, flies to
Lenoncourt--24 miles.
_September 11, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at Brescia, flies 31
miles in 49 minutes and 24 seconds, winning the first prize for
speed.
_September 12, 1909_--Rougier, with biplane, at Brescia, flies 31
miles in 1 hour 10 minutes and 18 seconds, soaring to a height of
380 feet.
_September 12, 1909_--Calderara, with biplane, at Brescia, flies
6.3 miles with one passenger, winning a prize.
_September 13, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Tournai, flies to
Taintiguies and back in 1 hour and 35 minutes.
_September 13, 1909_--Santos-Dumont, with monoplane, at St. Cyr,
France, flies 5 miles in 12 minutes, to Buc, to visit Maurice
Guffroy, on a bet of $200 that each would be the first to visit
the other.
_September 15, 1909_--Ferber, with biplane, at Boulogne, France,
flies to Wimeroux--6 miles in 9 minutes.
_September 15, 1909_--Calderara, with biplane, at Brescia, flies
5.6 miles with one passenger, winning the Oldofredi prize.
_September 17, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Berlin,
flies for 54 minutes and 26 seconds, rising to an altitude of
765 feet (estimated). He afterward flew for 47 minutes and 5
seconds with Captain Englehardt.
_September 17, 1909_--Santos-Dumont, with monoplane, at St. Cyr,
flies 10 miles in 16 minutes across country.
_September 17, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Ostend, Belgium,
flies 1.24 miles in 3 minutes and 16 seconds, along the water
front and out over the sea.
_September 18, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Berlin,
establishes a world record by flying for 1 hour 35 minutes and 47
seconds, with one passenger--Captain Englehardt.
_September 18, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Ostend, flies for
1 hour over sea front, circling over the water; winning a prize
of $5,000.
_September 20, 1909_--Rougier, with biplane, at Brescia, broke
the record for high flying by reaching an altitude of 645 feet
(official measurement).
_September 20, 1909_--Calderara, with biplane, at Brescia, flies
31 miles in 50 minutes and 51 seconds, winning the second prize
for speed.
_September 22, 1909_--Captain Ferber, with a biplane, at
Boulogne, flies 1 mile, when, his engine breaking in the air, his
machine falls and he is killed.
_September 25, 1909_--Wilbur Wright, with biplane, at New York,
flies from Governor’s Island around the Statue of Liberty.
_September 27, 1909_--Latham, in monoplane, at Berlin, flies 6.5
miles across country in 13 minutes.
_September 28, 1909_--Rougier, with biplane, at Berlin, flies 31
miles in 54 minutes, soaring to an altitude of 518 feet.
_September 29, 1909_--Latham in monoplane, at Berlin, flies 42
miles in 1 hour and 10 minutes, winning the second prize for
distance.
_September 29, 1909_--Rougier, with biplane, at Berlin, flies 48
miles in 1 hour and 35 minutes.
_September 29, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at New York, makes
flights about the harbor from Governor’s Island.
_September 30, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Berlin,
soars to a height of 902 feet, making a world record for altitude.
_September 30, 1909_--Latham, with monoplane, at Berlin, flies 51
miles in 1 hour and 23 minutes.
_October 1, 1909_--Rougier, with biplane, at Berlin, flies 80
miles in 2 hours and 38 minutes, winning the first prize for
distance and speed.
_October 2, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Berlin, makes
a flight of 10 minutes’ duration with the Crown Prince of Germany.
_October 3, 1909_--Farman, with biplane, at Berlin, flies 62
miles in 1 hour and 40 minutes, winning the third prize for
distance and speed.
_October 4, 1909_--Orville Wright, with biplane, at Berlin,
soared to an altitude of 1,600 feet, making a world record.
_October 4, 1909_--Wilbur Wright, with biplane, at New York,
flies from Governor’s Island to Grant’s Tomb and back--21 miles
in 33 minutes and 33 seconds.
_October 10, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at St. Louis, Mo.,
makes several flights at the Centennial celebration.
_October 10, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Pt. Aviation, flies
21.5 miles in 21 minutes and 48 seconds.
