This model represents one of the early British fighter planes of World War I. The Scout Experimental 5 (SE5), a single-seat biplane with dihedral wings, was designed by Henry Folland, John Kenworthy and Major Frank Godden of the Royal Aircraft Factory in Farnborough, England. The airplane was designed around the 150 HP; water-cooled Hispano-Suiza 8… Continue reading Royal Aircraft Factory SE 5

During his 30’s, Leonardo took a great interest in flight, and by about 1505 had collected around 20 years of theory on the flight. In his sketches, he illustrates what is known as an ornithopter, but no one really knows if he actually built or attempted to fly the device. An ornithopter (from the Greek… Continue reading da Vinci Ornithopter

Walter J. Addems & His Original Seaplane Model This model airplane appears to us at the Wings of History to be an original design by Walter Addems. Because we have the model it gives us an opportunity to share with you some history about this local aviator. Walter Addems was a pioneer aviator who built… Continue reading Addems Seaplane

DAYTON, Ohio — Sopwith F-1 Camel at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo)The Sopwith Camel was a British World War I single-seat biplane fighter put into service in 1917. Manufactured by Sopwith Aviation Company, it had what is called a “short coupled” fuselage (meaning that much of the… Continue reading Sopwith Camel

This is a scale model of an early two-seat fighter airplane. It was a French design, commissioned and built in the United States during World War I and ordered in large numbers by the United States Army Air Corps. When the U.S. entered World War I, the Signal Corps had just 55 aircraft, none of… Continue reading Packard-Le Pere LUSAC-11

Gustave Delage, the main Nieuport designer, produced at least two triplane designs. The first appeared in 1915 and was a fairly unusual aircraft, but the more famous triplane, of 1916, was even stranger. On this aircraft the middle wing was furthest forward, attached to the front of the upper fuselage longerons, placing it level with… Continue reading Nieuport Triplane

This model represents the Nieuport 12 which was designed in 1915 and probably flew in that year for the first time. It was a sesquiplane, meaning its lower wing was half the size of the upper wing (approximately the same length, but the chord of the wing was one-half that of the upper wing). The… Continue reading Nieuport 12

The Fokker E.III Eindecker (Eindecker meaning “one wing” ), was a single-seat monoplane fighter. It was designed by Anthony Fokker at the beginning of 1915. It used wing warping for roll control which was typical in the early airplanes. That system was replaced by ailerons a short time later. The airplane was fitted with a… Continue reading Fokker E.III Eindecker

When the aircraft appeared on the fighting front in April of 1918, Allied pilots at first underestimated the new fighter because of its squarish, ungainly appearance, but quickly revised their view. The D.VII’s had the unique ability to seemingly “hang on its propeller,” and fire into the unprotected underside of enemy aircraft which made it… Continue reading Fokker D.VII

Mignet Pou-du-Ciel Model (Literally “The Flying Flea ”or “Louse of the Sky”) The Mignet Pou-du-Ciel model in the museum is a representation of a family of aircraft designed by Frenchman Henri Mignet. The odd name comes from the French nickname for the Ford Model T automobile, “Pou de la Route” meaning “Louse of the Road” because… Continue reading Flying Flea