Since 1903, when the Wright Brothers flew the first aircraft, aviation has constantly been advancing. It didn’t matter if it was for military, commercial or private purposes. Ever since airplanes have existed, the main goal has been to produce the fastest, most fuel efficient aircraft. Whether it’s changing the design or using different parts, airline manufacturers are constantly advancing their planes. But there were always certain planes that stood out among the others. One of these was the Douglas DC-3, which impacted aviation history in the 20th century by becoming one of the fastest, safest, fuel efficient and innovative planes of its time.
In the beginning, there were only a few DC-3’s that were ordered but soon airlines bought more, and orders grew to one-hundred. “It soon became clear to Douglas that the DC-2 was already [obsolete], and that the DST/DC-3 production line would carry all Douglas’ commercial production” (Holden, 116,117). The DC-3 flabbergasted everyone. It took 3 hours and 55 minutes to get from New York to Chicago on a nonstop flight and took 4 hours 59 minutes on the way back. A train would take you eighteen hours then. 10,629 DC-3’s were produced by Douglas, 92% being military. Even today, many people have heard or know of the DC-3 because of its impact on aviation and how it changed the way people thought of airplanes. (Holden, 116, 117)
Back in the 1920’s when commercial aviation was a fairly new technology it was a slow business. In the 1930’s, the DC-3 was introduced and the airline industry started to become more profitable. The original DC-1 and its successor the DC-2 were both well known planes during their times. Since Douglas was well known for their prowess in engineering, American A...
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Henry Holden, Allen Campbell. DC-3/Dakota Historical Society. 1. N.p. n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2009.
This was definitely my best website by a landslide. Not only did it provide lots of information on my topic, but it was written by experts on the DC-3 from around the world. It even included a message board where you are able to ask questions from the creators of the site, as well as from aviation experts around the world.
Judy Rumerman. The Douglas DC-3. 1. N.p. n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2009.
It was a great one-time source. It included a page worth of information which allowed me to write two paragraphs. There was lots of information on the changes from the DC-2 to the DC-3. Those changes gave me ideas for paragraphs on the components of the DC-3.
By the end of World War I the world was beginning to realize the ability air combat presented. When World War II started planes became much more effective. Though still fabric covered, the aircraft were faster and more agile than the variants used in the Great War. In 1938, the first year of the Second World War, Curtiss unveiled their P-40 Warhawk. This aircraft was one of the best of its time and laid the foundation for modern aircraft engineering. But by 1940 the German Luftwaffe had begun to develop faster, long-ranged fighter-bombers. All current Allied aircraft could not keep up with the long range of the B-17 bombers who needed escort. In 1940, North American Aviation received an order from Britain requesting another shipment of
In today’s world, the use of airplanes in wars or in everyday life has become a part of how we live as human beings. Removing the air forces of the world is like taking a step back in time when wars were only fought on land or sea. WWI began only eleven short years after the Wright brothers achieved powered flight in 19031 and yet aircrafts were being used for surveillance and eventually combat purposes. It is understood that these aircrafts were primitive, but they laid down the foundation for what we know today as fighter jets. The Fokker Eindecker “revolutionized air combat by successfully employing a synchronized forward -firing machine gun mounted on the engine cowling”2. Because this airplane became the first to successfully use a synchronized machine gun, it allowed its pilots to become the first aerial combat tactitions3.
The history of flying dates back as early as the fifteenth century. A Renaissance man named Leonardo da Vinci introduced a flying machine known as the ornithopter. Da Vinci proposed the idea of a machine that had bird like flying capabilities. Today no ornithopters exist due to the restrictions of humans, and that the ornithopters just aren’t practical. During the eighteenth century a philosopher named Sir George Cayley had practical ideas of modern aircraft. Cayley never really designed any workable aircraft, but had many incredible ideas such as lift, thrust, and rigid wings to provide for lift. In the late nineteenth century the progress of aircraft picks up. Several designers such as Henson and Langley, both paved the way for the early 1900’s aircraft design. Two of the most important people in history of flight were the Wright Brothers. The Wright Brothers were given the nickname the “fathers of the heavier than air flying machine” for their numerous flights at their estate in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Orville and Wilbur Wright created a motor-powered biplane in which they established incredible feats of the time. The Wright Brothers perfected their design of the heavier than air flying ma...
