Fly me to the moon (Part I)
A week or so ago, I attended the HITEC 2024 Conference in Charlotte, NC (USA). I took the plane to get there. Unfortunately, my Sunday morning flight got canceled at the last minute, so I had to leave Monday afternoon instead and missed the opening cocktail (sigh…). Because my Monday flight was two hours late (oh yes…), I missed my connecting flight and got in Charlotte at 2:00 a.m. Tuesday morning, in dire need of sleep!!! I’ll spare you the details of my return, but it was also surreal: at some point I had to jog a mile to catch my connecting flight! Nevertheless, flying is still the fastest way to get from one point to another, so I’ll just keep on flying, in the hope that my next journey will be smoother 😉.
Aviation History
Humankind has dreamed of flying since time immemorial. In the 6th century, the Chinese people created the first kites out of paper and wood. Although they could not fly people, kites allowed the study of wind, drag, and other factors relevant to the design of flying devices.
In the 15th century, Italian genius Leonardo da Vinci created the first drafts for a rational aircraft. In 1647, Tito Livio Burattini developed a model aircraft featuring four pairs of glider wings, but it never supported the weight of a person. In 1670, Francesco Terzi, the Father of Aeronautics, published a theory that showed the possibility of lighter-than-air aircraft made of copper foil cylinders.