Aviation, a Marvel of the Past, Present and Future
The history of powered, heavier than air flight is relatively brief. In just a little more than a hundred years the world has been fortunate to experience some truly remarkable aircraft, people and technology related to aviation. If there is one thing the history books teach us, it is that mankind is always striving to excel, adapt and advance. We live in a world where yesterday’s fantasies become today’s realities. Commercial passenger services, once thought to be impractical, now dominate the travel market thanks to the likes of legendary aircraft such as the Douglas DC-3 that paved the way by proving air travel could be safe and efficient. Designed in the late 50’s, Lockheed proved that speed and altitude records were not insurmountable when they designed and manufactured the SR-71 Blackbird. The Cessna 172 has proven that small airplanes can be reliable and has redefined what aeronautical endurance means. We have landed men on the surface of the moon and returned them safely thanks to the Apollo 11 mission and visionary leaders like John F. Kennedy. Over time, air travel has consistently become safer due to the development of technologies like autopilot. The ability to navigate the air is a tool that has greatly aided in the advancement of our modern world. One could argue aviation is directly responsible for the extent to which our society is developed today.
Commercial Passenger Aircraft
The Douglas DC-3
The Douglas DC-3 is easily one of the most iconic commercial aircraft platforms in history. This made selecting the DC-3 as the most significant commercial airplane in history simple. “[The DC-3] is universally recognized as the greatest airplane of its time. Some would argue that it is the greatest of all time” (DC-3 Commercial Transport, n.d.). This marvelous aircraft made its first flight on December 17, 1935, roughly 82 years ago (DC-3 Commercial Transport, n.d.). The most significant fact about that is that a few hundred of them are still in use around the world, mostly for cargo runs. This is a clear indication of just how well this early airliner was built. From a history stand point, this is important because for many, flying was a scary thought, especially if the plane they were boarding did not have a proven reliability record. The DC-3 was a triumph of reliability and sound craftsmanship. “In 1934, the year before the introduction of the DC-3, a flight from New York to Los Angeles was a grueling ordeal, typically requiring 25 hours, more than one airline, at least two changes of planes and as many as 15 stops or so. Now, a single plane could cross the country, usually stopping only three times to refuel (Burke, 2013).” This is yet another reason that the DC-3 is the most significant commercial airplane of all time. It revolutionized air travel by making it much more practical. The DC-3 truly is a legendary aircraft. Its historic value would take a novel to address. Its ability to significantly shorten long distance flights, remain reliable over eight decades, and most importantly, to make flying practical which led to airlines generating profit, are a few of the reasons this may always be the most significant commercial aircraft ever to be built.
Military Aircraft
The SR-71 Blackbird
The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird truly is an amazing feat of engineering. It certainly looks like a something out of Star Wars. This very futuristic looking plane, however, was designed in 1957, 60 years ago (Beckhusen, 2016)! The demand for this aircraft accelerated after a U-2 spy plane piloted by Gary Powers was struck at 70,000 feet by a surface-to-air missile from Russia in early May of 1961 (U-2 Overflights and the Capture of Francis Gary Powers, 1960, n.d.). The missile impact disabled the aircraft and the pilot was forced to eject after falling to an altitude of 30,000 feet. Powers was subsequently captured after safely parachuting to the surface (U-2 Overflights and the Capture of Francis Gary Powers, 1960, n.d.). The vulnerabilities of the SR-71s predecessor were now evident. The Cold War intensity was growing and the CIA needed a spy plane that could fly higher and faster than any other airplane ever built. This was a challenging engineering undertaking. With speed comes heat. This ultrasonic plane needed to be capable of maintaining high altitude and speed for longer than just short bursts. It also needed to be very difficult to be seen by radar equipment. Lockheed definitely delivered with the SR-71 Blackbird. Nearly 52 years after its official introduction into the Air Force in 1966 the SR-71 still holds the official record for manned flight speed at 2,193.2 miles per hour, an astonishing Mach 3.3 (Creating The Blackbird, n.d.). It is a telling fact that for a half century this air craft has held this record. This plane deserves to be recognized as one of the most significant military aircraft ever build because it thoroughly depicts how advanced the United States had become in terms of technology and engineering by the 1950’s. On top of the speed record the SR-71 also holds the record for absolute altitude at 85,069 feet (Creating The Blackbird, n.d.). There are other aircraft that have exceeded this altitude when doing brief “zooms” to altitude but the SR-71 was able to maintain this impressive altitude the same day it broke the absolute the speed record. Although, due to the advance of unmanned aerial vehicles, the SR-71 was retired in 1998 by the Air Force and by NASA in 1999 it will always have its place in the history books. The SR-71 Blackbird in my opinion is the most significant aircraft is United States aviation history because it represented the strength of the United States in terms of technological advancements both in manufacturing and engineering (Creating The Blackbird, n.d.). The military had an invaluable piece of equipment in the SR-71. It performed its mission well for more than 30 years but its legacy will extend far passed that.
