1
Wee.
Greetings winged scouts.
Hey, it's Commander Airhead.
Hello there Commander Airhead.
Gumdrop, Vroomer, it's that time again.
Your mission, should
you choose to accept it,
is to discover all about
the most fascinating machine of all.
Planes.
Planes.
Exactly.
You will travel all over
the world, across time,
space, and beyond.
You must keep your little
metal noses pointed ahead,
your motors humming and your
wings perked at all times,
we depend on you to do
the best job possible.
Are you ready for your assignment?
As ready as a long-winged
plane on a windy day Commander.
My engine's revving on overdrive.
We're ready for our
mission Commander Airhead.
This is sure to be a
challenging mission little ones.
Cloudless skies, oh I
love challenging missions.
Endless horizons, me too.
I'm sending you two on a mission
to learn about the world's fastest jets.
The world's fastest jets, how cool?
Yeah.
It's up to you to learn all about it
and report back to me with
what you've discovered.
Let's do it.
This is going to be
an incredible adventure.
What can you tell us about
the world's fastest jets,
Commander Airhead?
Well just imagine winged scouts,
pushing your throttles
back and feeling the rush
of your engines pushing
you to speeds faster
than anything alive has ever achieved.
Amazing, incredible, life changing.
Wow, I can't wait to find out more.
The world's fastest jets
sounds absolutely amazing.
As you know, Vroomer and
Gumdrop, to help educate
the little planes of the
future you must find out
and learn tons of amazing
facts about airplanes.
Yes Commander Airhead.
we will.
Excellent.
You must also know there is a question
that all the brightest flying minds,
all over the world skies
have not been able to answer
about the world's fastest jets.
We need you two winged
scouts to help us answer
the Who Flew question about
the world's fastest jets.
Who Flew question, love it.
What is the question Commander Airhead?
Which jet holds the record
for the longest hypersonic
flight in history,
and when was it set?
That's a great question
Commander Airhead.
We'll have the answer in
the flip of a wing, I'm sure.
I will assign you the
best winged scout helper
in the world, his name is Willie Widget,
he's a robotic encyclopedia
of aircraft knowledge.
He will assist you on your mission.
Our most valuable player.
Come on down Willie Widget.
Be sure to ask a lot of
questions winged scouts.
You know, Mr. Widget can handle it.
Yeah.
Winged scouts ready to
fly Commander Airhead.
Winged scouts.
Hurray.
Winged scouts.
Ha-ha ready to get started
on your next adventure?
Yes super ready.
Totally ready.
Remember winged scouts, any
and all questions you have
I am here to answer them.
Where do we begin?
On December 17th 1903, Orville Wright
finally achieved something
that mankind had dreamed of
for the entirety of human history.
He made the first sustained and controlled
heavier than air powered flight.
And even though that
pioneering flight was only
120 feet long, Orville and
brother Wilbur inspired
a thousand others to build bigger, better,
and above all faster flying
machines in the century
that followed their historic achievement.
Whoa.
There are very many
jets that have exceeded
the speed of Mach 2.0
some of them are research
aircraft, some are military
and some are simply flying
for reconnaissance purposes.
But, there is always something special
with supersonic aircraft.
To see some of the
fastest jets ever built,
we need to take a tour around the world.
Wings away guys.
Yeah.
In the United States, 47
years after it first flew
the f-15 was developed
by McDonnell Douglas,
now Boeing, and it was one of the first
to gain air supremacy in aerial combat.
The twin engine tactical
fighter first entered service
in the US air force in 1976
and has become one of their
longest lasting fighter
since that time.
Production of the model
is expected to continue
until the year 2019.
So what's the top speed of the f-15?
The McDonnell Douglas
f-15 eagle has a top speed
of 1,650 miles per hour.
Incredible, hit my plane brain
with more awesome plane
facts Willie Widget.
In Russia, the
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25 Foxbat
was a supersonic reconnaissance
and interceptor aircraft
that combined phenomenal speed
with advanced radar detection systems.
It did have one fundamental weakness,
which was its large wings
that were needed to lift
the exceptionally heavy
aircraft into the air.
It has a top speed of 2,190 miles per hour
and was eventually replaced
by the Mikoyan MiG-31.
Blasting engines, that's amazing.
The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird
is another United States jet
that was introduced in 1966,
only 32 Blackbirds were
built and all were used
for reconnaissance and
experimental research.
It featured stealth
technology, but if it was,
against all odds, spotted by enemy forces,
it could outrun the interceptors,
or surfaced air missiles
that were fired at it,
due to its fantastic speed
in excess of 2,300 miles per hour.
