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List of Santos-Dumont aircraft facts for kids

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Through his career, aviation pioneer Alberto Santos-Dumont designed, built, and demonstrated a variety of types of aircraft—balloons, airships (dirigibles), monoplanes, biplanes, and a helicopter. Research shows that the inventor may have created an even larger number of aircraft.

List

Model Image

1898

Brésil (balloon) – Japanese silk envelope. 113 m3 (4,000 cu ft) capacity. Its first flight was on 4 July 1898. Brazil, 4 julho 1898 -Musee de l'Air et de l'Espace, MA 39568-.JPG
L'Amérique (balloon) – 500m3 of hydrogen and 10 meters in diameter, being able to carry a few passengers, but without control, with which he braved storms and accidents. L'Amerique na Taça dos Aeronautas, Paris, França, 12 jun. 1899 (Acervo RMV).jpg
No. 1 (airship) – First flown on 18 September 1898, this had a cylindrical envelope with conical ends containing a ballonet connected to an air pump: 25 m (82 ft) long, 3.5 m (11 ft 6 in) diameter, 180 m3 (6,400 cu ft) capacity. A square basket was suspended from wooden battens contained in pockets in the envelope, and a silk-covered rudder fitted behind and above the basket. Powered by a De Dion-Bouton tricycle engine (modified to have tandem cylinders) of 3 hp which was mounted outside and in front of the basket driving a small two-bladed propeller. Fore-and-aft trim was achieved by moving a pair of ballast bags. It manoeuvred well, but the ballonet was too small to retain the necessary rigidity of the envelope, and loss of pressure caused it to be wrecked on its second flight on 20 September 1898. Santos-Dumont No1.jpg

1899

No. 2 (airship) – An enlargement of No. 1, with a capacity of 200 m3 (7,100 cu ft). During its first trial on 11 May 1899 it started to rain after inflation, cooling the hydrogen and so causing it to contract. The envelope began to fold in half and was then caught by a gust of wind and blown into nearby trees. It was not repaired. Dirigível Nº2 - 1-13617-0000-0000, Acervo do Museu Paulista da USP.jpg
No. 3 (airship) – Shorter and of greater diameter than the preceding designs, intended to avoid the loss of shape caused by insufficient internal pressure that had led to their loss. 20.11 m (66.0 ft) long, 7.472 m (24 ft 6.2 in) diameter: capacity 500 m3 (18,000 cu ft). A bamboo keel was suspended from the envelope, under which the basket was suspended. No ballonet was fitted. It was inflated with coal gas, rather than hydrogen. Its first flight was on 13 November 1899. Santos-Dumont No. 3 airship.jpg

1900

No. 4 (airship) – 39 m (128 ft) long, with a diameter of 5.1 m (17 ft) and a gas capacity of 420 m3 (15,000 cu ft). No. 4 differed considerably from the previous models, not only in the shape of the envelope, but in the arrangement of the keel, which now carried the motor, a 7 h.p. Buchet, and pilot, who sat on a bicycle saddle. A tractor propeller was mounted at front of the keel. A ballonet and rotary pump was fitted, and Santos Dumont, having acquired a hydrogen generating plant, returned to using hydrogen as a lifting gas.
Engine later replaced by a 9 kW (12 hp) four-cylinder air-cooled unit, and envelope lengthened to 33 m (108 ft).
Dirigível Nº4 - 1-13818-0000-0000, Acervo do Museu Paulista da USP.jpg

