Langley was later funded by the US government to create a crewed version of his heavier-than-air aircraft for purposes of spying on the enemy.
Despite the numerous advancements of lighter-than-air aircraft, their existence was short-lived and overshadowed by the invention of the heavier-than-air airplane. In 1869, Samuel Pierpont Langley was the first to launch an unmanned heavier-than-air aircraft on a sustained flight successfully. Langley was later funded by the US government to create a crewed version of his heavier-than-air aircraft for purposes of spying on the enemy. However, his design was not successful.