Georges Théophile Legagneux (24 December 1882 in Puteaux – 6 July 1914 in Saumur) was a French aviator, the first person to fly an aircraft in several countries, and the first to fly a fixed wing aircraft higher than 10,000 and 20,000 feet.

Biography

Legagneux flew his Voisin Farman I biplane in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

on 23 April 1909. This was the first ever fixed wing aircraft flight in Austria. His flight on 29 July 1909 in Stockholm also marked the first flight in Sweden. On 15 September 1909, Legagneux flew his aircraft from

Khodynka Field Khodynka Field (russian: Ходынское поле, ''Khodynskoye pole'') is a large open space in the north-west of Moscow, at the beginning of the present day Leningradsky Prospect. It takes its name from the small Khodynka River which used ...

, near

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

. The five short flights he made were the first ever aircraft flights in Russia according to some sources, although other sources note a flight in Odessa (currently in Ukraine) on 25 July 1909 by a certain Van Der Schrouff. He flew again on the 19 September 1909, and then traveled to Odessa and

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

for further demonstrations. On 19 April 1910, he received French aviator license #55. Legagneux participated in the Angers-Saumur race of 6 June, 1910. This was the first aircraft race between two cities, with seven competitors, and was watched by 200,000 spectators. Legagneux flew a Sommer 1910 biplane, and was one of only three contestants to take off. He finished second in 36 minutes 45 seconds, some 5 minutes behind winner Robert Martinet. In August 1910, participating in the Circuit de l'Est on a Farman II biplane, he only managed to finish four of the six stages in the time limit, but he finished them all, achieving 3rd overall position (and the first on a biplane). At the Troyes stage, he was the only competitor to take to the air during the rest day, for the satisfaction of the public. At

Charleville-Mézières or ''Carolomacérienne'' , image flag=Flag of Charleville Mezieres.svg Charleville-Mézières () is a commune of northern France, capital of the Ardennes department, Grand Est. Charleville-Mézières is located on the banks of the river Meuse. ...

, he was the first to take off for the 4th stage, which a violent wind seemed to make impossible, and there he accomplished a "fantastic journey": he landed five times along the way, including one for lunch with Julien Mamet (who unfortunately broke a wheel of 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 fa ...

), and Legagneux was only prevented from reaching Douai within the time limit due lack of fuel. In the last stage, he took time to land along the way to invite himself to lunch, and took a short tour above Puteaux to greet his hometown. On 9 December 1910, he broke the altitude record set by

Ralph Johnstone Ralph Greenley Johnstone (September 18, 1880 – November 17, 1910) was the first American person to die while piloting an airplane that crashed. He and Archibald Hoxsey were known as the "heavenly twins" for their attempts to break altitud ...

on 27 October 1910. Johnstone had reached 8,471 feet, but starting from Pau Legagneux reached an altitude of 10,499 feet in his

. Legagneux reclaimed the world altitude record in December 1913, when he reached 20,079 feet (6,120 metres) in a

Nieuport Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars. History Beginnings Originally formed as Nieuport-Duplex in ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Legagneux, Georges French aviation record holders 1882 births 1914 deaths People from Puteaux Knights of the Legion of Honour Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in France Aviation pioneers