Overview Airplanes were made of canvas and wood, causing fire to easily spread.
No parachutes were given to pilots. They could not fly at speeds over 100mph, but it was still fatal to crash without one. In the beginning of World War 1, airplanes were used for locating troops and spying rather than combat. Before Aerial combat was introduced, bombing was extreme and rarely happened, but because Aerial combat was new "rules" were not established. About a year after the war began, pilots were also equipped with machine guns, pistols, grenades and darts. |
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The InventorsThe inventors of the airplane are Orville and Wilbur Wright.
They did this by inventing Three-Axis control, which includes roll, pitch, and yaw. The first flight was on December 17, 1903, near Kill Devil hills, North Carolina. Flying had been an unrealistic dream of many until the first flight, and many did not believe it was true when they heard of it. |
How It WorksAs gravity pulls the plane down, lift pulls the plane up. The lift overcomes the gravity because it takes longer for the air to go over the plane than it takes to go under. Thrust pushes the plane forward and drag, a force caused by air resistance, slows it down.
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St. Mihiel Battle
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The St Mihiel battle was on September 12-15 1918. During the battle there were 7,500 casualties, and Airplanes were included in battle. It was an allied victory. |
Impact and consequences of the Airplane
The airplane played a major part in the war as a new way of fighting. They did not effect soldiers, but effected the battles and the war entirely. Leaders had to consider this new form of fighting and the ways it could change the outcome of a battle. Countries had a new way to equip themselves in the war. Airplanes could see from above, allowing them to be able to easily locate troops. They could also be used for bombing and dogfights. However, they often crashed and collided, and could not destroy many others before they did.
Connections to Today
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Modern day examples:
F-16 Fighting Falcon (second to last in slideshow) - The F-16 Fighting Falcon is used for Fighting in the US Airforce. It was first produced in 1973 and costs 14.6 or 18.8 Million. 4540+ were built. B-2 Spirit "Stealth Bomber" (last in slideshow) - The B-2 Spirit is used for bombing. It was first produced in 1988 and costs 737 million. 22 were built. Modern planes used for military purposes can fly thousands of feet higher, 7-10 times faster, no longer have propellers, are closed in, and do much more than any plane in World War 1. The last time a plane like this was used was by Iraq on Isis, they bombed them on December 3, 2014. |