1901

Le Fatum (balloon) – Le Fatum was a balloon built by Santos Dumont and Emmanuel Aimé for the purpose of conducting experiments in aerostatic equilibrium with the Thermosphére equipment, developed by Emmanuel Aimé. It was an elongated aircraft 7 meters high and 310 cubic meters. The first flight took place on May 30, 1901. Le Fatum and the thermostat.png
No. 5 (airship) – Built to make an attempt on the Deutsch de la Meurthe prize for a flight from the Aero-Club de France's flying field at Saint-Cloud to the Eiffel Tower and back within 30 minutes. Used the enlarged envelope from No. 4, from which an elongated triangular-section gondola made of pine was suspended. Other innovations included the use of piano wire to suspend the gondola, greatly reducing drag and the inclusion of water ballast tanks. Powered by a 12 hp 4-cylinder inline air-cooled engine driving a pusher propeller. First flown on 11 July 1901: a lengthy flight was made the next day and an attempt on the de la Meurthe prize on the 13th: the outward flight was accomplished in ten minutes, but the return was hampered by a headwind and took half an hour. On reaching St Cloud the engine failed and the airship was blown into the surrounding trees, damaging the envelope. A second attempt on the prize was made on 8 August but ended in disaster: after reaching the Tower in eight minutes, the airship began losing hydrogen because of a faulty valve. The partial deflation of the envelope caused some of the suspension wires to foul the propeller: Santos-Dumont, therefore, stopped the engine leaving the craft not only unpowered but without any means of inflating the ballonet to maintain the shape of the envelope. Helpless, the craft was blown back towards the Tower and blown onto the roof of the Trocadero Hotel, bursting the envelope with a noise described in some press reports an explosion but which Santos-Dumont likens to a paper bag being burst. Santos-Dumont was left precariously suspended above the courtyard of the hotel but was rescued by the Paris fire brigade. The airship was damaged beyond repair: only the engine was salvaged. Dirigível Nº5 - 1-13647-0000-0000, Acervo do Museu Paulista da USP.jpg
No. 6 (airship) – Construction started immediately after the loss of No. 5, and completed by early September. Similar to No. 5, but with a larger envelope 22 m (72 ft 2 in) long and capacity of 622 m3 (22,000 cu ft). Won the Deutsch de la Meurth prize on 19 October 1901. Santos-Dumont dirigeable 1901.jpg

1902

No. 7 (airship) – A fast competition airship, built to compete for the aviation prizes on offer at the 1904 St Louis World's Fair. Before the competition the airship's envelope was sabotaged, preventing it from competing. It had a double-thickness varnished silk envelope, 50 m (160 ft) long, 7.92 m (26.0 ft) diameter: capacity 1260 m3 (44,500 ft3), and was powered by a 60 hp water-cooled engine, driving two propellers, one at the front and one at the rear of the gondola. Dirigível Nº7 - 1-13635-0000-0000, Acervo do Museu Paulista da USP.jpg
No. 8 (airship) – It is rumoured that there was no "No. 8" as Santos-Dumont was superstitious about the number. However, D'Orcy's Airchip Manual of 1917 lists a Santos-Dumont No. 8 making only one ascent and being dismantled after proving unsatisfactory. In reality the Nº8 was a copy of the Nº6 and was built for Edward Boyce and had just one flight. An October 1902 article in L'Aérophile says that the airship was made for George Francis Kerr, secretary of the New York Aeroclub, and was flown by Edward Boyce.

1903

No. 9 Baladeuse – Built as the smallest airship that Santos-Dumont considered practical. As first constructed capacity was 220 m3 (7,800 cu ft): later enlarged slightly to 261 m3 (9,200 cu ft). It was also bought by Edward Boyce. Santos-Dumont No. 9 airship.jpg
No. 10 (airship) – Sometimes called the Omnibus, this was intended to carry twelve passengers as well as the pilot and a second crew member. 48 m (157 ft 6 in) long, 8.5 m (27 ft 11 in) diameter, 2,010 m3 (71,000 cu ft) capacity. The pilot and the 46 hp four-cylinder Clément water-cooled engine, occupied a triangular-section uncovered gondola suspended 2 m (6 ft 7 in) below the envelope, with a fabric covered propeller at either end: a second gondola suspended 10 m (32 ft 9 in) below this held the three baskets for the passengers and an assistant pilot. Made only test flights. Santos-Dumont dirigeable CPA 1904.JPG

1905

No. 11 (balloon) – No. 11 was a dirigible balloon with an envelope 34 meters long, a volume of 1,200 m', with a 16HP engine, being capable of holding five people (including the pilot). It was brought by an American.
No. 12 (helicopter) – Twin 6 m (19 ft 8 in) diameter rotors made of varnished silk stretched over a bamboo framework. Powered by a 25 hp Antoinette engine. Santos-Dumont Nº12.jpg
No. 13 (airship) – A curious composite craft, consisting of an ovoid hydrogen-filled envelope 19 m long, 14.5 m diameter and capacity 1902 m3, with a second conical envelope of 171 m3 attached underneath: this was filled with air which could be heated by a burner. Destroyed in the hangar during a storm. Santos-Dumont No. 13 airship.png
Nº 14-a (airship) — An airship 41 meters long, 3.4 in diameter, 186 in cubic footage, and with a 14 HP engine. It made a short flight on June 12, 1905. Dirigível Nº14 - 1-13632-0000-0000, Acervo do Museu Paulista da USP.jpg
Nº 14-b (airship) — Modification of the previous airship due to lack of stability. 20m long, 6 in diameter and a 16 HP engine. It was tested between August 21-25, 1905. Dirigível Nº14 - 1-13633-0000-0000, Acervo do Museu Paulista da USP.jpg

