Clément Ader (2 April 1841 – 3 May 1925) was a French inventor and engineer who was born near Toulouse in Muret, Haute-Garonne, and died in Toulouse. He is remembered primarily for his pioneering work in aviation. In 1870 he was also one of the pioneers in the sport of cycling in France.

Electrical and mechanical inventions

Ader was an innovator in both electrical and mechanical engineering. He originally studied electrical engineering, and in 1878 improved on the telephone invented by Alexander Graham Bell. After this he established the telephone network in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

in 1880. In 1881, he invented the

théâtrophone Théâtrophone ("the theatre phone") was a telephonic distribution system available in portions of Europe that allowed the subscribers to listen to opera and theatre performances over the telephone lines. The théâtrophone evolved from a Clément ...

, a system of telephonic transmission where listeners received a separate channel for each ear, enabling stereophonic perception of the actors on a set; it was this invention which gave the first stereo transmission of opera performances, over a distance of 2 miles (3 km) in 1881. In 1903, he devised a V8 engine for the Paris–Madrid race, but although three or four were produced, none was sold.

Aircraft prototypes

Following his work with V8 engines, Ader turned to the problem of mechanical flight and until the end of his life gave much time and money to this. Using the studies of Louis Pierre Mouillard (1834–1897) on the flight of birds, he constructed his first flying machine in 1886, the ''

Ader Éole The ''Ader Éole'', also called ''Avion'' (French for ''aeroplane''), was an early steam-powered aircraft developed by Clément Ader in the 1890s and named after the Greco-Roman wind god Aeolus. Design and development Unlike many early flying m ...

''. It was a bat-like design run by a lightweight steam engine of his own invention, with 4 cylinders with a

power rating In electrical engineering and mechanical engineering, the power rating of equipment is the highest power input allowed to flow through particular equipment. According to the particular discipline, the term ''power'' may refer to electrical or me ...

of , driving a four-blade propeller. The engine weighed . The wings had a span of . All-up weight was . On 9 October 1890 Ader attempted to fly the ''Éole''. Aviation historians give credit to this effort as a powered take-off and uncontrolled flight in ground effect of approximately at a height of approximately .Encyclopædia Britannica: Clément Ader
/ref> Ader also claimed credit for getting off the ground in the Éole. Ader began construction of a second aircraft he called the '' Avion II'', also referred to as the ''Zephyr'' or ''Éole II''. Most sources agree that work on this aircraft was never completed, and it was abandoned in favour of the ''Avion III''. Ader's later claim that he flew the ''Avion II'' in August 1892 for a distance of in

Satory Satory is an area south of Versailles in France. It is mostly known for its military camp, housing: * Weapon-testing facilities of Nexter Systems * Barracks and facilities for Gendarmerie including the GIGN headquarters and the Mobile Genda ...

near Paris, was never widely accepted. Clement Ader Avion French patent 205155 of 19 April 1890

Ader's progress attracted the interest of the minister of war,

Charles de Freycinet Charles Louis de Saulces de Freycinet (; 14 November 1828 – 14 May 1923) was a French statesman and four times Prime Minister during the Third Republic. He also served an important term as Minister of War (1888–1893). He belonged to the Opp ...

. With the backing of the French War Office, Ader developed and constructed the ''

Avion III The ''Avion III'' (sometimes referred to as the ''Aquilon'' or the ''Éole III'') was a steam-powered aircraft built by Clément Ader between 1892 and 1897, financed by the French War Office. Retaining the same bat-like configuration of the ...

''. It resembled an enormous bat made of linen and wood, with a wingspan, equipped with two four-bladed tractor propellers, each powered by a steam engine of . Using a circular track at Satory, Ader carried out taxiing trials on 12 October 1897 and two days later attempted a flight. After a short run the machine was caught by a gust of wind, slewed off the track, and came to a stop. After this the French army withdrew its funding, but kept the results secret. The commission released in November 1910 the official reports on Ader's attempted flights, stating that they were unsuccessful.

Book on aviation

Clément Ader remained an active proponent of the development of aviation. In 1909 he published '' L'Aviation Militaire'', a very popular book which went through 10 editions in the five years before the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. It is notable for its vision of aerial warfare and for its foreseeing the form of the modern aircraft carrier, with a flat flight deck, an island superstructure, deck elevators and a hangar bay. His idea for an aircraft carrier was relayed by the US

naval attaché A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It includ ...

in Paris and was followed by the first trials in the United States in November 1910.

Influence

Ader is still admired for his early powered flight efforts, and his aircraft gave the French language the word '' avion'' for a heavier-than-air aircraft. In 1938, France issued a postage stamp honoring him. Airbus named one of its aircraft assembly sites in Toulouse after him. Clément Ader has been referred to as "the father of aviation".

Notes

External links

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Clement Ader

Clement Ader's first flight in 1879 ?
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ader, Clement 1841 births 1925 deaths People from Muret Aviation pioneers Aircraft designers French aerospace engineers Aerial warfare pioneers Commandeurs of the Légion d'honneur