General Aviation Aircraft
The Cessna 172
The Cessna 172 is far from a stranger to the sky. This small airplane is beloved by its owners because it was well built, can be used for a multitude of purposes and it is easy to maintain. It is well known to members of the aviation community that the number of Cessna 172s built exceeds any other aircraft in history (Martin, 2015). Amassing 43,000 plus units and growing since its creation, this craft is unmatched in commonality (Martin, 2015). This is a testament to how popular and successful this small fixed-wing aircraft is. It is no surprise that in terms of general aviation, it is the most famous, most flown and greatest selling aircraft ever created (Clark, 2015). The Cessna 172 made its debut to the skies in June of 1955 as a variant of its sister plane, the tail dragging Cessna 170. Later it was decided that the new design varied enough from its sister plane that it was granted its own model number (Clark, 2015). Thus the Cessna 172 was born. Production began immediately and their first produced models sold in 1956 (Clark, 2015). At the time they sold for roughly $9,000 which today has the same buying power as $81,381.57 (Clark, 2015). This can be considered a pretty steep price. Even today $9,000 is a decent sum of money, but would be considered an unbelievable bargain for a new aircraft in 2017. It is an ideal aircraft to use for flight training for its reputation for reliability and safety. None of the technical specifications of the 172 will blow you away. It features a modest Continental 0-300 motor that produces a mere 145 horse power, it cruises at 125 miles per hour and can only reach a top speed of 6 miles per hour better than that. It clearly is not known for being a high performance machine (Clark, 2015). While it is not breaking many records for performance, the 172 holds one very impressive record for endurance. In 1958, the record for flight endurance was about to meet its match. Robert Timm and John Cook, in an effort to raise money for cancer research, set off on a flight that still stands in the record books as the longest in recorded history (Martin, 2015). Their modified Cessna 172 nicknamed Hacienda bested the previous record, set earlier in the same year by a different model 172 by more than two full weeks (Martin, 2015). Their time in the air amounted to a mind boggling 64 days, 22 hours and 19 minutes from the time they left the ground. This means these men stayed airborne for more than two months! It would be difficult to not consider this the ultimate display to the Cessna 172s reliability. To think the engine alone was running for 1,558 hours is surprising enough, let alone remembering this flight was manned! This small airplane has continued to be loved throughout its 61 years of existence. It is still manufactured today with no reasonable end in sight. The Cessna 172 is the most historically significant general aviation aircraft primarily for its versatility. The 172 even has proved useful for certain military operations. The 172 spent time as a trainer aircraft for the United States Air Force again because it is a sound, reliable aircraft (Clark, 2015). The U.S. border patrol uses 172s as surveillance vessels along the border between the continental United States and Mexico (Clark, 2015). This adds to the numerous examples of how useful this small plane is. Through many variations, the model 172, commonly referred to as the “Skyhawk,” has remained a maintainer’s dream. One could say this craft has aced the test of time. The Cessna 172 is known for being easy to maintain. There is, of course, routine maintenance as there is with just about any machine, but most 172s remain free of major troubles as one would hope for in a machine like an airplane where mechanical failure typically means catastrophe. Little has changed about the 172 through the years and multiple variations. The Cessna 172 is undoubtedly the most popular personal airplane in the sky today. Many believe it is the most significant general aviation aircraft ever built because it is reliable, highly versatile and relatively low maintenance.
Other Aircraft
The Apollo CSM-107/ Saturn V Rocket
There are few scientific achievements throughout all of human history that stand out in significance quite like landing two men safely upon the surface of the moon. This huge feat was accomplished by Neil Armstrong, mission commander and Buzz Aldrin, pilot of the Apollo 11 manned lunar landing mission (Loff, 2015). This is easily one of the most greatest accomplishments in aviation history and it sent the world a message that the United States was an aviation super power here on earth and now up to our nearest extraterritorial neighbor, the moon. This spacecraft was among the most special in history for its ability to survive the conditions and the distance between the earth and the moon and to involve and successfully navigate so much complexity in its phases of flight.