In air testing it
actually achieved a speed
of 2,600 miles per hour.
Zoinks, very fast indeed.
What happened next Willie?
Excellent question Gumdrop.
The SR-71 was flown
extensively over hostile ground
during the Vietnam war, despite
an estimated 800 missiles
being fired at the Blackbird,
not one single plane
was ever shut down,
although mechanical failures
plagued its reliability and
about 12 of them were lost
due to this problem.
Whoa.
So are all the fastest jets
always maned by humans?
That's a very good question
Vroomer, no, they are not.
In fact the fastest among
them are the unmanned jets
because they pose no danger to the pilots.
The Boeing X-51 Waverider
is one of these jets
that are capable of
hypersonic speeds in excess
of mach five.
The NASA X-43 is also
an unmanned aircraft.
Woohoo.
So what is the fastest
maned aircraft Willie?
The North American X-15
developed in the late 1950s
through a joint effort between
North American Aviation,
who created the air
frame, and Reaction Motors
who developed the engines,
is the fastest maned jet,
it's rocket powered and
capable of hypersonic speeds
in excess of 4,500 miles
per hour or mach six.
It broke the record for the
fastest speed ever achieved
by a maned jet.
Very nice.
So which is the fastest
unmanned aircraft Willie?
Excellent question
Vroomer, that will be,
the NASA X-43 which is
an experimental unmanned
hypersonic aircraft developed by NASA
as part of its Hyper-X program.
It is the fastest aircraft
on record with a top speed
of an incredible mach 9.6
or 7,310 miles per hour.
What is hypersonic speed Willie?
Very good question Vroomer,
I see you are paying attention
a hypersonic speed is one
that is highly supersonic
the term has generally been
assumed to refer to speeds
of mach five and above.
An example of a hypersonic jet is the X-15
which is rocket powered.
How do jets handle hypersonic speed?
New materials and very powerful engines
capable of handling high
temperatures and pressure
were developed to handle
this rate of speed.
Whoa.
What engines power the
fast SR-71 Blackbird jet?
The SR-71 Blackbird is powered by twin,
Pratt & Whitney J58 jets,
which are capable of producing
up to 34,000 pounds of thrust each.
Whoa, tooting turbines,
that's incredible.
Do you now that the SR-71 Blackbird
is still recognized as
the fastest fighter jet
and in over 25 years of
service has never once
been hit by a missile.
It was built to fly up to mach 3.4 speeds.
That's approximately 2,500
miles per hour on land.
Yipee.
Yay.
Over the years the aviation improvements
have come a long way, and these fast jets
are proof of that.
All of these machines
have very different aims.
Some are bombers, others are
fighters, some are interceptors
and one or two are
designed for stealth recon.
They all have one thing in common though.
The ability to fly very very very fast.
Blue skies.
Technological advances have ensured
the continual improvement of modern jets
as mankind looks to break existing records
and set new ones on the path to discovery.
Which jet holds the
record for the longest
hypersonic flight in history,
and, and when was it set?
The Boeing X-51 Waverider in May 2013
set the record for the longest
hypersonic flight in history.
It flew at speeds in excess of mach five
for 210 seconds.
Hey Gumdrop, I think
we just found the answer
to Commander Airhead Who Flew question.
You are right Vroomer
the Boeing X-51 Waverider
holds the record
for the longest hypersonic
flight in history.
Ah, congratulations
on finding the answer
to this mission's Who Flew
question, winged scouts.
Commander Airhead will be proud of you.
No pistons about it.
Fantastic work winged scouts.
Your mission was a great success.
I'm starting to really admire you two.
Vroum vroum, awesome.
Say were you, were you
able to find the answer
to this mission's Who Flew question?
Yes Commander Airhead we sure did.
The Boeing X-51
Waverider sets the record
for the longest hypersonic
flight in history.
The Boeing X-51 Waverider in May 2013
flew at speeds in excess of mach five
for 210 seconds, setting the record
for longest hypersonic flight in history.
That's great, good job winged scouts.
What's our next mission
Commander Airhead?
Your next mission is going
to be your most amazing yet.
We want you to learn about space shuttles.
Space shuttles, wow, cool!
For all the bumpy flights,
can't wait to get started.
Yay.
Winged scouts ready to
fly Commander Airhead.
Winged scouts.
Hurray.
I've always been
interested in space shuttles
and I've flown up up
up but I just can't get
into outer space.
That's probably a good thing Vroomer,
I don't think we're
equipped for outer space.
Gumdrop, Vroomer, gas up those engines
and get those propellers
spinning, it's that time again.
Your mission is to discover all about
the most fascinating machine of all.
