Nikola Tesla to New York Times 6-Jun-1908
Tesla scorns some of the latest airplane activities (such as those by Alberto Santos-Dumont), invoking classics Aerodrome A (Langley) and La France (Renard & Krebs) as "in my opinion better pieces of mechanism than their very latest imitations". He considers petroleum propulsion the only significant difference that has enabled the newer vessels to fly.
He considers ballooning more serious, successful, and important than aviation:
While the dirigible balloon is rapidly nearing the commercial stage, nothing practical has as yet been achieved with the heavier-than-air machine. Without exception the apparatus is flimsy and unreliable. The motor, too light for its power, gives out after a few minutes' run; the propeller and blades fly off; the rudder is broken, and, after a series of such familiar mishaps, there comes the inevitable and general smash-up. In strong contrast with these unnecessarily hazardous trials are the serious and dignified efforts of Count Zeppelin, who is building a real flying machine, safe and reliable, to carry a dozen men and provisions over distances of thousands of miles, and with a speed far in excess of those obtained with aeroplanes.
He is looking forward to wireless transmission of power.
He believes airplanes will not succeed in their present form:
The aeroplane of the Langley type, such as was used by Farman and others with some success, will hardly ever prove a practical aerial machine, because no provision is made for maintaining it in the air in a downward current. This and the perfect balance independently of the navigator's control is absolutely essential to the success of the heavier-than-air machine. These two improvements I am myself endeavoring to embody in a machine of my own design.
See also Nikola Tesla to New York Times 13-Sep-1908.
| Sender | Nikola Tesla |
|---|---|
| Recipient | New York Times |
| Date sent | 6-Jun-1908 |
| From location | letter to the editor |
| To location | New York City, US |
| Communication type | |
| Language | English |
| Refers to flight? | 1 |
| Tech fields | airplane, propulsion, petroleum, stability, frame, safety |
| Length (in words) | |
| Full text available |
