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SANTOS-DUMONT, Alberto bust near the Brazilian Embassy in Washington, D.C.
Alberto Santos-Dumont (1873 – 1932) was born and died in Brazil where he is honored as the "Father of Aviation" and considered to be the inventor of the airplane. He designed, built, and flew the first practical dirigible balloons and thereby became the 1st to demonstrate that routine, controlled flight was possible. This made him one of the most famous people in the world during the early 20th century. Santos-Dumont also made the 1st public European flight of an airplane in Paris on 23 October 1906. That aircraft, designated "Oiseau de proie" ("bird of prey"), is considered to be the 1st to take off, fly, and land without the use of catapults, high winds, launch rails, or other external assistance. (The Wright Brothers' early aircraft, 1st successfully flown on 17 Dec 1903, used a stiff headwind or launch rails whereas Santos-Dumont achieved flight in calm wind from an ordinary ground surface.)
Much of the controversy about Santos-Dumont and the Wrights arose from the difference in their approaches to publicity. Santos-Dumont made his flights in public, often accompanied by the scientific elite of the time, then gathered in Paris. In contrast, the Wrights were very concerned about protecting their trade secrets for patentability and made their early flights in remote locations, without many international aviation officials present. The defense of their flight was also complicated by the jealousies of other American aviation enthusiasts and disputes over patents. In January 1906 Frenchman Ernest Archdeacon sent a taunting letter to the Wrights, demanding that they come to France and prove themselves, but the Wrights did not respond. Thus, the aviation world (of which Paris was the centre at the time) witnessed Santos-Dumont's work first hand. As a result, many members, French and other Europeans, dismissed the Wrights as frauds (like many others at the time) and assigned Santos-Dumont the accolade of the "first to fly." Source: Wikipedia
Bronze
Address: Vicinity R & 22nd Sts NW Nearest Metro: Dupont Circle (Red)
(dcMem ID #1565)
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