Man has long wanted to fly. He saw

Man has long wanted to fly. He saw birds, envied them and tried to imitate them. Over the ages countless attempts were made: men constructed wings,fastened them to their arms and legs and jumped off towers and hill tops. These "bird-men" flapped their wings for a short space of time and then fell to the ground. What was not realised in those early years was that birds have muscles very much stronger, in proportion to their size, than men. Human limbs cannot provide sufficient strength to lift the body off the ground. The secret of flight did not lie in the making of wings, but in discovering the right kind of power, and how to use it. In the 18th century, the invention of the hot-air balloon by the Montgolfier brothers of France was seen as a great step forward.In 1783, in the presence ofthe King and Queen, it took three passengers safely up intothe air and down again. They were sheep, a cock and a duck. Soon ballooning became a fashionable pastime. But balloons and the cigar-shaped airship, which was invented slightly later, did not solve the problem of flying because they had no means of power or control: their desi gners could not find an engine strong enough yet light enough to drive the aircraft. The airship went where the wind blew it, could lose height and could easily catch fire. As a means of passenger transport it turned out to be neither practical nor safe. So the difficulty remained: a true flying machine which was heavier than air ad capable of carrying people was still to be invented. Experiments were carried out in many countries, sometimes with models driven by steam engine, but these were too heavy to be used in an aeroplane with a pilot. The answer finally came at the beginning of this century with the invention of the internal combustion engine - the kind used in motor cars. Here at last was a powerful, yet comparatively light engine driven by petrol and capable of being fitted i nto an aeroplane. In 1903, two Americans, the brothers Wilbur andOrville Wright, flew a powered aeroplane forthefirst time. Their success encouraged designers everywhere. Although there were now newer, different probl ems, mainly to do with safety and the training of pilots, progress was rapid. These were exciting days and interest was intense. At Reims, in 1909, a crowd of a quarter of a million gathered at the first Aid Display, and saw thirty-eight different aircraft take part. The age of the aeroplane had arrived.