On December 17, 1903, two bicycle repairmen by the names of Orville and Wilbur took flight for 12 seconds at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. This "miracle at Kitty Hawk" marked the invention of the first airplane, which would redefine American society and culture in the 20th century.
With the airplane came a change in industry. In the beginning of the 20th century, trains were the popular method of delivering mail. It took 3-4 days and 3 cents to deliver mail. After the flight of the Wright Brothers in 1903, the US postal service began experimenting with airmail. By 1918, a couple of planes left over from World War I made up the first official airmail service. Americans weren't immediately hooked to this new form of mailing. Planes were still relatively new, and Americans worried about their cargo. Airmail was also much more expensive than mail by train: it only cost 3 cents to mail by train but 24 by plane. Although planes delivered mail 2 days faster than trains, the costs and accidents outweighed speedier delivery for Americans at the time. However, as airplanes improved, Americans would come to favor planes over trains.
Not only were trains beginning to lose mail service to planes, they were also losing passengers. By 1930s and 1940s, airlines like Trans World Airlines were offering air travel that was safer than the overcrowded highways. The invention of the airplane was a major setback for the struggling railroads. As more and more services were offered by airlines, railroads would fall under the shadow of this new industry.
Charles A. Lindbergh would become a household name in 1927. In The Spirit of St. Louis, Lindbergh flew from New York to Paris in 33 hours. His journey was a significant advance in air travel for there was now proof that the Atlantic Ocean could be traversed. Americans were captivated by this young hero because to them, he represented the ideal American man: courageous and individualistic. On his return to New York, Lindbergh was showered with confetti and Americans celebrated like they had won the war. However, Lindbergh's achievement was a blow to American foreign policies. As the world grew smaller, the idea of isolationism dwindled. America could now longer hide behind the Atlantic Ocean from European conflicts because now the ocean could be crossed with relative ease.
While it had many positive impacts on American culture, the airplane was unfortunately a lethal weapon in warfare. In World War II, city bombings were carried out by planes and would leave cities in ruins. Many debate whether the plane was a blessing or curse, but no matter its consequences, it is evident that the invention of the airplane would redefine America in the 20th century.
Sources:
"Fad to Fundamental: Airmail in America." Fad to Fundamental: Airmail in America. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.
"Impact of Wright Flyer." The Wright Flyer. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.
"The Wright Brothers | Who Were Wilbur & Orville." The Wright Brothers | Who Were Wilbur & Orville. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2015.
The immense popularity of Charles Lindbergh led to the rise in fame of other famous pilots, including Amelia Earhart, who was the first female pilot to fly across the Atlantic Ocean in 1932. Although her gender was a major factor in her star status, she could not have accomplished her mission without the airplane. The airplane helped Earhart gain her popularity, but she also used the airplane to prove that women could be equal to men.
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http://www.biography.com/people/amelia-earhart-9283280#legacy
It is interesting to see how the plane has been a medium to help individuals prove themselves to other people like Jannitta stated previously. On a broader scheme, this same idea applied to how America's use of the plane, or more specifically Charles Lindbergh, proved to the rest of the world that America was a country to look out for. It's weird to think that something that opens up America's doors to the rest of the world almost makes America want to shrink deeper into itself again. I think what was really important was that America needed to decide for itself what it really wanted (isolation or an open market) before it pursued this type of technology.
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http://www.ibiblio.org/pha/policy/1941/1941-05-20a.html
Showing the many interesting advancements that airplanes allowed I like how you also included the mishaps and misfortunes of the airplane, including its desinations in WWII. The airplane as you described was a fabulous invention and affected the lives of most Americans in the time of its invention with the beginning of a new era to those who use it daily today. I do not know anybody today who has not been on an airplane showing how much it has affected the world but I also know of many plane crashes and bombings used with airplanes and I think that in this time period of your article you show both the positives and negatives of airplanes which makes your writing that much stronger.
ReplyDeleteDo you think the invention of the airplane during this time affected how many people make use of it today? Do you think if it was invented before or after it was invented it would be used differently from today?
Deletesource-https://www.quora.com/How-many-passenger-planes-fly-each-day
It is interesting that you call the plane's lethality unfortunate. It seems that the planes that America had were very helpful in their ability to aid in the European war effort. Perhaps this was a reference to the bombings at Pearl Harbor and Hiroshima, due to the fact that planes were the only way to drop the new and frightening invention of the atomic bomb. This essay does a good job of highlighting the changes that the airlines have created, as well as linking the primary function that changed the transportation game.
ReplyDeleteThe invention of the airplane in itself was a long and arduous process. For centuries, inventors had been searching for a way to power flights for extended periods of time. For example, Leonardo da Vinci made the first real studies of flight; his drawings illustrating his ideas for flying machines set the basis for modern-day vehicles of flight. Numerous aviators attained extended periods of flight using gliders, but the Wright brothers were really the first ones to successfully incorporate an engine into the plane's design to attain steady flight. They themselves worked for years on the design, using wind tunnels to test the interactions between the wings of the plane and the air. After many years of hard work and experimentation, the invention of the airplane catalyzed further innovations that eased transportation and delivery, as mentioned.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.grc.nasa.gov/www/k-12/UEET/StudentSite/historyofflight.html