Maurice Alain Farman (21 March 1877 – 25 February 1964) was a British-French
Grand Prix motor racing
Grand Prix motor racing, a form of motorsport competition, has its roots in organised automobile racing that began in France as early as 1894. It quickly evolved from simple road races from one town to the next, to endurance tests for car an ...
champion, an
aviator
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...
, and an
aircraft manufacturer
An aerospace manufacturer is a company or individual involved in the various aspects of designing, building, testing, selling, and maintaining aircraft, aircraft parts, missiles, rockets, or spacecraft. Aerospace is a high technology industry.
...
and
design
A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...
er.
Biography
Born in Paris to English parents, he and his brothers
Richard
Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...
and
Henry Farman
Henri Farman (26 May 1874– 17 July 1958) was a British-French aviator and aircraft designer and manufacturer with his brother Maurice Farman. Before dedicating himself to aviation he gained fame as a sportsman, specifically in cycling and moto ...
were important pioneers of aviation in Europe.
A champion
tandem
Tandem, or in tandem, is an arrangement in which a team of machines, animals or people are lined up one behind another, all facing in the same direction.
The original use of the term in English was in ''tandem harness'', which is used for two ...
cyclist
Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...
with brother Henry, Maurice Farman began racing
Panhard
Panhard was a French motor vehicle manufacturer that began as one of the first makers of automobiles. It was a manufacturer of light tactical and military vehicles. Its final incarnation, now owned by Renault Trucks Defense, was formed ...
automobiles and won the 1901
Pau Grand Prix
The Pau Grand Prix (french: Grand Prix de Pau) is a motor race held in Pau, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department of southwestern France. The French Grand Prix was held at Pau in 1930, leading to the annual Pau Grand Prix being inaugurat ...
, the first race ever to be called a Grand Prix. In May 1902 he won the "Circuit du Nord" race from Paris to
Arras
Arras ( , ; pcd, Aro; historical nl, Atrecht ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department, which forms part of the regions of France, region of Hauts-de-France; before the regions of France#Reform and mergers of ...
and back. He also competed in that year's Paris to
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
race won by
Marcel Renault
Marcel Renault (14 May 1872 – 26 May 1903) was a French racing driver and industrialist, co-founder of the carmaker Renault. He was the brother of Louis and Fernand Renault.
Renault was born in Paris; he and his brothers jointly founded the ...
. However, Farman's interest quickly turned to powered flight and in 1908 he bought a
Voisin Voisin (French for "neighbour") may refer to:
Companies
*Avions Voisin, the French automobile company
:*Voisin Laboratoire, a car manufactured by Avions Voisin
*Voisin (aircraft), the French aircraft manufacturer
* Voisin, a Lyon-based chocolat ...
Model 4 biplane. In 1909 he set world's endurance and speed records. He soon began to manufacture
airplane
An airplane or aeroplane (informally plane) is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and wing configurations. The broad spe ...
s and in 1912 merged his business with his brother's aircraft company to give the
Farman Aviation Works
Farman Aviation Works (french: Avions Farman) was a French aircraft company founded and run by the brothers Richard Farman, Richard, Henri Farman, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 19 ...
. He was awarded Aviator's Certificate (Brevet) no. 6 by the
Aero-Club de France, issued on November 18, 1909.
Maurice Farman died in Paris in 1964.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Farman, Maurice
French male cyclists
French racing drivers
Grand Prix drivers
French aerospace engineers
French people of English descent
1877 births
1964 deaths
Racing drivers from Paris
Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery
French aviation record holders
Cyclists from Paris