Planes.
Planes.
Exactly.
You will travel all over the
world, across time and space
and beyond, you must keep
your little metal noses
pointed ahead, your motors humming
and your wings perked at all times.
We depend on you to do
the best job possible.
Are you ready for your assignment?
Whoop whoop we're mega ready.
My chassis is quaking
with anticipation commander.
Plane scouts, ready for our
mission Commander Airhead.
This is sure to be a
challenging mission little ones.
Looking forward to it, I
love challenging missions.
You're not the only one Gumdrop.
I'm sending you two on a mission
to learn about space shuttles.
Space shuttles, yes.
Can't wait.
It's up to you to learn all about it,
and report back to me with
what you've discovered.
Flapping fun wings.
We're gonna have an awesome time.
What can you tell us
about the space shuttles
Commander Airhead?
Mankind finally figured out
how to launch space shuttles
only a few decades ago,
though up until the present
only five space shuttles
have been launched.
Wow, I can't wait to find out more.
Space shuttles, sounds
absolutely amazing.
As you know, Vroomer and Gumdrop,
as part of your mission description,
you must find out and
learn tons of amazing facts
about flying machines.
Yes Commander Airhead.
Vroom vroom, we will.
Excellent.
You must also know that there's a question
that all the brightest flying
minds all over the world skies
have not been able to
answer about space shuttles.
We need you two winged
scouts to help us answer
the Who Flew question
about space shuttles.
Who Flew question, love it.
What is the question Commander Airhead?
Which US president
commissioned the development
of the first space shuttle
to travel into space
and in what year?
That's a great question
Commander Airhead.
I will assign you the
best winged scout helper
in the world, his name is Willie Widget.
He is a robotic encyclopedia
of aircraft knowledge.
He will assist you on your mission.
We can't fail with Willie.
Yay.
We can never get too much Willie Widget.
Be sure to ask a lot of
questions winged scouts.
And may the wind stay under your wings.
Yay.
Winged scouts ready to
fly Commander Airhead.
Winged scouts.
Hurray.
Winged scouts, ready to get started
on your next adventure?
Yes super ready.
Oh totally ready.
Remember winged scouts,
any and all questions you
have, I'm here to answer them.
Where do we begin?
In the US.
Here the space shuttle was a spacecraft
which was used by the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration or NASA.
Space shuttles were
used to carry astronauts
and cargo into space.
In the 1970s the prototype
craft, Enterprise,
was launched but it was
only used for tests,
and never flew into space.
The first space shuttle the Columbia,
was launched in April
of 1981 and since then,
a total of five shuttles
were built and launched.
Whoa.
The shuttle launches like a rocket,
orbits like a spacecraft
and lands like a plane.
The space shuttle is
one of the most complex
and innovative machines ever built.
It was a huge leap in technology
when the first shuttle
was launched as it represented
the first ever spacecraft
that was reusable.
Really, that's very smart.
The first space shuttle,
enterprise, orbital vehicle 101
or ov 101 was not built
for space missions.
It was used for unpowered test flights
at NASA Dryden test flight center
at the Edwards Air Force
base in California.
The shuttle was lifted atop a modified
Boeing 747 shuttle carrier aircraft,
and made five test flights
totalling 19 minutes
of free flight.
The first flight was made in August 1977
and the last in October of that same year.
Where is this space
shuttle Enterprise now?
The Enterprise is on display
at the Smithsonian Institution's
Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
near Washington D.C USA.
When Discovery replaces it at the museum,
Enterprise will be moved
to the Intrepid Sea, Air &
Space Museum in New York.
Really, I'll make sure
to visit and check it out.
The Columbia was the first
shuttle to fly to space
and as the oldest member of the fleet
it was slightly heavier
than its successors,
which benefited from
advances in technology.
The first four flights of
Columbia put the space craft
through its paces.
It was equipped with ejection seats,
activated for the first test flights
and removed after the ninth flight.
Blasting engines, that's amazing.
The Columbia was
destroyed during re-entry
in February 2003, when
it was coming back home
from its 28th flight, sadly,
all seven astronauts aboard
died from the crash.
How sad.
What happened next Willie?
Excellent question Gumdrop.
The Challenger was built
as structural test article,
STA 099, after studying the work needed
to make Enterprise space worthy,
NASA calculated that it was
less expensive to rebuild
STA 099 as ov 099.
The challenger made its first
flight on the sts six mission
in April 1983 and became the work course
of NASA's fleet during the early
years of shuttle operations
Challenger flew on 85% of all missions,
up to 1985.
The Challenger was
destroyed during the launch
of its 10th mission,
in January 1986, again,
killing seven crew members.
