The Antoinette VII was an early French aircraft, flown in 1909.

History

The VII was a further development of the Antoinette IV, with increased

engine An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power ...

power and using a

wing warping Wing warping was an early system for lateral (roll) control of a fixed-wing aircraft. The technique, used and patented by the Wright brothers, consisted of a system of pulleys and cables to twist the trailing edges of the wings in opposite direc ...

system implemented by Levavasseur for the Antoinette V in place of the Antoinette IV's

aileron An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement arou ...

s. With this aircraft, Levavasseur hoped that Antoinette test pilot

Hubert Latham Arthur Charles Hubert Latham (10 January 1883 – 25 June 1912) was a French aviation pioneer. He was the first person to attempt to cross the English Channel in an aeroplane. Due to engine failure during his first of two attempts to cross ...

would be able to make the crossing of the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" ( Cotentinais) or (Jèrriais), ( Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kan ...

that he had previously attempted in the Antoinette IV and claim the ''

Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...

'' prize then on offer. As it happened, the Antoinette VII's first flight took place on 25 July 1909, the same day that

Louis Blériot Louis Charles Joseph Blériot ( , also , ; 1 July 1872 – 1 August 1936) was a French aviator, inventor, and engineer. He developed the first practical headlamp for cars and established a profitable business manufacturing them, using much of th ...

succeeded in crossing the channel in his

Blériot XI The Blériot XI is a French aircraft of the pioneer era of aviation. The first example was used by Louis Blériot to make the first flight across the English Channel in a heavier-than-air aircraft, on 25 July 1909. This is one of the most fam ...

. Undaunted, Latham made the attempt anyway on 27 July. Unfortunately, the result was the same, with Latham making a forced landing this time within sight of the English coast only away. He and the aircraft were rescued by HMS ''Russell''. The following month, Latham flew the same aircraft at the ''

Grande Semaine d'Aviation de la Champagne The ''Grande Semaine d'Aviation de la Champagne'' was an 8-day aviation meeting held near Reims in France in 1909, so-named because it was sponsored by the major local champagne growers. It is celebrated as the first international public flying ev ...

'', winning the prize for altitude (155 m, 509 ft) and coming second in the contest for the fastest circuit, with a speed of 68.9 km/h, 42.8 mph

Specifications

References

* * ''World Aircraft Information Files.'' Brightstar Publishing: London. File 889 Sheet 63.

External links

Antoinette VII en Argentina
{{Antoinette aircraft and aero engines High-wing aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft 1900s French experimental aircraft 7 Aircraft first flown in 1909

History

Specifications

See also

References

External links