THE IDEA MEN

People dreamed of flying thousands of years before the Wright brothers found success near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. These dreamers, such as Leonardo da Vinci, studied birds flying and imagined how humans might do the same—if only they had wings. Other men developed a more hands-on approach to the topic. Early inventors made wings of cloth, glue, and feathers and tied these creations to their arms in an attempt to imitate nature.

- Christiann Dykstra

Almost 1,000 years ago, a monk named Brother Eilmer became obsessed with flying. Eilmer lived at the Abbey of Malmesbury in Wiltshire, England. He studied how birds flew and was sure he could become airborne, too. He made wings for himself. He stretched linen over a lightweight willow frame and carefully glued duck and chicken feathers onto the cloth. He then climbed the abbey’s tower and jumped. Instead of flying, Eilmer plunged to the ground below and was hurt badly.

Other “tower jumpers” kept trying to make flight a reality. They too made wings, hoping to catch the wind and take off in flight. Some would glide a few seconds before crashing.  Others were injured or fell directly to their deaths.

Two French brothers took a different approach to flying during the 1780s. Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier were papermakers. They got their idea after watching bits of wood and paper rise from the heat of their fireplace. They built a huge fabric balloon and attached a basket underneath. In September 1783, they put a sheep, a duck, and a rooster in the basket. Heated air raised the balloon up into the sky and then landed it safely in a nearby field. The animals made history as the first passengers of a hot-air balloon flight.