_October 12, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Pt. Aviation, flies
3.6 miles in 6 minutes and 11 seconds, winning the prize for
slowest flight.
_October 16, 1909_--Curtiss, with biplane, at Chicago, makes
exhibition flights at 45 miles per hour.
_October 16, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Doncaster, England,
flies 9.7 miles in 21 minutes and 45 seconds, making the record
for Great Britain.
_October 16, 1909_--Delagrange, with monoplane, at Doncaster,
flies 5.75 miles in 11 minutes and 25 seconds.
_October 16, 1909_--Cody, with biplane, at Doncaster, flies 3,000
feet, when his machine is wrecked, and he is injured.
_October 18, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Blackpool, England,
flies 14 miles in 25 minutes and 53 seconds.
_October 18, 1909_--Rougier, with biplane, at Blackpool, flies
17.7 miles in 24 minutes and 43 seconds, winning the second prize.
_October 18, 1909_--Farman, with biplane, at Blackpool, flies 14
miles in 23 minutes.
_October 18, 1909_--Le Blon, with monoplane, at Doncaster, flies
22 miles in 30 minutes, in a rainstorm, winning the Bradford cup.
_October 18, 1909_--Count de Lambert, with biplane, at Juvissy,
flies 31 miles to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and back, in 49
minutes and 39 seconds.
_October 19, 1909_--Le Blon, with monoplane, at Doncaster, flies
15 miles in a gale.
_October 19, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Blackpool, flies
15.7 miles in 32 minutes and 18 seconds, winning the third prize.
_October 20, 1909_--Farman, with biplane, at Blackpool, flies 47
miles in 1 hour, 32 minutes, and 16 seconds, winning the first
prize--$10,000.
_October 20, 1909_--Le Blon, with monoplane, at Doncaster, makes
a spectacular flight in a fierce gale.
_October 21, 1909_--Count de Lambert, with biplane, at Pt.
Aviation, flies 1.25 miles in 1 minute and 57 seconds, winning
prize of $3,000 for speed.
_October 22, 1909_--Latham, with monoplane, at Blackpool, flies
in a squally gale blowing from 30 to 50 miles an hour. When
headed into the wind the machine moved backward in relation to
points on the ground. Going before the wind, it passed points on
the ground at a speed of nearly 100 miles an hour. This flight,
twice around the course, is the most difficult feat accomplished
by any aviator up to this date.
_October 26, 1909_--Sommer, with biplane, at Doncaster, flies
29.7 miles in 44 minutes and 53 seconds, winning the Whitworth
cup.
_October 26, 1909_--Delagrange, with monoplane, at Doncaster,
flies 6 miles in 7 minutes and 36 seconds--a speed of over 50
miles an hour.
_October 30, 1909_--Moore-Brabazon, with biplane, at Shell Beach,
England, wins a prize of $5,000 for flight with a British machine.
_November 3, 1909_--Farman, with biplane, at Mourmelon, France,
flies 144 miles in 4 hours 6 minutes and 25 seconds, far
surpassing his previous best record of 112 miles in 3 hours 4
minutes and 57 seconds, made at Rheims, and winning the Michelin
cup for duration and distance.
_November 19, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Mourmelon, broke
the record for height by ascending to 1,170 feet, in a wind
blowing from 20 to 25 miles an hour.
_November 19, 1909_--Latham, with Antoinette monoplane, surpassed
Paulhan’s record by rising to an altitude of 1,333 feet.
_November 20, 1909_--Paulhan, with biplane, at Mourmelon, flies
to Chalons and back--37 miles in 55 minutes.
_December 1, 1909_--Latham, with monoplane, at Mourmelon, soars
to 1,500 feet in a 40-mile gale.
_December 30, 1909_--Delagrange, with monoplane, at Juvissy,
flies 124 miles in 2 hours and 32 minutes--an average speed of
48.9 miles per hour, surpassing all previous records.
_December 31, 1909_--Farman at Chartres, France, flies to
Orleans--42 miles in 50 minutes.
