''L'Aviation Militaire'' (lit. "Military Aviation") was a book written by the French inventor

Clément Ader 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 o ...

and published in 1909 by the

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

publisher Berger-Levrault. The book was essentially based on ideas developed by Ader at the end of the 19th century, which were arranged in final form in 1907. It was hugely popular, and went through 10 editions in the five years between its publication and the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. ''L'Aviation Militaire'' is especially famous for its precise description of the concept of the modern

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and hangar facilities for supporting, arming, deploying and recovering carrier-based aircraft, shipborne aircraft. Typically it is the ...

with a flat flight deck, an island superstructure, deck elevators and a hangar bay. On the structure of the aircraft carrier: On stowage: On the technique of landing: The book received much attention, and the US

naval attaché A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, 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 ...

in Paris sent a report on his observations, before actual experiments took place in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

a year later ''L'Aviation Militaire'' was translated into English in 2003 by Lee Kennett for the

Air University Press Air University Press is a division of the Academic Services Directorate and housed under the Muir S. Fairchild Research Information Center of Air University, Maxwell AFB, Alabama. It publishes faculty and student research, academic journals, othe ...

, under the title ''Military Aviation''.

References

Bibliography

* Aerial warfare Aviation books 1909 books French non-fiction books {{aviation-book-stub