HOW HUMANS LEARNED TO FLY

Leonardo da Vinci – one of the first people to study flight – is quoted as saying: “Once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the Earth with your eyes turned skyward.” Since the very first human flight over two centuries ago, aeronautical engineers have continued to scan the skies as they attempt to make each aircraft faster, safer, more comfortable and more efficient than the one before.

While many of the first people to study aviation were inspired by the natural flight of birds, the first substantial contributions to the field came when aircraft designers turned their focus away from the flapping motion of wings and towards more rigid structures. The first person to