The Fascinating History of Progress In Flight Speeds Distances And

Welcome to another journey through aviation history! In this article, we explore some incredible early developments in aeronautics.

Key Takeaways

• Progress in flight speeds, distances and materials technology slowed. This part of the century instead
• saw the spreading of the digital revolution both in flight avionics and in aircraft design

The Full Story

Progress in flight speeds, distances and materials technology slowed. This part of the century instead saw the spreading of the digital revolution both in flight avionics and in aircraft design and manufacturing techniques. In 1986, Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager flew an aircraft, the Rutan Voyager, around the world un-refuelled, and without landing. In 1999, Bertrand Piccard became the first person to circle the earth in a balloon. Digital fly-by-wire systems allow an aircraft to be designed with relaxed static stability. These systems were initially used to increase the manoeuvrability of military aircraft such as the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, however they are now being used to reduce drag on commercial airliners. The U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission was established in 1999 to encourage the broadest national and international participation in the celebration of 100 years of powered flight. It publicized and encouraged a number of programmes, projects and events intended to educate people about the history of aviation. == 21st century == Twenty-first-century aviation has seen increasing interest in fuel savings and fuel diversification, as well as low-cost airlines and facilities. Additionally, much of the developing world that did not have good access to air transport has been steadily adding aircraft and facilities; though severe congestion remains a problem in many up and coming nations. Around 20,000 city pairs are served by commercial aviation, up from less than 10,000 as recently as 1996. There appears to be newfound interest in returning to the supersonic era whereby waning demand in the turn of the 20th century made flights unprofitable, as well as the final commercial stoppage of the Concorde due to reduced demand following a fatal accident and rising costs. At the beginning of the 21st century, digital technology allowed subsonic military aviation to begin eliminating the pilot in favour of remotely operated or completely autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). In April 2001, the unmanned aircraft Global Hawk flew from Edwards AFB in the US to Australia non-stop and un-refuelled. This is the longest point-to-point flight ever undertaken by an unmanned aircraft and took 23 hours and 23 minutes. In October 2003, the first totally autonomous flight across the Atlantic by a computer-controlled model aircraft occurred. UAVs are now an established feature of modern warfare, carrying out pinpoint attacks under the control of a remote operator. Major disruptions to air travel in the 21st century included the closing of U.S. airspace due to the September 11 attacks, and the closing of most of European airspace after the 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull. In 2015, André Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard flew a record distance of 4,481 miles (7,211 km) from Nagoya, Japan, to Honolulu, Hawaii, in a solar-powered plane, Solar Impulse 2. The flight took nearly five days; during the nights the aircraft used its batteries and the potential energy gained during the day. On 14 July 2019, Frenchman Franky Zapata attracted worldwide attention when he participated at the Bastille Day military parade riding his invention, a jet-powered Flyboard Air. He

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This article was adapted from public domain historical archives to bring you accessible, plain English history.