Space has captivated the imagination of mankind for as long as we know. We all have looked up to the night sky, dazzled by the moon and the stars. Dreams of traveling to these distant object in the sky for most of recorded time seemed like just a fantasy. The unfortunate truth is space is not welcoming to organic life. There is no oxygen in the vacuum of space, it is cold and it is very dark. It took a very carefully engineered craft to navigate the challenges of this unforgiving environment. The Apollo Command Module was just this craft. The 16th June in 1969 the Apollo CSM-107 launched from the Kennedy Space Center to joy, amazement and a hint of fear by the American people (Loff, 2015). The compartment that carried the passengers was a small pressurized aluminum container that at certain points had walls as thin as 0.25 inches (Command Module, n.d.). To think if these this wall were to breach it would likely have meant death for the crew is a scary concept. This inner capsule was surrounded by a protective outer shell that consisted of 0.5 up to 2.5 stainless steel (Command Module, n.d.). In between these two layers was an insulating material for extra protection against the heat that the outer shell would experience. 210 cubic feet was all the livable area that the crew of Apollo 11 were afforded (Command Module, n.d.). The spacecraft’s cabin provided the astronauts oxygen to breathe which is obviously necessary to life. This crafts ability to make space artificially habitable is what makes it so significant.
The Saturn V rocket is perhaps the most impressive ever built. In use from 1967 to 1973, this rocket was designed specifically for the Apollo missions with the ability to carry man deeper into space than ever before ventured, by rocketing the command module out of the grasp of Earth’s orbital gravity (Tate, 2012). This great rocket consisted of three stages. The first stage was basically what provided the bulk of the thrust that launched the entire Apollo 11 assembly more than 30 miles into the sky (Tate, 2012). After this violent burst the shell for the first stage separated and fell back to Earth, landing in the ocean (Tate, 2012). The second stage, S-II drove the craft through the upper atmosphere (Tate, 2012). The third and final phase of the Saturn V sequence, S-IVB was responsible for both placing the craft into orbit and also for setting the spacecraft’s trajectory on target to arrive at the moon (Tate, 2012). These stages of flight were executed flawlessly for the Apollo 11 mission. The most impressive fact, however, is that each of the three stages was designed by a different manufacturer. The first stage was made by Boeing, the second by North American Aviation and the final stage was designed by the Douglas Aircraft Company (Tate, 2012). What makes the Saturn V rocket the most significant in history is the fact that it was a cooperative effort to reach a goal that had never been achieved before and it worked perfectly.
Landing a man on the moon will forever live in the history books as a great milestone achievement. The Apollo 11 mission is immersed in intricacies far too complex to briefly state. This mission was a marvelous display of the United States aeronautical strength. Space is often considered the final frontier and the Apollo CSM-107 paired with Saturn V Rocket made man’s first visit to a body other than Earth possible. The Command Module’s ability to survive the dangers of space and the Saturn V seamless progression through a complex sequence of phases were key to mission success. Being the first craft to carry a human safely to the moon is this craft’s defining accolade, and it will live on in history because of this.
Influential Personality
JFK
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States of America, will forever have his name associated with aeronautical development in terms of space exploration. During his short presidency, President Kennedy devoted great attention to vastly expanding the United States space program. It’s a common human complex to want to be the best at something. The Russians had successfully placed a satellite named Sputnik into orbit and thus the space race had begun (Space Program , n.d.). This Russian achievement spurred the interest of the U.S. government and people to want to surpass their Soviet rival’s accomplishments. Kennedy knew that as the figure head of the country he was responsible for assessing how to out-duel our foe. Russia beat us with the first satellite placed in orbit and with the first manned orbit of the Earth. On May 25, 1961 Kennedy approached congress with a bold proposal (Space Program , n.d.). “I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth (Staff, 2011).” These words our former president said had profound impact. This statement alone lifted the spirits of the American people. This was not only a goal of Kennedy’s, it was a dream of his. Sadly, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas on November 11, 1963. However, 5 years later the result of what he set into motion, his dream, became reality. In the year 1969, the Apollo 11 mission safely landed two men on the surface of the moon and returned them safe to Earth (Loff, 2015). We had defeated the Russians in the space race and we had done it before the end of the decade as our fallen President had promised. John F. Kennedy can be argued to be the very most important person associated with the development of our space program. He empowered our space program to become the greatest in the world during that time by setting a goal that had never been achieved and debated with congress to provide the financial means to accomplish it.
