Ader Éole

The Ader Éole was an early steam-powered aircraft.

The "Éole" was named after the Greco-Roman wind god Aeolos. It was developed by Clément Ader in 1890. Unlike many early flying machines, the Éole did not attempt to fly by flapping its wings, but was to rely on the lift generated by its wings (mechanical copies of bat wings). Its steam engine was an unusually light weight design and drove a propeller at the front of the aircraft. The machine lacked means for the pilot to control the direction of flight.

On October 9 1890, the machine achieved a short flight of around 50 m (164 ft) at the Chateau d'Armainvilliers in Brie. It reached a height of around 20 cm (8 in). The poor power-to-weight ratio of the steam engine and bad weather were felt to limit the flying height achieved. Ader later claimed to have flown the Éole again in September 1891, this time to a distance of 100 m (328 ft), but this claim is less substantiated.

The "Éole" is considered by some to be the first true aeroplane, given that it left the ground under its own power and carried a person through the air for a short distance; and therefore consider the event of October 9 to be the first flight. However, the lack of directional control and the dead-end that steam-powered aircraft were doomed to reach weigh against these claims. Ader's proponents have claimed that the Wright's early airplanes required a catapult to take off, however the Wrights did not use a catapult for their first flights in 1903, though they did for many flights in 1904 and later.

Modern attempts to recreate and evaluate the craft have met with mixed results. A full-size replica built in 1990 at the "École Centrale Paris" crashed on its first flight, injuring its pilot and leading to the termination of the experiment. Scale models, however, have been successfully flown.

pecifications (Éole)

aircraft specifications
plane or copter?= plane
jet or prop?= prop
ref=
crew= one, pilot
capacity=
length main= 6.50 m
length alt= 21 ft 4 in
span main= 14 m
span alt= 45 ft 11 in
height main=
height alt=
area main= 28 m²
area alt= 301 ft²
airfoil=
empty weight main= 226 kg
empty weight alt= 497 lb
loaded weight main= 330 kg
loaded weight alt= 727 lb
useful load main=
useful load alt=
max takeoff weight main=
max takeoff weight alt=
more general=
engine (prop)=Ader
type of prop= alcohol-burning steam engine
number of props=1
power main= 15 kW
power alt= 20 hp
power original=
max speed main= 252 km/h
max speed alt= knots, 158 mph
cruise speed main=
cruise speed alt=
never exceed speed main=
never exceed speed alt=
stall speed main=
stall speed alt=
range main= 50 m
range alt= 164 ft
ceiling main= 20 cm
ceiling alt= 8 in
climb rate main=
climb rate alt=
loading main= 8 kg/m²
loading alt= 2.4 lb/ft²
thrust/weight=
power/mass main= 0.05 kW/kg
power/mass alt= 0.0000006 hp/lb
more performance=
armament=
avionics=

ee also

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