_December 31, 1909_--Maurice Farman, at Mourmelon, defending his
brother Henry’s record against competing aviators, flies 100
miles in 2 hours and 45 minutes, without a fault. The Michelin
cup remains in his brother’s possession.
_January 7, 1910_--Latham, with Antoinette monoplane, at Chalons,
rises to height of 3,281 feet (world’s record).
_January 10, 1910_--Opening of aviation meet at Los Angeles, Cal.
_January 12, 1910_--Paulhan, Farman biplane, at Los Angeles,
rises to height of 4,146 feet. (World’s record.)
_January 17, 1910_--Paulhan, Farman biplane, at Los Angeles,
flies 75 miles in 1 hour 58 minutes and 27⅖ seconds.
_February 7, 1910_--First flight in South America. Bregi, Voisin
biplane, makes two flights near Buenos Aires.
_February 7, 1910_--Duray, with Farman biplane, at Heliopolis,
Egypt, flies 5 kilometres in 4 minutes and 12⅘ seconds. (World’s
record.)
_April 8, 1910_--D. Kinet, with Farman biplane, at Mourmelon,
flies for 2 hours 19 minutes and 4⅖ seconds with passenger,
covering 102 miles. (World’s record for passenger flight.)
_April 11, 1910_--E. Jeannin, with Farman biplane, flies 2 hours
1 minute and 55 seconds, at Johannisthal. (German record.)
_April 15, 1910_--Opening of Nice meeting.
_April 17, 1910_--Paulhan, with Farman biplane, flies from
Chevilly to Arcis-sur-Aube, 118 miles. (Record cross-country
flight.)
_April 23, 1910_--Grahame-White, with Farman biplane, flies from
Park Royal, London, to Rugby (83 miles) in 2 hours and 1 minute.
Starting again in 55 minutes, flies to Whittington in 1 hour and
5 minutes.
_April 27, 1910_--Paulhan, with Farman biplane, starts from
Hendon, London, at 5.31 P. M., flies within 5 mile circle
and continues to Lichfield, arriving 8.10 P. M. (117 miles).
Grahame-White starts from Wormwood Scrubs, London, at 6.29 P.
M., flies to Roade, arriving 7.55 P. M. (60 miles).
_April 28, 1910_--Paulhan flies from Lichfield to within 5 miles
of Manchester, winning the £10,000 _Daily Mail_ prize.
_April 30, 1910_--Opening of meeting at Tours, France.
_May 1, 1910_--Opening of flying-week at Barcelona.
_May 3, 1910_--Wiencziers, with Antoinette monoplane, twice
circles the Strassburg cathedral.
_May 6, 1910_--Olieslagers, with Bleriot monoplane, makes flight
of 18 minutes and 20 seconds above the sea at Barcelona, and over
the fortress of Monjuich.
_May 13, 1910_--Engelhardt, with Wright biplane, at Berlin, flies
2 hours 21 minutes and 45 seconds. (German record.)
_May 15, 1910_--Kinet, with Farman biplane, flies 2 hours and 51
minutes with a passenger at Mourmelon, making the world’s record
for passenger flight.
_May 15, 1910_--Olieslagers, with Bleriot monoplane, flies 15
miles over the sea at Genoa.
_May 21, 1910_--M. de Lesseps, with Bleriot monoplane, flies
from Calais to Dover in 37 minutes, winning £500 prize offered by
M. M. Ruinart.
_May 28, 1910_--G. Curtiss, with Curtiss biplane, starts from
Albany at 7.03 A. M., flies to Poughkeepsie in 1 hour and 21
minutes (70 miles). Leaves Poughkeepsie at 9.24 A. M., flies to
Spuyten Duyvil in 1 hour and 11 minutes (67 miles). Rises again
at 11.45, flies over New York, landing on Governor’s Island at
12.03 P. M. Wins prize of $10,000 given by the New York _World_.
_June 2, 1910_--Rolls, with Short-Wright biplane, leaves Dover
at 6.30 P. M., crosses Channel to French coast near Calais (7.15
P. M.), without landing re-crosses Channel to Dover, flies over
harbor, circles Dover Castle, and lands at 8.10 P. M. Wins second
Ruinart prize of £80.
