All About Planes

All About Planes — page 1 — UP AND AWAY People have always envied birds for their ability to ﬂy Stories of the ﬂight of humans and gods can be found in many myths of ancient civilizations In the 1700s humans were able to take to the air for the ﬁrst time The ﬁrst ﬂights used hot-air balloons In the 1800s humans ﬂew in lighter-than air ships such as airships and gliders Not until 1903 did two brothers in An airplane can quickly transport hundreds of people great distances 4

All About Planes — page 2 — North Carolina ﬂy the ﬁrst heavier-than-air craft the airplane An airplane or plane is a power-driven aircraft that has ﬁxed wings and is heavier than air An airplane moves through the air with the help of its engine and wings Today’s planes ﬂy at high speeds and great heights They quickly transport passengers mail and cargo around the world every day The military uses airplanes in many ways Air Force One carries the president of the United States all over the world Cargo is the goods or freight carried by ship train truck or airplane 5

All About Planes — page 3 — BIRTH OF AIR TRAVEL Before humans took to the air in planes they ﬂew in a variety of aircraft In 1783 the Montgolﬁer brothers in France made the ﬁrst balloon that could carry people high into the air Their balloon rose because they ﬁlled it with hot air which is lighter than unheated air The balloon carried the two brothers 5 5 miles 9 kilometers over Paris Henri Giffard of France made the world’s ﬁrst airship in 1852 He developed his aircraft from principles of ballooning The Early experiments with balloon ﬂight led to the development of the motor-powered airship and the airplane 6

All About Planes — page 4 — inventor built a long cigar shaped balloon and ﬁlled it with hydrogen a gas lighter than air He attached an engine that was powered by steam The pilot used a rudder to steer the craft The ﬁrst rigid airship with a body made of aluminum was built in Germany in 1897 Soon giant airships with gas engines ﬂew passengers across the Atlantic Ocean Henri Giffard ﬂew the world’s ﬁrst airship about 20 miles 32 kilometers from Paris France to a nearby city Early balloons simply floated with the wind How did this make them hard to fly Think About It 7

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