The Wright brothers were the first inventors who come up with an airplane design that incorporated a simple control system whereby a pilot could balance the craft in the air in the same manner a cyclist controls a bicycle on the road. At the beginning of the 20th century, the brothers started working on aircraft designs that were propelled by a gasoline engine (Wright Brothers Organization par 10). Design after design they worked on the configuration, propellers, engines and controls until they finally could fly a plane for over an hour. Their design became the first controllable airplane with a system capable of controlling the pitch, roll, and yaw (Wright Brothers Organization par 11).
In choosing to design a plane that was unstable, but controllable, the brothers developed an aircraft that rose and flew in a straight line using its power, the principle by which modern airplanes fly. Without the application of their unconventional principle, planes would still be flying like wobbly airships. Instead; they can now soar like birds. The Wright’s production designs became the template from which the aircraft designs that followed were created.
Radio and Aviation
The radio was another invention that had a revolutionary impact on the aviation industry. This invention was made after the Wright brothers had their first successful flight and Guglielmo Marconi had succeeded in establishing a successful two-way wireless communication between America and England (Brittain par 1). During the First World War, it was possible for pilots to communicate with people on the ground via radio. Later airlines used radio transmission to pass weather information to pilots, enabling them to avoid bad weather (Brittain par 3). The biggest radio inventions in aviation, however, were made by William Lear. He applied his knowledge of electronics to aviation and developed radio finders, navigation systems, and automatic controls.
The realization that radio could assist pilots in navigation was significant, particularly in instances of poor visibility where navigation aids such as beacons could not be used. Consequently, radio beacons were constructed, and they transmitted directional beams automatically helping pilots to reach their destinations by following them. The development of marker beacons made it possible to locate airports even when visibility was poor. Without Lear’s invention of radio navigation systems, navigation in aviation would still involve less reliable aids such as beacons. Also, without radio transmissions, communication between pilots and traffic control towers would be impossible.
Pressurized Cabin
The pressurized cabin was launched by the U.S Army Air Corps in 1937 using the Lockheed XC-35 (Larson par 1). It was the first plane that had pressurized capsules for both the crew and passengers. The pressurized cabin overcame the challenges that come with flying at high altitudes. Aviators had learned that at high altitudes the air was thin thus could not sustain them for long at altitudes of higher than 15,000 feet (Larson par 3). At such high heights, people would lose consciousness. Oxygen masks and pressure suits were initially used to beat this challenge.
This challenge was quite daunting for airlines as passengers were unwilling to wear the heavy pressure suits. The pressurized cabin innovation brought a breakthrough in passenger airlines because it was now possible to pump air into the plane as it flew higher, thus maintaining an atmosphere similar to the one at lower altitudes (Larson par 2). The pressurized cabin not only enabled airliners to fly higher and at high speed, but it also enabled them to avoid turbulence and storms associated with low altitudes.
Works Cited
Brittain, J. E. “William P. Lear and his contributions to radio and aviation.” Proceedings of the IEEE Volume 91. Issue 12 (2003). Web
Larson, George. “Flying in Comfort.” Air & Space Magazine November 2012. Web
Wright Brothers Organization. “The Wright Story” Accessed on March 7, 2016. http://www.wright-brothers.org/History_Wing/Wright_Story/Wright_Story_Intro/Wright_Story_Intro.htm