Oh no, sad factoid.
After the destruction of the
Challenger, what happened?
That's a very good question Vroomer.
The hardest working shuttle
of all, the Discovery,
made 39 successful missions
across 27 years of service
since its first launch in August 1984.
It was used to deliver the
Hubble space telescope into orbit
it was the shuttle tasked with the two
return to flight missions
after the Challenger
and Columbia accidents.
Amazing.
What about the fourth
space shuttle to be built?
The Atlantis was the
fourth vehicle built.
Since October 1985, it
has flown 32 missions.
In 1989 it deployed the
unmanned spacecrafts
Magellan to Venus, and Galileo to Jupiter.
It lofted the Compton
Gamma-Ray Observatory
to orbit in 1991 as well.
Atlantis was the first shuttle
to dock with a space station,
when it linked up with Russia's
Mir space station in 1995.
It also delivered Europe's
Columbus laboratory
to the International
Space Station in 2008.
Whoa that's an amazing machine.
Which space shuttle
was the quickest Willie?
Excellent question Vroomer.
According to statistics,
the Atlantis was the fastest
built space shuttle as it
took only about half the time
it took to complete the first
operational craft, Columbia.
The Atlantis has also had the
fewest technical problems.
And where is the
Atlantis space shuttle now?
Very good question Vroomer.
After it was decommissioned,
the Atlantis space shuttle
was handed over to the
Kennedy Space Center
visitor complex for display.
Cool, hey, what spacecraft
is the youngest member
of the space shuttle program?
The Endeavor is the
youngest fleet member,
making its maiden voyage in may of 1992.
It was built as a
replacement for Challenger,
using the spare structural
parts of Discovery and Atlantis.
It was the first shuttle at
the International Space Station
in 1998, delivering node one,
the station's first US element
Whoa, how many space
missions did the Endeavor fly?
The Endeavor completed 25 space missions
before it was decommissioned.
Whoa, tooting turbines,
that's incredible.
The Endeavor was the last space shuttle
launched into space in September 2010.
It was also the 134th
space shuttle flight.
Woohoo.
Yay.
Ha, it takes only eight
minutes for the space shuttle
to accelerate to a speed of
more than 17,000 miles per hour.
The lift off weight of the space shuttle
is 4.5 million pounds.
The main engine on the
space shuttle weighs as much
as a train locomotive, but
puts out as much horsepower
as 39 locomotives.
That's massive.
The space shuttle systems
has four major components,
two solid rocket boosters,
the external tank,
three main engines and
the orbiter add-ons.
The external fuel tank is the only part
that cannot be reused as it
burns up in the atmosphere
after launch.
I have a question.
Which president
commissioned the development
of the first space shuttle
to travel into space,
and in what year?
President Richard Nixon
announced the intent to develop
the first space shuttle
for travel into space
on January 5th, 1972.
Hey Gumdrop, I think
we just found the answer
to Commander Airhead's Who Flew question.
You are right Vroomer.
President Richard Nixon holds the record
for the president to commission
the first space shuttle travel into space.
Congratulations on finding the answer
to this mission's Who Flew
question winged scouts.
Commander Airhead will be proud of you.
No thunderclouds about it.
Fantastic work winged scouts.
Your mission was a great success.
You're well on your way
to being our most valuable
fleet members ever.
Awesome.
Say, were you able to find the answer
to this mission's Who Flew question?
Yes Commander Airhead we sure did.
President Richard Nixon holds the record
for the president to commission the first
space shuttle travel into space.
President Richard Nixon
announced the intent
to develop the first space
shuttle for travel into space
on January 5th 1972.
That's great.
Good job winged scouts.
What's our next mission
Commander Airhead?
Your next mission is going
to be your most incredible yet.
We want you to learn about seaplanes.
Seaplanes, wow, cool.
For all the bumpy flights,
can't wait to get started.
Yay, winged scouts, ready
to fly Commander Airhead.
Winged scouts.
Hurray.
I thought about becoming a
seaplane a couple of times.
Can we do that?
Well as the aviation world
shows us winged scouts,
with a little know how and
ingenuity, anything is possible.
This is sure to be a
challenging mission little ones.
Stormy skies challenging?
Full throttles ahead.
I am sending you two on a mission
to learn about, seaplanes.
Seaplanes, how cool.
Yes, I love seaplanes.
It's up to you to learn all about it,
and report back to me with
what you've discovered.
Take off tastic.
This is going to be
an incredible adventure.
What can you tell us
about the seaplanes, Commander Airhead?
Seaplanes are pretty amazing machines.
