Traian Vuia | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | August 17, 1872 |
| Died | 3 September 1950 (aged 78) |
| Resting place | Bellu Cemetery, Bucharest 44°24′21″N 26°05′59″E / 44.40583°N 26.09972°E |
| Nationality | Romanian[1] |
| Occupation | Inventor |
| Known for | Early flying machine |
Traian Vuia or Trajan Vuia (Romanian pronunciation: [traˈjan ˈvuja]; 17 August 1872 – 3 September 1950) was a Romanian inventor and aviation pioneer who designed, built, and tested the first tractor monoplane. He was the first to demonstrate that a flying machine could rise into the air by running on wheels on an ordinary road.[2] He is credited with a powered hop of 11 m (36 ft) made on 18 March, 1906, and he later claimed a powered hop of 24 m (79 ft).[3][4] Though unsuccessful in sustained flight, Vuia's invention influenced Louis Blériot in designing monoplanes.[5] Later, Vuia also designed helicopters.
A French citizen from 1918, Vuia led the Romanians (especially Transylvanians) of France in the Resistance during World War II. He returned to Romania just before his death in 1950.[6]
- ^ Vuia was born to ethnically Romanian parents in the Kingdom of Hungary in territory that became part of Romania.
- ^ Chanute, Octave (October 1907). "Pending European Experiments in Flying". The American Aeronaut and Aerostatist. 1 (1): 13. Archived from the original on 28 June 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
- ^ Mola, Roger A (August 2009), "The Birthplaces of Aviation. It didn't all happen at Kitty Hawk", Air & Space Magazine, archived from the original on 11 May 2014, retrieved 24 February 2014
- ^ Angelucci, E. and Matricardi, P.; "World Aircraft: Origins–World War 1", Sampson Low (1977).
- ^ Gibbs-Smith, Charles Harvard (1965). The world's first aeroplane flights (1903–1908) and earlier attempts to fly. Her Majesty's Stationery Office. p. 31.
- ^ Orna 1956, p. 366.