History of the Modern Airplane

  • The Wright Brothers Achieve Sustained Flight

    The Wright Brothers Achieve Sustained Flight
    The brothers completed four sustained flights with a powered, controlled airplane
  • First Take Off From a Ship

    Eugene Ely successfully takes off from a cruiser and lands on the Virgina shores
  • Gyrostabilizer Leads to Automatic Pilot

    Gyrostabilizer Leads to Automatic Pilot
    Lawrence Sperry uses a gyroscope to keep the plane stable, and flying in a straight line without human aid
  • National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics

  • Passenger Service Across the English Channel

    Passenger Service Across the English Channel
    First passenger service flights cross the English channel between London and Paris
  • First Non-stop Solo Flight Across Atlantic

  • First Modern Commercial Airliner

    First Modern Commercial Airliner
  • Jet Engines Designed

    British and German scientists worked independently of each other to each create their own successful jet engine
  • Sound Barrier Broken

    Sound Barrier Broken
  • Creation of Boeing 747

    Creation of Boeing 747
    One of the most popular airplane models, still used today!