They are motor powered,
fixed wing aircraft
that can take off and land on water.
Wow, I can't wait to find out more.
Seaplanes sound super sweet.
As you know Vroomer and Gumdrop
to win the annual Planes
with Brains contest,
you must find out and
learn tons of amazing facts
about airplanes.
Yes Commander Airhead.
we will.
Excellent.
You must also know there
is a question that all
of the brightest flying minds
all over the world skies
have not been able to
answer about seaplanes.
We need you two winged
scouts to help us answer
the Who Flew question about seaplanes.
Who Flew question, love it.
What is the question Commander Airhead?
What seaplane completed the
first 'round the world flight?
And who was the pilot.
That's a great question
Commander Airhead.
We'll have the answer in the
spin of a propeller, I'm sure
I will assign you the
best winged scout helper
in the world, his name is Willie Widget.
He's a robotic encyclopedia
of aircraft knowledge.
He will assist you on your mission.
Oh yeah, we can't go
wrong with the Widg.
Ha ha, Willie's the bomb.
Be sure to ask a lot of
questions winged scouts.
You can never possess too much knowledge.
Yay.
Winged scouts ready to
fly Commander Airhead.
Winged scouts.
Hurray.
Winged scouts, ready to get
started on your next adventure
Yes, super ready.
Totally ready.
Remember winged scouts, any
and all questions you have
I am here to answer them.
Where do we begin?
Let's start in the land of
the Eiffel Tower and croissants
let's start in France.
The French man Alphonse
Penaud filled the first patent
for a flying machine with a boat hull
and retractable landing gear in 1876.
Follow me guys, let's
take a quick fly over
into Austria next.
Here, Austrian Wilhelm Kress
is credited with building
the first seaplane,
Drachenflieger in 1898.
Although its two engines
were inadequate for take off
and it later sank when one
of its two floats collapsed.
Whoa.
In the early years, many
pioneers made various attempts
to attach floats to aircraft
in Britain, Australia,
France and the United States.
But most of them met with
little or no success.
Bummer.
Super sea drag.
In 1905, Gabriel Voisin
took off and landed
on the river Seine towed
kite glider on floats.
The first of his unpowered
flights went 150 yards.
He later built a powered floatplane
in partnership with Louis Bleriot,
but the machine was unsuccessful.
What's a floatplane Willie?
A floatplane has slender
pontoons, or floats,
mounted under the fuselage.
Two floats are common and only
the floats of a floatplane
normally come into contact with the water.
The fuselage remains above water.
Some small land aircraft can be modified
to become floatplanes and in general,
floatplanes are small
aircraft, they're limited
by their inability to handle high waves.
Incredible.
Hit my plane brain with more
cool H2O factoids Willie.
In march 1910, Frenchman Henri Fabre
flew the first successful
powered seaplane,
the Gnome Omega-powered
hydravion, a trimaran floatplane.
Fabre's first successful
take off and landing
by a powered seaplane
inspired other aviators,
and he designed floats
for several other flyers.
Blasting engines, that's amazing.
The first hydro-aeroplane
competition was held in Monaco
in 1912, featuring aircraft using floats
from Fabre, Curtiss, Tellier and Farman.
This led to the first scheduled
seaplane passenger services,
using a five-seat Sanchez-Besa.
The French Navy ordered its
first floatplane in 1912.
Very interesting.
What happened next?
Excellent question Gumdrop.
In Switzerland, Emile Taddeoli
equipped the Dufaux 4 biplane
with swimmers and
successfully took off in 1912.
A seaplane was used during
the Balkan Wars in 1913,
when a Greek Astra Hydravion
did a reconnaissance
of the Turkish fleet
and dropped four bombs.
The breakout of World
War one saw advancement
in flying boat designs with
better practical hulls.
The Model H-4, the Curtiss H-12
and the Felixstowe F-1
to F-5, the Curtiss F-5L
and Macchi M.5 and the
German Hansa-Brandenburg GW
are some of the earliest
successful seaplanes.
Whoa, fun factoid,
but, uh, how did we get
from those small seaplanes to
the sleek, modern seaplanes?
That's a very good question Vroomer.
World War two also saw the
need for improved seaplanes
but the end of the war saw a
rapid decline in their use.
They lost the water advantage
due to the increased
availability of land airports.
The Canadian Viking Twin Otter 400S,
is one of the world's best seaplanes.
It is designed for the
commercial sector for short
to medium length flights.
The Viking 400S has a 20
passenger carrying capacity
and is a big development
in the seaplane community.
Woohoo.
What advantage do aircraft
have over seaplanes Willie?