Technology
Autopilot
Have you ever driven a car that did not offer cruise control as a feature? It can become quite bothersome very quickly. This is not much different of a concept from auto pilot in an aircraft. Autopilot is basically a system that allows the pilot to divert his or her attention to more complex aspects of flying by maintaining trajectory while the pilot’s hands are off the controls. This means that instead being required to constantly maintain a heading manually, the pilot can devote more attention to weather, position, altitude, the vital systems gauges, etc. The advent of autopilot is, in my opinion, a highly significant development in aviation technology because it allows the pilot to be more alert, making operation more efficient which in turn lessens likelihood of high altitude pilot error due to fatigue.
Early aircraft required constant attention to the control. Keen dedication to vigilance was a great quality for a pilot to possess; however, it often resulted in one negative side effect. Fatigue likely plagued the early skies. Strict attention to details and the constant roar of the mind numbing sound the engine produced made dozing off for a nap tempting to the mind. One of the largest milestones in aviation was the first successful transatlantic flight. Charles Lindbergh piloted his custom built long range aircraft named The Spirit of St. Louis approximately 3,500 miles spanning the distance between New York and Paris, France (Redd, 2012). This is a story that many have heard; the lesser known details of the story are what make it relevant to the hidden dangers of piloting. Lindbergh had to stay awake and alert for the entirety of his 33-hour flight in May of 1927. To make matters worse, he was also running on no sleep for 24 hours before his plane ever took off (Andrews, 2014). That is 57 hours in total that this pilot had to endure without sleep, while having to perform well under intense weather conditions and control a cold, cramped plane for a distance never flown uninterrupted before. Charles himself wrote later in a memoir upon reflection of this desolate journey, “My mind clicks on and off. I try letting one eyelid close at a time when I prop the other open with my will. But the effort is too much. Sleep is winning. My whole body argues dully that nothing, nothing life can attain is quite so desirable as sleep. My mind is losing resolution and control (Sumwalt, 2015).” The thought of a pilot performing under these conditions in modern times is unthinkable, frightening, and even unethical. If Lindbergh’s plane had been equipped with autopilot, his level of fatigue may not have been so great.
The history of autopilot dates back to not long after the rise of heavier than air flying machines in relative terms. In 1912 The Sperry Corporation created the first autopilot to be used in aircraft (Armagnac, 1930). The system used hydraulics to stabilize the controls allowing the aircraft in which they were installed to fly a straight line, steady and level course (Armagnac, 1930). This allowed the pilot to fly more defensively. The skies were instantly made safer from the creation of this technology, and over the years, autopilot has evolved as much as aircraft have. Modern autopilot systems are computer driven and control every aspect of flight aside from taxing to the runway and actually taking off (AFDS-770 Autopilot Flight Director System (Including Backdrive), n.d.). This means that during flight and even into the landing phases, pilot errors are now highly limited, making air travel safer. These systems also feature the added safe guard of redundancy, meaning that there are multiple computers individually calculating variables to prevent miscalculation. The redundancy also makes failure an unlikely event (AFDS-770 Autopilot Flight Director System (Including Backdrive), n.d.).
Autopilot is a very important technology associated with air travel. Statistics originating from studies conducted by organizations like the NTSB have shown that fatigue was a contributing factor to approximately 23 percent of 183 plane crashes investigated between 2000 and 2012 (Pope, 2014). If autopilot is able to limit just a fraction of these occurrences, then its significance cannot be ignored. Autopilot has greatly aided in pilots ability to be more aware in the sky. The skies are easier to navigate because of this technology and air travel is thus more efficient and most importantly safer.
In conclusion, in a short amount of historical time, the aerospace industry has advanced greatly. The history books are lined with revolutionary aircraft, people and technologies that have developed the aerospace industry into what it is today. The Douglas DC-3 can be argued to be the greatest airline ever built. The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird is still the fastest airplane ever built. The Cessna 172 is the most popular general aviation aircraft of all time. The Apollo 11 put man on the moon which is a landmark achievement for mankind in general, not to mention just within the aviation community. John F. Kennedy revolutionized and greatly expanded our space program. Lastly, autopilot has helped limit pilot fatigue. All of these are extremely significant to aviation. They will each individually have their place in history forever.