October - A Pioneer of Aviation

Carlos Santos-Dumont is not a very famous name, even though it probably should be. Most people in Europe and in the US are completely oblivious to the fact that to lots of people, especially in Brazil, he is the father of modern aviation. This month marks the 110th anniversary of his famous and triumphant flight around the Eiffel tower in Paris, 1906. 

Born on the 20th of July 1873, nobody had achieved unassisted, sustained flight before, except for some Frenchmen in a hot-air balloon in the late 18th century. This is the reason why it’s very important to hear about this person.

While Santos-Dumont believed his plans to be feasible, lots of other people didn’t agree with this notion. Luckily Santos-Dumont’s faith in his ideas tipped the scales and he carried out various experiments with varying degrees of success. Finally he flew around the Eiffel Tower in his aircraft called “14-bis” in October of 1906. Subsequently he won an award for his experiments and discoveries in aviation.


What can undoubtedly be gathered from Santos-Dumont is to never doubt ourselves.

Written by Christian Fredlev Sand


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