History Of Air Transport Industry

History of Air Transport Industry

The modern age in the history of air transportation began with the hot air balloon designed by the Montgolfier brothers in 1783, which was the first un-tethered human lighter-than-air flight. But the flights were limited as the balloon could only travel downwind. In 1784, a steerable balloon by Jean-Pierre Blanchard was the first human-powered dirigible. He crossed the English Channel in one in 1785. However, the concept of the modern airplane, as a fixed-wing flying machine with separate systems for lift, propulsion, and control was only set forth in 1799 by Sir George Cayley, as per the history of air transport. The first assisted take-off flight was in December 17, 1903 by the Wright Brothers, who are known to be the first to fly in a powered and controlled aircraft.

Following the new standards in the air transport history, there were extensive adoption of ailerons versus wing warping made aircraft which were much easier to control. At the start of World War I, only a decade later, heavier-than-air powered aircraft were used for investigation, artillery spotting, and even attacking against ground positions.

The history of air transportation reflects hoe following this, as designs grew larger and more reliable; the aircraft began to carry people and cargo. There were giant rigid airships transporting passengers and cargo over large distances. The German Zeppelin company became the best known manufacturers of these type of aircrafts in the air transport history. The most triumphant Zeppelin was the Graf Zeppelin, which flew over one million miles.

However with the advancement in the airplane design, the dominance of the Zeppelins in this period of history of air transport was soon to end. During the 1920s and 1930s there was huge progress in the field of aviation. The first airliner that was commercial carrying passengers exclusively was the Douglas DC-3. This began the modern era of passenger airline service ever since the origin of air transport. With the World War II, one also saw many towns and cities building airports. There were numerous qualified pilots available too. The first jet aircraft and the first liquid-fueled rockets brought many improvements to air transport.

After World War II, a boom was seen n general air transport, both private and commercial. Many inexpensive war-surplus transport and training aircraft became available and thousands of pilots were released from military service. Manufacturers like Cessna, Piper, and Beechcraft swelled their production to supply light aircraft for the new middle-class market. As the history of air transportation revelas, the first widely-used passenger jet was the Boeing 707 which was also the most economical.

Ever since the 1960s, the composite airframes have become lighter and quieter. The engines have become more competent. But the most significant lasting improvements have taken place in instrumentation and control, as we study the air transport history. The influx of solid-state electronics, the Global Positioning System, satellite communications have radically changed the cockpits of airliners. Small and powerful computers and LED displays help the pilots in navigating and viewing the terrain much more accurately, even at night or in low visibility.

In 2004, SpaceShipOne became the first privately funded aircraft to make a spaceflight. This has opened the likelihood of an aviation market competent of leaving the Earth's atmosphere.