History of Aviation

Otto Lilienthal

Otto Lilienthal was born on 23rd May 1848 in Germany. He studied maths and bird studies in Berlin and talked at public meetings about flight. In 1874 Lilienthal began to build models of flying machines. In 1881 he started a company building boilers and steam engines. He allowed workers in his business to share in the profits. He wrote a book called 'Bird Flight as a Basis for Aviation'.

In 1893 Lilienthal built a flapping wing machine driven by a motor based on the action of a bird's wing. He began to build gliders (an unpowered aircraft which uses rising currents of warm air to keep it in the air). Lilienthal became the top expert on gliders in Germany and gliding became a popular sport. Otto Lilienthal was killed on 10th August 1896 while he was flying one of his gliders in Berlin.

Otto Lilienthal and his flying machine

Anne Jakins (February, 2004)