1906

Oiseau de Proie (14-bis) (airplane) — Created in June 1906, it received the name 14-Bis due to the fact that it was attached to the 14-airship. 14-bis no campo de Bagatelle. Julho 1906 -Museu Casa Natal de Santos Dumont-Cropped.jpg
Oiseau de Proie I (airplane) — Aircraft 4m high, 10m long, 12 span, two-wheel landing gear and a 24 HP Levavasseur engine. Tested on a steel cable and pulled by an ass on July 29, 1906 to test the aircraft's controls. In August 1906 a small rear wheel was added. Tested on August 21, 1906, the engine shaft broke. On the 22nd the propellers reached 1,400 revolutions per minute. On the 23rd, it reached 25 km/h (15 mph) on grass. On September 3, 1906, he put in a 50 HP engine and on September 4 and 7, 1906, it reached 35 km/h (22 mph) on the lawn and jumped for 7 meters. 14-bis sendo levantado ao ar - 1-13436-0000-0000, Acervo do Museu Paulista da USP.jpg
Deux Amériques (balloon) – Spherical balloon with horizontal propellers used in the Gordon Bennett Cup. Santos Dumont à bord des Deux-Amériques, Gordon Bennett 1906.jpg
Oiseau de Proie II (airplane) — Modification of the previous model with varnished wings and without the rear wheel. It took off on October 23, 1906 at 16h45m, staying 6s in the air, reaching a height of 3m and crossing 60 meters, winning the Archdeacon Award. Santos Dumont voa em seu 14-bis - Campo de Bagatelle - 1-13792-0000-0000, Acervo do Museu Paulista da USP.jpg
Oiseau de Proie III (airplane) — In November 1906 it flew for 220 meters, having "...octagonal airfoils between the wings." 14-bis de Alberto Santos Dumont.jpg

1907

Oiseau de Proie IV (airplane) — It flew 30 meters in April 1907. On April 4, after flying about 50 meters, it crashed, being destroyed. Acidente14bis.jpg
No. 15 (aeroplane) – Tractor configuration biplane, powered by a 50 hp Antoinette engine mounted above the upper wing. High aspect ratio wings spanning 11 m with a chord of only 60 cm (2.0 ft), giving a surface area of 13 m2, divided into three bays by full-chord vertical surfaces. Pronounced dihedral like the 14bis, fitted with mid-gap ailerons in front of the wings. The wings were skinned with 3 mm Okoume plywood. Undercarriage consisted of a single wheel mounted at the junction of the forward lower wing spars and a tailskid. Biplane tail carried on a pair of bamboo booms placed one above the other and laterally braced to the wings by steel cables. Damaged during taxying trials on 27 March 1907,: subsequently repaired and fitted with a 100 Antoinette V-16, but never flown successfully. Projeto Nº15, Avião biplano - 1-13791-0000-0000, Acervo do Museu Paulista da USP.jpg
No. 16 (hybrid airship) – 21 m long, 3 m diameter: capacity 99 m3. Fitted with a forward-mounted hexagonal elevator and a central 4 m span rectangular lifting surface, this was a hybrid airship incapable of flight relying solely on aerostatic buoyancy, instead requiring aerodynamic lift to fly. Tested unsuccessfully on 8 July 1907. Santos-Dumont No. 16 airship.jpg
Nº 17 — Similar to number 15, but with a 100 hp Levavasseur engine, which was never tested. It was known as "La Sauterelle".
No. 18 – Not an aircraft, but a propeller-driven "hydro-flotteur" powered by a V-16 Antoinette engine driving a three-bladed propeller, and resting on an elongated central float stabilised by smaller floats either side. Santos Dumont Nº18.jpg
Nº 19 Demoiselle – The first Demoiselle. Santos-Dumont No. 19 front L'Aérophile November 1907 (grayscale, contrast).jpg
Nº 19Bis Demoiselle— Built in November 1907, it had reinforced wings and an engine on the underside. It was never tested.

1908

Nº 20 Demoiselle — A modification of No. 19, considered to be the first practical ultralight aircraft. Santos Dumont Demoiselle.jpg

1909

Nº 21 Demoiselle — Equivalent to the previous model, but with a different engine. Alberto Santos-Dumont with Demoiselle.jpg
Nº 22 Demoiselle - Use of what had been learned previously. Demoiselle 22.jpg
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