The Langley Aerodrome Experience… at Stafford Airport

This is something I just discovered today when I took my copy of the Stafford Magazine out of my mailbox. From the cover illustration, I thought it might be a new exhibit at the Shannon Airport in Fredericksburg. That airport already has a marvelous collection of old aircraft. No this is an exhibit of a replica of Langley’s aerodrome #5, a steam powered, heavier than air craft that flew successfully in 1896 over the Potomac River in Stafford. The writeup is terrific and well worth a read. Luckily it is available online.

https://issuu.com/leesburgtoday/docs/stafford_dec_24_jan_25_spreads

This exhibit is the culmination of many years of work by the Langley Flight Foundation, a local historical group created to commemorate the life and accomplishments of Professor Samuel Pierpont Langley, with a major emphasis on his heavier-than-air sustained mechanical flights in Stafford County, Virginia. This blurb is from their website. The also has a detailed technical breakdown of the Aerodrome #5 and its steam engine. Check it out. Learn something.

Most of Virginia’s outstanding historical attractions commemorate events, structures, and individuals from pre-history through the Civil War. An internet search of Virginia’s historical attractions yields an impressive list of pre-historic, colonial, and Civil War sites, but relatively few from Reconstruction through the turn of the 20th century. This dearth of late nineteenth century attractions suggests that Virginia ceded its early national prominence and leadership to other parts of the country after the Civil War. In addition, many of these sites struggle to gain the attention of our youth, who have grown up in a technologically advanced world. 

However, Virginia has a claim to a significant leadership role in the development of aviation in the United States that has not been celebrated. Major aviation advancements have occurred in Virginia, including Professor Thaddeus Lowe’s balloon reconnaissance corps during the Civil War, the training of the country’s first pilots at Fort Myer in 1908, the launch of the U.S.’s first aircraft carrier, USS Langley, at Norfolk in 1924, and the training of World War II pilots at Langley Field in Hampton in the 1940’s. 

Perhaps the most significant, and least recognized, aviation accomplishment in Virginia was Samuel Pierpont Langley’s achievement of heavier-than-air flight in 1896. Between 1894 and 1896, Langley conducted tests of his unmanned “aerodromes” culminating in a successful flight of Aerodrome No. 5 on May 6, 1896 of 3,300 feet over one minute and thirty seconds in Stafford County, Virginia. This achievement, which the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum acknowledges as, “the world’s first successful flight of an unpiloted, engine-driven, heavier-than-air aircraft of substantial size,” occurred seven years prior to the Wright Brothers’ first manned flight in 1903. 

The story of Aerodrome No. 5 is one of perseverance over antiquated scientific assumptions for the benefit of society. The Langley Aerodrome Initiative seeks to tell this story so that this inspiration can be handed down to future generations.

Speaking of learning something. Check out this animation of the flight of Aerodrome #5. The flight was far more elaborate than I thought, far more than the Wright Flyer’s first flight at Kitty Hawk. I remember adjusting the flight surfaces and weighting of my rubber powered balsa airplane models to achieve flights like this. Langley was one hell of a modeler.

If this isn’t enough history for one night, check out Fredericksburg Shannon Airport and the Shannon Air Museum. It may not be the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, but it’s damned nice and nearby. Their cafe also makes a decent Cuban sandwich.

TTG

https://shannonezf.com