History of Aviation

It is also during the war that the Germans created the first successful aircraft to use the jet engine. The war changed aviation history. Before World War II only about 193,000 people were employed in the aviation industry, and during 1941 the number increased to 450,000; also, around 3,375,000 passengers were transported by 18 U.S. airlines at this time, around 1 million more than in 1940. But by the end of World War II, a new frontier of flight would take shape, jet and rocket propelled aircraft would replace the older propeller engines. .
             After World War II and by 1947 all the basic technology needed for aviation had been developed; jet propulsion, aerodynamics, and radar. Civilian aircraft orders drastically increased from 6,844 in 1941 to 40,000 by the end of 1945. One of the minor military contractors was the Boeing Company who later became the largest aircraft manufacturer in the world. Boeing went on to design and builds the U-2 spy plane in 1955. Commercially Boeing built some of the most famous jet airliners such as the 707 and 747 jumbo jets. The Jet age also brought the most fatalities, jet engines were much more unpredictable and had more components than previous engines, many early test flights with the jet engine and all new aircraft resulted in death. It is from these mistakes that present day aircraft are so safe to fly. It is also after World War 2 that some of the greatest records in aviation occurred. On October 11, 1961 the X-15 set the speed record for the fastest aircraft at 4,093 miles per hour (mach 6.04). In 1986 a plane named Voyager flew in air without stops for fuel for a total of 9 days, 3 minutes, 44 seconds or 25,012 miles. Both records still stand today.
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             Propeller (Piston) Engine:.
             The Piston engine was the earliest form of engines that were used in the early 1900's. They were the only engine used on aircraft until the late 1940's when the jet engine proved to be superior in all aspects.