The Giffard Airship

Model of airship, steam driven dirigible by Henri Giffard 1852, scale 1:50

Model of steam driven derigible by Henri Giffard 1852, scale 1:50 This dirigible was used in the first successful application of mechanical power to flight. The power unit was a single cylinder steam engine constructed by the French designer Henri Giffard. On 24th September 1852 Giffard ascended from the Hippodrome in Paris and landed at Trappes some 17 miles away. Although this flight was counted as a success, the airship lacked the power to navigate a circle against the wind and return to its starting point.