Before this, the United States Air Corps was only comprised of 20,000 personnel and less than 2,000 planes, afterwards the Department of War made the Army Air Forces. It greatly grew after Pearl Harbor when the United States was thrusted into war. With the aid of military leadership from General Henry Arnold, the Army Air Force created one of the largest air armadas and took control over the aviation industry boosting the innovations of the aircrafts that were being produced. At its very peak of the war, the AAF was able to increase its personnel to 2.4 million and was then comprised of over 80,000 aircrafts.
Debunking the 9/11 Myths: Special Report - The Planes - Popularmechanics.com. (n.d.). Automotive Care, Home Improvement, Tools, DIY Tips - Popularmechanics.com. Retrieved April 26, 2010, from http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/military/news/debunking-911-myths-planes
Aviation was big during the 1920’s. The first airplanes that were developed were made of wood and canvas, they were later modernized and than made of an increasing amount of metal during this era. Airplanes were typically only used to carrying heavy loads and for wars, but during this era they were able to start taking passengers as well. It was only in 1927 that an airport terminal in the form of a waiting room and ticket-office for airplane passenger...
After World War II there was an excess of aircraft and trained pilots in the United States, which significantly increase in private and commercial flights. An increase in the use of private aircraft and large passenger planes meant an increase in the possibly of aircraft safety incidents. Even though safety measures had been put in place to tend to large number of aircraft in the skies, in late 1950’s there were two unfortunate accidents that finally led to legislation that would be a major change to the world of aviation that affects us even today. The introduction of the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 spurred several changes in aviation that eventually led to the creation of the Federal Aviation Administration.
NASA received a contract to build the shuttle on July 26, 1972 as a prototype named the Enterprise (Dunbar “Space Shuttle” 1). Construction began on March 25, 1975, in Rockwell International’s assembly plant in Palmdale, California, and was completed and ready for its first flight on April 12, 1981 (Dunbar “Space Shuttle” 1). The first reusable spacecraft was too heavy, weighing 178,000 pounds, and missing the necessary tools to assist with the construction of the International Space Station (Dunbar “Space Shuttle” 1). Columbia was still used to discover breakthroughs in science, though, and was renamed Columbia after the first American ship to travel around the earth and the Apollo eleven command module (Dunbar “Space Shuttle” 1). Columbia is also commonly referred to as OV-102, or Orbiter Vehicle-102 (Dunbar “Space Shuttle”, 1).
Following World War II and the jet engine technology that emerged largely toward its end, aerospace engineers knew well that the technology had great potential for use in the commercial aviation industry. The Comet was the first aircraft to utilize jet propulsion; however, its designers failed to consider the metallurgy of the aircraft’s materials under flight conditions or the consequences of their atypical window design. The aircraft was designed by Britain’s De Havilland Aircraft Company and entered service in May 1952. After a year of service, however, the design issues mentioned above resulted in the failure of several Comet aircraft. Extensive evaluations revealed that repeated pressurization stress on the aircraft’s main cabin had caused its structure to fail.
... source but it was valuable in my research in its own way. It helped me learn about the Cold War from a basic standpoint. I was able to learn about the entire structure from the military to politics and social impact. Communism in general is discussed thoroughly in this book and how that shaped the Cold War.
Planes have developed immensely through the years. The Wright brothers developed the first plane in 1903.
Few things escaped the shadow cast by World War II, and the aviation industry was no exception. For 60 wearisome months, United put aside its quest for growth and
The engineering section of aircraft manufacturing is quite old. It is characterized by a few firms that keep Rolls-Royce on its toes in terms of competition, like General Electric. The small number of firms can be justified by the high cost of starting of...
The trials and tribulations of flight have had their ups and downs over the course of history. From the many who failed to the few that conquered; the thought of flight has always astonished us all. The Wright brothers were the first to sustain flight and therefore are credited with the invention of the airplane. John Allen who wrote Aerodynamics: The Science of Air in Motion says, “The Wright Brothers were the supreme example of their time of men gifted with practical skill, theoretical knowledge and insight” (6). As we all know, the airplane has had thousands of designs since then, but for the most part the physics of flight has remained the same. As you can see, the failures that occurred while trying to fly only prove that flight is truly remarkable.
While sitting in Atlanta’s Hartsfield International Airport, one cannot help but to notice and feel an overwhelming dominant presence of one particular airline. Delta as we know it today, traces its roots way back to 1924. Huff Daland Dusters was founded as the world’s first aerial crop dusting organization. In 1928 the company became Delta Air Service, and the following year Delta carried its first passengers over a route stretching from Dallas, Texas to Jackson, Mississippi with stops in Shreveport and Monroe, Louisiana. In 1941, the company moved its headquarters from Monroe to Atlanta, Georgia.