Because the flotation structures
offer greater resistance
to the air than wheel type landing gear,
seaplanes were, until
recently, less efficient
and slower for any given
horsepower requirement
than land based aircraft.
However, developments
in small and retractable
flotation structures have
eliminated that inefficiency
and have made supersonic jet
powered seaplanes possible.
Whoa, really, impressive.
What are the other
modern seaplanes Willie?
Excellent question Vroomer.
The SeaMax M-22, which can be powered
using premium auto fuel,
is a modern seaplane
with awesome features.
The Cessna 206 on Wipline 3450 floats
is another awesome sleek seaplane.
What seaplanes are great
for family trips Willy?
Very good question Vroomer.
The Seawind 300c's
cabin can fit two adults
and three children, it
has a panoramic view,
which is an awesome
feature for those wishing
to take in the sights.
It is also fast, with a cruising
speed of 190 miles per hour
making it a great choice for family trips.
What other countries
build modern seaplanes?
The Chinese Jiaolong AG600 also called,
the World's Largest
Flying Boat, is currently
the largest seaplane in the
world, the French startup
Lisa Airplanes also have the Akoya,
which is more than just a
seaplane as it can operate
on land, water and snow.
Whoa, which is currently
the best seaplane?
The ICON A5 amphibious
light-sport aircraft
debuted in 2014 and is a
next generation seaplane.
It's really light, with
foldable wings for easy towing
behind your car, like
a boat, and it can run
on aviation fuel or regular gasoline
available at any gas station.
Whoa, turbo toots.
That's incredible.
The largest seaplane ever
built is the Hughes H-4 Hercules
and it was mainly
constructed with plywood.
The Hughes H-4 Hercules
had a wingspan of 332 feet
and a cruise speed of 250 miles per hour.
It's actually disputed
whether it flew once or never.
What?
I guess they can't get the facts right.
The Saunders-Roe SR.A/1 is the first
jet seaplane ever built, it
had a maximum speed of 445
miles per hour.
Only three were built and
two of those were lost
to testing accidents.
Stormy skies.
The fastest jet seaplane ever built
is the Convair F2Y Sea
Dart, with a top speed
of 825 miles per hour.
It's also the world's
only supersonic seaplane.
I have a question.
What seaplane completed the
first 'round the world flight?
And who was the pilot?
In December 1990,
pilot Tom Casey completed
the first 'round the
world flight in a seaplane
with only water landings,
using a Cessna 206,
named Liberty 2.
Hey Gumdrop, I think
we just found the answer
to Commander Airhead's Who Flew question.
You are right Vroomer.
The Cessna 206, named Liberty 2,
holds the record for first
'round the world flight
on a seaplane.
Ah, congratulations
on finding the answer
to this mission's Who Flew
question winged scouts.
Commander Airhead will be proud
of you, no pistons about it.
Fantastic work winged scouts.
Your mission was a great success.
You two scouts are
impressive beyond words.
Yeah, you know us.
Say, were you able to find
the answer to this mission's
Who Flew question?
Yes Commander Airhead we sure did.
A Cessna 206 holds the record for first
'round the world flight on a seaplane.
In December 1990, Pilot
Tom Casey set the record
for first 'round the world
flight in a seaplane,
with only water landings using
a Cessna 206 named Liberty 2
That's great, good job winged scouts.
What's our next mission
Commander Airhead?
Your next mission is going
to be your most incredible yet.
We want you to learn
about hot air balloons.
Hot air balloons, wow, how cool.
For all the bumpy flights,
can't wait to get started.
Yay.
Winged scouts ready to
fly Commander Airhead.
Winged scouts.
Hurray.
Hey Gumdrop, this one will
be right over your cloud,
you're totally full of hot air.
Oh very funny wise guy.
Today's mission is to discover all about
the most fascinating machine of all.
Flying machines.
Flying machines.
Yes, you will travel all over the world,
across time, space, and beyond.
You must keep your little
metal noses pointed ahead
your motors humming and your
wings perked at all times.
We depend on you to do
the best job possible.
Are you ready for your assignment?
Wow my little wings are
fluttering with thrills.
My little motor is
vrooming with excitement.
Plane scouts ready for our
mission Commander Airhead.
This is sure to be a
challenging mission little ones.
Fluffy white clouds I
love challenging missions.
Brilliant blue skies, me too.
I am sending you two on a mission
to learn about hot air balloons.
Hot air balloons wow cool.
Can't wait.
It's up to you to learn all about it
and report back to me with
what you've discovered.
Flying fuselages.
This is going to be a
totally fun adventure.
What can you tell us
about the hot air balloons
Commander Airhead?
