FlyPower In History

The Origins of Fly Powered aircraft remain one of the great unsolved mysteries in insect aviation. A clay tablet unearthed outside the historical city of Ur in modern day Syria describes the functioning a fly's wings but gives no reference to transposing that into any kind of air powered vehicle. It has been dated to 2430 B.C..

Hieroglyphics from Egypt during the reign of Nefru (1650 B.C. ) chronicle the fly and how their extraordinary abilities might in some way provide clues to the Pharaohs journey into the after life. Again, no reference was made to any form of craft styled after flies but Egyptologists continue to unearth more writings concerning the High Priests near obsession with the concept.

Closer to our own time, Roman scholars began rudimentary investigations into the fly world as this encryption from Ephesus in Turkey will attest. It was found on the burial tomb of a Roman traveler who had come to Ephesus . No more information is available as the tomb has been vandalized over the years. Even the name of the researcher has been lost in the dust of time.

Great minds throughout history have been fascinated by the possibilities of harnessing Insect Energy. The underregognized, yet famously inventive, Nikoli Tesla (1856-1943) was among them. The following is an excerpt from a book about his life detailing some of his early experiments:

"His sixteen-bug-power motor was, likewise, not an unqualified success. This was a light contrivance made of splinters forming a windmill, with a spindle and pulley attached to live June bugs. When the glued insects beat their wings, as they did desperately, the bug-power engine prepared to take off. This line of research was forever abandoned however when a young friend dropped by who fancied the taste of June bugs. Noticing a jarful standing near, he began cramming them into his mouth. The youthful inventor threw up.''
Adopted from "Tesla: Man out of time", by Margaret Cheney, 1981.

The current designs for Fly Powered aircraft begun in earnest during the 1940's, in California. Two eminent scientists, Dr. Tim Sharon and Dr. Richard Brewer published a paper on the subject tracing the design and discovery of FlyPower in The Journal of Irreproducible Results.

Dr. Brewer is given credit with manufacturing the first prototype fly powered airplane in 1949. His design is reproduced below. It used balsa wood for the fuselage , and cellophane from Lucky Strike cigarette packages for the wings.

Reportedly Dr. Brewers prototype plane was delivered to the Smithsonian Institute's National Air and Space Museum during the 1960's. An article in Smithsonian Magazine of September 1978 gave details of the acquisitions and sparked a renewed interest in FlyPower. We were previously unaware of the whereabouts of these planes until we received the following letter from a viewer on June 18th. Greg Norton wrote to tell us:

I forget where I first heard about fly-powered models... possibly in a model airplane magazine. Anyway I am fascinated by all things airborne, from albatrosses to zepplins, and I always got a chuckle when I heard about these things. You mentioned in your history section that you weren't sure what had happened two planes that were sent to National Air & Space Museum in Washington DC. Guess where they are? ON DISPLAY! The last few times I've been there, (less than a year ago) there have been two models on display, a single engine and a "twin!" I forget whether the twin was an in-line or side by side...how would you "synch-up" the two flies to get the thing to go straight?!!! Anyway they can be located in the model airplane display case near the entrance to the gift shop. Look on the side farthest from the shop. That's it! I just wanted to let you know that the planes that started it all are being given their due respect in our nation's capitol. Sincerely, Greg Norton

Thanks Greg ! All for all the rest of you who thought we were full of s*#t, See..... This stuff is for real !

Other designs seem to mimic Dr. Brewers original concept. An Article in Esquire Magazine purportedly from 1990, contained instructions and illustrations of how to make a fly powered airplane. The design and attached instructions are a formula for disaster, as you can see from the illustration we obtained. This plane would never function, and surely result in a nose dive straight into the ground. So much for second rate imitators.

Of all the designs, both imagined and real, the best and most versatile is the FlyPower design. Not only does it allow for infinite variations and personalization, it takes into account the lift and drag variables present and provides a platform that is easy to construct . We are proud to be the leaders in this field of aviation and expect to remain so for years to come.

Should any of you come across articles, designs and information that will enhance the Historical Flypower page and wish to contribute, please feel free to contact us and we would be happy to review any and all material submitted.