These developments comprise some of the earliest attempts at aviation, like gliding and kite-powered flights, to heavier-than-air flight and even others beyond that.
Early Flight
The history of aviation involves the onset of mechanical flight. These developments comprise some of the earliest attempts at aviation, like gliding and kite-powered flights, to heavier-than-air flight and even others beyond that. Mankind’s thirst for flight potentially found its first expression in China. There, people who were being punished were sometimes tied to kites; records trace this punishment to the 6th century CE. Abbas Ibn Firnas in al-Adalus was the first to demonstrate a glider flight in the 9th century CE. The dream of flight was also a passion of Leonardo da Vinci in the 15th century and he experimented with several flying machine designs. Finally, in 18th-century Europe, the first serious attempts at flying and flight occurred.