The first dream of flight
began with the early use
of unmanned hot air balloons in China,
during the three kingdoms
era from 220 to 280 A.D.,
these unmanned balloons were
used as airborne lanterns
for military signaling.
These lanterns are known
as Kongming lanterns.
Wow, I can't wait to find out more.
Hot air balloons sounds
absolutely amazing.
As you know Vroomer and Gumdrop,
to deliver what we need
here, you must find out
and learn tons of amazing
facts about hot air balloons
which are also a flying
mode of transportation.
They're our cousins in the air.
Yes Commander Airhead.
Balloon cousins?
Fun.
Excellent, you must also
know there is a question
that all the brightest flying
minds all over the world skies
have not been able to answer
about hot air balloons.
We need you two winged
scouts to help us answer
the Who Flew question
about hot air balloons.
Who Flew question, love it.
What is the question Commander Airhead?
Who completed the first
'round the world flight
in a hot air balloon and in what year?
That's a great question
Commander Airhead.
We'll have the answer in
a gust of wind I'm sure.
I will assign you
the best winged scout helper in the world.
His name is Willie Widget,
he's a robotic encyclopedia
of aircraft knowledge
and he will assist you one your mission.
Willie, Willie, he's our bot of bots.
Bring out Willie.
Be sure to ask a lot of
questions winged scouts,
Willie's big brain
downloads are the fastest
and best information shots around.
Just try him.
Yay, winged scouts ready
to fly Commander Airhead.
Winged scouts.
Hurray.
Winged scouts, ready to get started
on your next adventure?
Yes super ready.
Totally ready.
Remember winged scouts, any
and all questions you have
I'm here to answer them.
Where do we begin?
The history of ballooning,
both with hot air and gas,
spans many centuries.
It has been demonstrated
that manned hot air balloons
can be built using ancient materials.
Before the 18th century,
the mongolian army
studied Kongming lanterns
from China and used them
in the battle of Legnica
during the mongol invasion of Poland.
This is the first time
ballooning was known
in the western world.
Right.
To trace the beginning of when man
had the first dream of
flight, we need to go back
all the way to the 17th
and 18th centuries.
Let's take a tour around
the world and visit
some of the early fathers of flying.
Yeah.
Here we are scouts.
On September 19th 1783 in
Annonay, Ardeche, France,
two brothers, Joseph-Michel
and Jacques-Etienne Montgolfier
built a hot air balloon
and publicly demonstrated
an unmanned flight which
lasted for about 10 minutes.
After experimenting with unmanned balloons
the first balloon flight
with humans aboard,
a tethered flight, performed in 1783,
by Jean-Francois Pilatre de Rozier
who made at least one
tethered flight from the yard
of the Reveillon workshop in
the Faubourg Saint-Antoine.
Later that same day,
Pilatre de Rozier became the second human
to ascend into the air,
reaching an altitude of 85
feet, the length of the tether.
What's an unmanned flight Willie?
Unmanned flight refers to flying objects
of any kind with no
human pilot or passenger,
that is either uncontrolled
or remotely controlled.
Incredible.
Hit my plane brain
with more balloon factoids, Willie Widget.
In 1785, French balloonist
Jean-Pierre Blanchard
and his American co-pilot John Jeffreys
became the first people to fly
across the english channel.
In these early days of
ballooning, the english channel
was considered the first step
to long-distance ballooning.
So this was a large benchmark
in ballooning history.
Unfortunately this same
year, Pilatre de Rozier
was killed in his attempt
at crossing the channel.
His balloon exploded half
an hour after takeoff.
Due to the experimental design
of using a hydrogen balloon
and hot air balloon tied together.
Blasting engines, that's too bad.
The word pilot is derived from Pilatre,
named after Pilatre de
Rozier, the first person
to command an areal vehicle.
Very interesting.
What else Willie?
On January 7th, 1793,
Jean-Pierre Blanchard
set another record and
became the first person
to fly a hot air balloon in North America.
George Washington was present
to see the balloon launch.
Whoa, fun factoid.
But how did we get from
those really slow baskets
to modern hot air balloons with engines?
That's a very good question Vroomer.
Over one hundred years
later in August of 1932,
a Swiss scientist named Auguste Piccard
became the first to achieve
a manned flight to the stratosphere.
He reached a height of 52,498 feet,
setting the new altitude record.
Over the next couple of years,
altitude records continued
to be set and broken
every couple of months.
The race was on to see who
would reach the highest point.
This was the turning point
in hot air ballooning.
Woohoo.
So who is the father
of modern hot air
ballooning Willie Widget?
