Читать книгу The Rise of the Flying Machine - Hugo Byttebier - Страница 21

Victor Tatin takes over

Before he left this world, Pénaud had at least attracted an admirer and fervent disciple in the person of Victor Tatin, a talented young jeweller who had started his aeronautical activities by joining the confraternity of flapping-wing experimenters.

His first product was a little jewel of a bird, as befitted his trade. It weighed only 5.15 grams and was ready in mid-1874, but at its first public showing, during a lecture by Pénaud, it broke before it could fly.

He persisted along these lines for another three years, making bigger and bigger birds until he realized that flapping-wing flight would take him nowhere and he bowed to the evidence. He went over completely to Pénaud’s ideas of fixed-wing machines and in 1878 and 1879 built a model monoplane, aided by the intervention of Professor Marey, who found a backer willing to invest 1,500 francs to support this aviation initiative.

This was the first fixed-wing aeroplane built after Pénaud’s little planophores and it was a much more ambitious undertaking. Its total weight was 3.85 lbs and with wings of 8 sq ft, the wing loading was 0.48 lb/sq ft, still fairly low. It was powered by a piston engine driven by compressed air and two contra-rotating propellers were placed in front of the wing.

Tethered to a pole in the park of the official aeronautical establishment of Chalais-Meudon, it could progress only around a circular track. When the motor was started the machine accelerated rapidly and when it reached a speed of 8 m/s (18 mph) the plane rose. But the results were not sufficient to induce the backer to invest more money.

Much time was then lost in finding another backer. One eventually materialized in the person of Charles Richet, who advanced 20,000 francs. This allowed Tatin to build a bigger model, powered by steam and weighing 33 kg (73 lbs). The wings covered 8 sq m (86 sq ft) so that the wing loading rose to 0.85 lb/sq ft and take-off speed rose appreciably. But the steam engine developed around 1 hp, and this appeared to be sufficient.

The propellers worked in tandem, one at the front and one at the rear of the body. They ran in opposite directions so as to avoid any upsetting torque.

The decision was taken to test the aeroplane over water, and the first experiment was undertaken in 1890 at Sainte Adresse on the Mediterranean coast. The plane started from a ramp before continuing on a horizontal path until flying speed was achieved. At 18 m/s (40 mph) the plane duly rose, but after a flight of about 60 m (300 ft) a construction defect caused it to crash on the rocks beneath the cliffs that formed the coastline.

The plane was completely destroyed, but after much time and trouble it was eventually rebuilt. A second test was undertaken in 1896 at Carqueiranne, also on the coast, the engine giving about 25% more power.

This time the Pénaud tail was not adjusted properly and after a flight of about 220 ft., it started to climb, stalled and fell into the sea. It was recovered and repaired and a third test was held in June 1897, but again, after a flight of 440 ft., the plane stalled due to a defect in balance and the succeeding crash ended the experiments.

Meanwhile, Professor Langley had obtained better results in the United States and Richet decided to halt further work. Had Tatin been able to continue he would no doubt have succeeded in adjusting his plane for satisfactory flights, but it was not to be.

When the experiments with full-size machines began, some ten years later, Tatin was around with advice and counsel, he wrote numerous articles and was probably instrumental in convincing several pioneers not to ignore Pénaud’s teachings at a time when another mode of flying had become preponderant.

The evolution towards a practical aeroplane, which was started by Cayley and continued by Pénaud, was leading towards a stable and controllable flying machine that would be able to carry heavy loads over great distances at high speeds. In 1880, at the time of Pénaud’s death, it appeared that most of the problems had been solved and that the only impediment towards the final take-off was the powerplant, which was also felt to be within reach.