_June 14, 1910_--Brookins, with Wright biplane, at Indianapolis,
reaches height of 4,380 feet. (World’s record.)
_June 25, 1910_--In Italian Parliament 25 million lire (about
$5,000,000) voted for aviation in the extraordinary estimates of
the Ministry of War.
_June 26, 1910_--Dickson, with Farman biplane, at Rouen, wins
total distance prize of £2,000 and the £400 for longest unbroken
flight. Distance flown, 466 miles.
_June 27, 1910_--M. de Lesseps, with Bleriot monoplane, flies
over Montreal for 49 minutes, covering about 30 miles at height
generally of 2,000 feet.
_July 6, 1910_--First German military aeroplane makes maiden
cross-country flight over Doeberitz.
_July 26, 1910_--M. de Lesseps, with Bleriot monoplane, starting
from Ile de Gros Bois in the St. Lawrence, makes trip of 40 miles
in 37 minutes.
_August 1, 1910_--Henry Farman takes up three passengers at
Mourmelon for 1 hour and 4 minutes.
_August 5, 1910_--Chavez, with Bleriot monoplane, attains height
of 5,750 feet. World’s record.
_August 7, 1910_--Lieutenants Cammerman and Villerme fly together
from Mourmelon to Nancy, 125 miles in 2½ hours, with a Farman
biplane.
_August 11, 1910_--Drexel, with Bleriot monoplane, at Lanark,
beats the world’s record for height, rising 6,600 feet.
_August 27, 1910_--First wireless telegram from a flying
aeroplane, sent by McCurdy from a Curtiss machine in the air,
at Atlantic City, N. J. The sending key was attached to the
steering wheel.
_August 28, 1910_--Dufaux, with biplane constructed by himself,
flies over Lake Geneva, wins prize of £200 offered by Swiss Aero
Club.
_August 29, 1910_--Breguet, with Breguet monoplane, makes a
flight at Lille, France, carrying five passengers, establishing
world’s record for passenger flight.
_August 29, 1910_--Morane, with Bleriot monoplane, at Havre,
beats world’s altitude record, reaches height of 7,166 feet.
_September 2, 1910_--Mlle. Hélène Dutrieux flies with a passenger
from Ostend to Bruges, Belgium, and back to Ostend. At Bruges she
circled around the famous belfry at a height of 1,300 feet, the
chimes pealing in honor of the feat--the most wonderful flight so
far accomplished by a woman.
_September 3, 1910_--M. Bielovucci lands at Bordeaux, France,
having made the trip from Paris, 366 miles, inside of 48 hours.
The actual time in the air was 7 hours 6 minutes. Strong head
winds blew him backward, forcing a landing three times on the
way. This is the fourth longest cross-country flight on record,
and makes the world’s record for sustained speed over a long
distance.
[Illustration: Mlle. Hélène Dutrieux.]
_September 4, 1910_--Morane, at Havre, rises to height of 8,469
feet.
_September 7, 1910_--Weyman, with Farman biplane, flies from Buc
in attempt to reach the top of the Puy-de-Dôme, lands at Volvic,
5 miles from his destination. Establishes world’s record for
flight with passenger, having covered 139 miles without landing.
_September 28, 1910_--Chavez crosses the Alps on a Bleriot
monoplane from Brigue, in Switzerland, to Domodossola, in Italy,
flying over the Simplon Pass.
_October 1, 1910_--Henri Wynmalen, of Holland, with a biplane at
Mourmelon, France, rises to a height of 9,121 feet, making a new
world’s record for altitude.
_October 4, 1910_--Maurice Tabuteau recrossed the Pyrenees, in
his return trip from San Sebastian to Biarritz, without accident
or marked incident.
_October 5, 1910_--Leon Morane, the winner of nearly all the
contests in the English meets for 1910, fell with his monoplane
at Boissy St. Leger, during a contest for the Michelin cup, and
was seriously injured.