Ed Yost is credited with
developing the modern,
propane burning hot air balloon.
His development work was conducted under
a US military contract, in October 1955,
Ed flew his first prototype
of a kerosene powered tethered balloon.
This balloon, which was
made up of plastic film
had several problems which
he worked on until October,
when he made his first free flight
in a propane powered hot air
balloon from Bruning, Nebraska.
This first flight is
reported to have lasted
for one hour and 35 minutes.
Ed continued to refine
his design, and in 1963,
made the first crossing
of the english channel
in a hot air balloon.
Whoa, very daring.
Who won the Atlantic challenge Willie?
Excellent question Vroomer.
In 1978, the Double Eagle
2 became the first balloon
to cross the atlantic,
another major benchmark
in the history of ballooning.
After many unsuccessful attempts,
the expensive ocean was finally crossed
by a helium filled model,
carrying three passengers.
Ben Abruzzo, Maxie
Anderson and Larry Newman.
They set a new flight
duration time of 137 hours.
That's nearly six days.
Who won the pacific challenge Willie?
Very good question Vroomer,
I see you are paying attention.
The first pacific crossing
was achieved in 1981.
The Double Eagle 5, launched
from Japan on November 10th
and landed 84 hours later
in Mendocino National Forest, California.
The four pilots set a new
distance record of 5,678 miles.
In 1984, captain Jo
Kittinger flew 3,535 miles
on the first solo
transatlantic balloon fight,
setting yet another record.
Who holds the record
for highest solo flight
in a hot air balloon?
In 1988, Per Lindstrand set the record
for highest solo flight ever
recorded in a hot air balloon.
65,000 feet.
Whoa, how does the hot air balloon work?
The basis of how the
balloon works is that
warmer air rises in cooler air.
This is because hot air
is lighter than cool air
as it has less mass per unit of volume.
Mass can be defined by the
measure of how much matter
something contains, the
actual balloon has to be
so large because it takes such
a large amount of heated air
to lift it off the ground.
For example, to lift 1,000
pounds worth of weight,
you would need almost 65,000
cubic feet of heating air.
To help keep the balloon
in the air and rising,
hot air needs to be prepare
upwards into the envelope
using the burner.
Whoa.
Tooting turbines, that's incredible.
A hot air balloon is made
up of three main parts.
The envelope, which is
the actual fabric balloon
which holds the air, the
burner, which is the unit
which propels the heat
up inside the envelope,
and the basket, which
is where the passengers
and pilots stand during the flight.
Weehee.
The burner of a hot air
balloon uses propane gas
to heat up the air in the
envelope, moving the balloon
off the ground and into the
air, the pilot must keep
firing the burner at regular
intervals throughout the flight
to ensure that the balloon remains stable.
Naturally, the hot air will
not escape from the hole
at the very bottom of the
envelope, as, firstly,
hot air rises and secondly, the
buoyancy keeps it moving up.
Cool skies.
In 1784, Miss Thible was the first woman
to ever fly in a hot air balloon.
Who completed the first
'round the world flight
in a hot air balloon and in what year?
Bertrand Picard and Brian
Jones set the world record
for the first around the world
flight in a hot air balloon
in 1999, starting from
Switzerland and landing in Africa,
they also set new distance
records, flying for 19 days,
21 hours and 55 minutes.
Hey Gumdrop, I think we just found out
the answer to Commander
Airhead's Who Flew question.
You are right Vroomer, Bertrand Picard
and Brian Jones hold the world record
for the first around the world
flight in a hot air balloon.
Congratulations on finding the answer
to this mission's Who Flew
question winged scouts,
Commander Airhead will be proud of you.
No pistons about it.
Fantastic work winged scouts.
Your mission was a great success.
You've both far exceeded my expectations
with these missions, genius lads.
awesome.
Say, were you able to find the answer
to this mission's Who Flew question?
Yes Commander Airhead, we sure did.
Bertrand Picard and Brian Jones
hold the world record for the first
around the world flight
in a hot air balloon.
Bertrand Picard and Brian
Jones set the world record
for the first around the world flight
in a hot air balloon in 1999,
starting from Switzerland
and landing in Africa, they
also set new distance records
flying for 19 days, 21
hours and 55 minutes.
That's great, good job winged scouts.
What's our next mission
Commander Airhead?
Your next mission is going
to be your most incredible yet
we want you to learn about helicopters.
Helicopters, wow, cool.
For all the bumpy flights,
can't wait to get started.
Yay, winged scouts ready
to fly Commander Airhead.
Winged scouts.
Hurray.
I knew a helicopter once,
he was kind of flighty.
Flighty he said.
Oh my goodness.