The First Parachute Death on This Day in History

 

This day in history: Franz Reichelt died on this day in 1912. Reichelt was a tailor and inventor who leaped from the Eiffel Tower and fell to his death wearing a parachute made from cloth of his own invention. He was asked by friends and authorities to use a dummy for the feat, but declined saying "I intend to prove the worth of my invention". Reichelt came to be known as the Flying Tailor.

Others have died as well in the past while testing their aerial inventions. Over 1000 years ago a Kazakh Turkic scholar from Farab named Ismail ibn Hammad al-Jawhari died while trying to fly using two wooden wings and a rope. He leapt from the roof of a mosque in Nishapur and fell to his death.

Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier was the first known fatality in an air crash when his Rozière balloon crashed on 15 June 1785 while he and Pierre Romain attempted to cross the English Channel.

Otto Lilienthal (1848–1896) died the day after crashing one of his hang gliders.

Aurel Vlaicu (1882–1913) died when his self-constructed airplane, Vlaicu II, failed during an attempt to cross the Carpathian Mountains.

Henry Smolinski (died 1973) was killed during a test flight of the AVE Mizar, a flying car based on the Ford Pinto and the sole product of the company he founded.

Michael Dacre (died 2009, age 53) died after a crash that occurred while testing his flying taxi device designed to permit fast, affordable travel between regional cities.

Sheikh Ismail (died 2021, age 24) died when his self-constructed, low-cost helicopter failed during its initial flight test. The tail rotor malfunctioned, hit the main rotor which subsequently hit Sheikh in the head.

Also on this day in history (February 4 1982): David Grundman, while shooting at a cactus with his shotgun near Lake Pleasant Regional Park, Arizona, was crushed when a 4-foot limb detached and fell on him.

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The Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk on This Day in History

 

The Wright brothers made their first attempt to fly the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina on this day (December 14) in 1903.

The Wright Flyer was a plane they built in the back room of Wright Cycle Company, the Dayton bicycle shop where they sold/repaired bicycles. 

The News Wheel wrote an article entitled "Why North Carolina Needs to Take “First in Flight” Off Its License Plates" arguing that "Aviation history runs deep throughout the city of Dayton, Ohio. The local Air Force base — Wright Patterson — got half its name from the familial duo. The city is also home to the Wright brothers’ original cycling company..."

However, Dayton Ohio now plans to demolish the Wright brothers first bicycle shop claiming it is a nuisance, instead of preserving it as a historical artifact. Honestly, what else is Dayton Ohio known for?

Did you know: The Wright brothers were both high school dropouts, and neither of them ever married. Wilbur told reporters that he didn’t have time for both a wife AND an airplane.

Neil Armstrong carried a piece of the Wright Flyer with him to the moon. 

It was a toy from their father that started their obsession with aviation. "When the brothers were youngsters in 1878, their father returned home one evening with a gift that he tossed into the air. 'Instead of falling to the floor, as we expected,' the brothers recalled in a 1908 magazine article, 'it flew across the room till it struck the ceiling, where it fluttered awhile, and finally sank to the floor.' The model helicopter made of cork, bamboo and paper and powered by a rubber band mesmerized the boys and sparked their passion for aviation." Source

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Seven Airplane Crashes on This Day in History

 

Most Terrifying Airplane Crashes

This day in history: On Dec. 8, 1945, "a C-47 military transport plane destined for Seattle tried an emergency landing at Logan International Airport. The pilot was unable to make the runway on second pass and crashed into a field near the area that is now Veterans Park. Nineteen of the 23 people on board perished, including 17 servicemen who were on their last leg of deployment, heading home after serving in Europe during World War II." Source

Pan Am Flight 214, a Boeing 707, was struck by lightning on this day in 1963 and crashed near Elkton, Maryland, killing all 81 people on board. 

On December 8, 1969, Olympic Airways Flight 954 struck a mountain outside of Keratea, Greece, killing 90 people in the worst crash of a Douglas DC-6 in history.

On December 8, 1972, United Airlines Flight 553, a Boeing 737, crashed after aborting its landing attempt at Chicago Midway International Airport, killing 45. This is the first-ever loss of a Boeing 737.

On December 8. 1988, a United States Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II crashed into an apartment complex in Remscheid, Germany, killing 5 people and injuring 50 others.

On December 8 2005, Southwest Airlines Flight 1248, a Boeing 737-700, slid off the runway during landing at Chicago Midway International Airport in Chicago in heavy snow. None of the people on board are injured, but the plane hit two automobiles on the ground, killing a passenger.

On December 8 2014, an Embraer EMB-500 airplane crashed while on approach to runway 14 at Montgomery County Airpark (GAI), Gaithersburg, Maryland. "The airplane impacted three houses and the ground about 3/4 mile from the approach end of the runway. A postcrash fire involving the airplane and one of the three houses, which contained three occupants, ensued. The pilot, the two passengers, and the three people in the house died as a result of the accident." Source

However, despite the above, air travel is quite safe, much safer than dricing your car. "Dr. Barnett of MIT compared the chance of dying from an airline accident versus a driving accident, after accounting for the greater number of people who drive each day. Can you guess what he found? You are nineteen times safer in a plane than in a car. Every single time you step on a plane, no matter how many times you fly, you are nineteen times less likely to die than in your car." Source

In fact, every year, roughly 1.3 million people die in car accidents worldwide – an average of 3,287 deaths per day.

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