Of course, the idea isn’t new or original at all and, as already mentionned, flying has always been the ambition of Man. The story of Icarus appears indeed very symbolical of this unattainable hope. Yet, in the 15th century, despite the scientific excitement of the Renaissance, the essential notions of aerostation, aerodynamics or aeronautics, which are the basics techniques to fly, weren’t known. In these conditions, the discovery of the air resistance, identified and understood by Leonard de Vinci, was a first noticeable progress. Thenceforth, the idea of the air lift became an essential element of this quest.

 

We know that Leonardo da Vinci figured out the buoyancy of hot air that will help the Montgolfier brothers, three centuries later. The scientist actually used it in other occasions but he didn’t think about applying it to this precise field. Indeed, his first sketches, when he thought about conquering the kingdom of air, show that he’s seeking to the  solve the mystery of bird’s wings to transpose it to mechanical elements. To do so, he studied different movements of birds, suitable with the diverse forces of the wind. The drawings representing them are wonderful: front views, side views, three quarters views… Then, he graphically analyzed these attitudes and transformed them into mechanical sketches, going from the painter’s fresco to the engineer’s industrial drawings. The most significant of theses sketches is undoubtedly a giant bat wing, moved by a huge lever to be operated by a man.

 

Nevertheless, the real issue is that of propulsive energy. Leonardo da Vinci was well aware that human muscle structure was not sufficient, though it was the only motive force he knew. He needed a powerful mechanical energy that didn't exist at the time, and that would have been the only way to guarantee the take-off and flight of his machines, tht were "heavier than air"...

 

Since he knew that pitfall, he suddenly changed the direction of his research and got interested in the spontaneous lift of the atmosphere. He thus studied birds hovering and leaves falling, that enables him to determinate and measure the air's aerodynamic components. He even went as far as to invent several instruments to better appreciate them: the first anemometers, barometers and inclinometers in the history of aeronautics. He became a real trailblazer by unequivocally presenting the future possibilities of flying with sails, hang-gliding and even parachuting!