Fly Past

Since the dawn of human evolution, humankind has looked to the sky in awe, wonder and yearning. This desire to take to the sky and soar like a bird pushed and tempted humankind for centuries. In the early years of the twentieth century, two brothers, Orville and Wilbur Wright, achieved that dream. In one short century, we have gone from the few airborne seconds at Kitty Hawk to space shuttles that travel and remain in orbit for years at a time. Fly Past chronicles this miraculous journey from wooden and muslin planes hovering tenuously over the ground to the sleek sophisticated state-of-the-art air and space craft. Fly Past would be useful for classes on American History and Culture, World History, Aviation History and Science and Technology. It is appropriate for middle school and high school.

OBJECTIVES:

Students will learn the history of aviation from the early flights at Kitty Hawk to the space shuttle. They will explore the evolution of flight and aviation technology and the human desire for flight.

NATIONAL HISTORY STANDARDS:

Fly Past fulfills the following National Standards for History for grades 5-12: Chronological thinking, historical comprehension, historical analysis and interpretation, historical research capabilities, historical issues-analysis and decision-making for Eras 7-10.

Straight Up

This episode of Fly Past examines the history and evolution of vertical flight.

Discussion Questions

  1. Leonardo DaVinci’s 1480 drawings are some of the earliest sketches depicting vertical flight. What was his concept of vertical flight? Why would his concept fail?

  2. Vertical flight has many advantages over horizontal flight. What are some of these advantages?

  3. What are some of the disadvantages of vertical flight?

  4. Discuss some of the uses of vertical flight.

  5. How is vertical flight achieved? What are the specific aerodynamics of vertical lift?

  6. Helicopters are the most successful example of vertical flight. How do pilots control helicopters?

  7. What is “dissymmetry of lift?”

  8. Discuss Igor Sikorsky’s achievements and contributions in fixed wing aircrafts.

  9. The “torque effect” plagued the success of vertical flight. What is the “torque effect?” How did Sikorsky overcome this problem?

  10. Advancements in aeronautics is usually achieved using state-of-the-art technology. What is state-of-the-art?

  11. How are helicopters manufactured today?

  12. How does altitude affect helicopter performance?

  13. What was Larry Bell’s contribution to aviation?

  14. Tilt-rotor planes are planes that can fly both vertically and horizontally. What are the difficulties in flying these planes? What are their advantages? What are their disadvantages?

  15. What is “fly-by-wire?”

  16. Discuss the unique capabilities of the Osprey aircraft (V22).

  17. What is vectored thrust? How does vectored thrust enable the Harrier aircraft to fly?
Extended Activities

  1. Follow this link (http://www.bsu.edu/teachers/academy/webwings/hist02.html) to an online exhibit of DaVinci’s famous drawings. What are the principles of his drawings? Are they practical? How did his drawings foreshadow the achievement of vertical flight?

  2. Research vertical flight history on the Internet and use your data to create a poster illustrating the evolution of vertical flight aircraft.
Related Videos
Primary Sources
  • Follow this link (http://www.bsu.edu/teachers/academy/webwings/hist02.html) to an online exhibit of DaVinci’s famous drawings.

Air Dates

Classroom Materials