Introduction
Air travel is one of the most integral components of the modern world. Using planes for reaching far-flung destinations has become so habitual that numerous industries actively rely on aircraft to function. Yet, today’s realities were a distant dream a century ago. The second half of the twentieth century bore witness to the unprecedented technological advancements that have laid the foundation for modern aircraft travel. Three particular innovations have played the most influential role in the history of aviation – the implementation of jet engines, overcoming the sound barrier, and reaching the Earth’s orbit. Without these advances, air travel in its modern form would not have been possible. The subsequent research question is: how did the jet engine, the ability to break the sound barrier and orbit the Earth affect the aviation industry? The purpose of this paper is to explore the effect that aircraft technologies discovered in the twentieth century had on the speed and convenience of air travel as well as other fields.
Jet Engine
The modern aviation industry prospers because it offers the fastest way of reaching a destination in the world. However, in the past, air travel was slow and not as efficient. In order to understand why air travel is the fastest means of transportation today, it is necessary to explore the technology of jet engine. Isaac Newton’s third law of motion “To every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction” serves as the basis behind it (Anderson et al., 2000, p. 332). A jet engine is a machine that produces thrust, which allows the aircraft to move. A fan sucks in air from the front, which is compressed in the combustion chamber. Once the compressed air is sprayed with fuel, it is ignited, which creates propulsion. When several jet engines are combined together, they can lift heavy objects from the ground and accelerate their speed.
Before the invention of the jet engine, aircraft was piston-powered. Meanwhile, commercial flights were represented by zeppelin airships, which were limited in speed. The necessity to increase the velocity has led to the invention of the jet engine. Although the technology had existed for decades, it was not until 1958, that commercial aviation started to use jet-powered aircraft. The first airliner that used this technology was the Boeing 707 which flew from New York to Paris on October 4, 1958 (Villamizar, 2021). This success showcased that commercial air travel can be done faster due to jet propulsion.
The Boeing 707 has revolutionized the aviation industry since the civil population received the opportunity to travel by air on an unprecedented scale. The Boeing Company itself started to specialize in the manufacturing of civil aviation. The economies of the world changed swiftly as the transportation of goods and people became faster and more accessible. As air travel became more widespread, air traffic rules were introduced regulating the movement of planes. The success of the Boeing 707 propelled further aircraft development, which made contemporary air travel safer and more convenient.
Overcoming Sound Barrier
However, almost all civil aircraft advances were precipitated by military development. The necessity for higher speed drove the industry to seek out more sophisticated solutions. Until 1940s, the speed of aircraft was substantially hindered by the sound barrier. Once the speed exceeds 1761 miles an hour, the amount of drug prevents the aircraft from accelerating further. Test fighters would experience extreme shaking and could even break up in some cases (Anderson et al., 2000). This phenomenon is known as the sound barrier, and it was a severe obstacle in the development of the aviation industry.
One way of addressing this limitation was to increase the altitude. The speed of sound is heavily influenced by the temperature. Warm air increases it, which causes the aircraft to experience turbulence. Meanwhile, cold temperature decreases the speed of sound, thus making the task of overcoming the barrier easier. In 1947, this hypothesis was proven true as a rocket-powered Bell X-1 overcame the speed of sound (Carlson, 2021). As soon as the barrier was broken, the shaking was reduced and the aircraft could fly smoothly.
Overcoming the sound barrier is common in modern aviation, as virtually any person can immediately recognize this phenomenon. Today, it can be easily spotted by the extremely loud sound of flying planes (Millbrooke, 2006). If an aircraft moves faster than the sound can catch up with it, then this airliner has broken the sonic barrier. It should be noted that modern commercial planes do not fly at such velocity due to the potential effect on the environment, even though they are technically capable of it.
Nevertheless, this achievement was significant for military aviation. The progression of the Cold War and the invention of nuclear weapons have placed substantial importance on delivery systems. The sooner an aircraft carrier could drop a bomb, the more effective it would be. The end of World War II has framed the use of aircraft in the delivery of nuclear weapons as an essential power projection capability. The ability to overcome the sound barrier was a milestone in the armed race.
Orbiting the Earth
As air superiority had already been an essential component of military doctrines, the next stage was achieving superiority in space. Although first space flights had already proven the possibility of leaving the atmosphere, the task of sustaining the carrier’s condition on the planet’s orbit was still pending for NASA (n.d.). Not only was it unclear whether the space craft could be recovered safely, but the human condition was questioned. The pressure to succeed was exacerbated by the Soviets’ accomplishments in the same field.
The mission with this aim “Mercury-Alas 6” was carried out on February 20, 1962. The vessel named “Friendship 7” was launched into orbit. Piloted by John Glenn, it performed three rotations around the planet, reentered the atmosphere and hit the surface of the North Atlantic Ocean (Burgess, 2015). John Glenn became a national celebrity and a public figure in the US. Most importantly, he was the first American astronaut to successfully reach and stay on the Earth’s orbit. Glenn’s flight solidified the US position in the space race and drew media attention to spaceflight programs.
Although the flight itself was highly symbolic, the technology had already been established. The specific invention that was accentuated by this event was the development of Friendship 7. It was the first American spacecraft that took an astronaut to orbit, as a part of a larger spaceflight program known as Project Mercury (Willingham & Simons, 2018). Glenn’s success spearheaded further development of the spaceflight industry. In 1968, the US astronauts became the first humans to leave the Earth’s orbit and reach the Moon. A year later, the landing on the Moon’s surface itself transpired.
The space race was originally designed to benefit the military and political agenda. However, the technology that allowed spacecraft to reach orbit, was used for scientific purposes as well. The International Space Station is a direct continuation of these developments, which allows humans to live on the Earth’s orbit and conduct research. Although commercial spaceflight has not become widespread and accessible yet, numerous initiatives explore this possibility. Without the space programs of the twentieth century and the invention of high-speed technologies, these conceptions would not have been the focus of discussion today.
Conclusion
Altogether, it should be evident that aircraft inventions carry over to numerous fields, making transportation easier, faster, and safer. The invention of the jet engine highlighted a new age of aircraft movement. It transformed previously slow and inefficient air travel into a fast means of transportation. However, it was not until the Boeing 707’s flight in 1958 that the jet engines were widespread in the sphere of commercial air flight. Meanwhile, aircraft developments furthered military objectives, as the sound barrier was broken in 1947. The fighter’s ability to accelerate beyond the speed of sound heralded a new stage in the sphere of delivery of strategic weapons. Finally, the invention of spacecraft that could leave the Earth’s atmosphere, orbit the Earth and return spearheaded the development of more advanced spaceflight technologies. These advancements have allowed astronauts to live in the Earth’s orbit for months. Aircraft inventions have been essential for the progress of mankind and continue to constitute an integral part of modern life.
References
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Carlson, M. (2021). Bell X-1: Dropping the orange beast that broke the sound barrier. Historynet. Web.
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