_October 8, 1910_--Archibald Hoxsey, with a biplane, makes the
longest continuous aeroplane flight recorded in America, between
Springfield, Ill., and St. Louis, Mo.--104 miles.
_October 12, 1910_--Alfred Leblanc, with monoplane, at St. Louis,
flies 13 miles in 10 minutes, a speed of 78 miles per hour.
It was not officially recorded, as a part of the distance was
outside of the prescribed course.
_October 14, 1910_--Grahame-White flies from the Bennings
Race Track 6 miles across the Potomac River to the Capitol at
Washington, circles the dome, and then circles the Washington
Monument, and finally alights with precision in Executive Street,
between the Executive Offices and the building of the State,
Army, and Navy Departments. After a brief call, he rose from the
narrow street--but 20 feet wider than his biplane--and returned
to the race track without untoward incident.
_October 16, 1910_--Wynmalen flies from Paris to Brussels, and
returns, with one passenger, within the elapsed time of 27 hours
50 minutes, winning two prizes amounting to $35,000. The distance
is 350 miles, and the actual time in the air was 15 hours 38
minutes.
_October 25, 1910_--J. Armstrong Drexel, with monoplane, at
Belmont Park, L. I., rises to height of 7,105 feet, breaking
previous records, and surpassing his own record of 6,600 feet,
made at Lanark, Scotland.
_October 26, 1910_--Ralph Johnstone, in biplane, at Belmont
Park, rises to the height of 7,313 feet, through sleet and snow,
breaking the new American record made by Drexel the day before.
_October 27, 1910_--Johnstone, with biplane, at Belmont Park,
rises to height of 8,471 feet, surpassing his own record of the
day before and establishing a new American record. The feat was
performed in a gale blowing nearly 60 miles per hour, and the
aviator was carried 55 miles away from his starting point before
he landed.
_October 28, 1910_--Tabuteau, with biplane, at Etampes, France,
makes a new world’s endurance record of 6 hours’ continuous
flight, covering a distance of 289 miles.
_October 29, 1910_--Grahame-White, with monoplane, at Belmont
Park, wins the International speed race over the distance of 62.1
miles, in 1 hour 1 minute 4⅗ seconds.
_October 29, 1910_--Leblanc, with monoplane, at Belmont Park,
makes a new world’s record for speed, reaching 70 miles per hour
during the International speed race. Through a lack of fuel he
lost the race to Grahame-White, after covering 59 miles in 52
minutes.
_October 30, 1910_--John B. Moisant, with monoplane, wins the
race from Belmont Park around the Statue of Liberty in New York
harbor, and the prize of $10,000. The distance is about 34 miles,
and Moisant covered it in 34 minutes 39 seconds.
_October 30, 1910_--James Radley, with monoplane, at Belmont
Park, wins the cross-country flight of 20 miles in 20 minutes 5
seconds.
_October 31, 1910_--Johnstone, with biplane, at Belmont Park,
rises to a height of 9,714 feet, breaking the previous world’s
record, made by Wynmalen on October 1.
_October 31, 1910_--Drexel, with monoplane, racing for altitude
with Johnstone, reaches a height of 8,370 feet.
_October 31, 1910_--Moisant, with monoplane, at Belmont Park,
wins the two-hour distance race with a record of 84 miles. His
next nearest competitor covered but 57 miles.
_November 14, 1910_--Eugene Ely, with biplane, flew from a
staging on the deck of the U. S. Cruiser _Birmingham_ 8 miles
to the shore near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay. The flight was
intended to end at the Norfolk Navy Yard, but an accident to the
propeller at starting forced Ely to make directly for the shore.
_November 17, 1910_--Ralph Johnstone, holder of the world’s
altitude record of 9,714 feet, was killed at Denver, Col., by a
fall with his biplane.
_November 23, 1910_--Drexel, at Philadelphia, reaches an altitude
of 9,970 feet, passing all other altitude records. Coming down he
made a straight glide of seven miles.
_December 2, 1910_--Charles K. Hamilton, at Memphis, Tenn., flies
4 miles in 3 minutes 1 second, a speed of 79.2 miles per hour.
This is a new world’s record.