Steam Engine, for Stringfellow's 1847-8 Flying Machine
1847-1848
Horizontal single cylinder slide-valve steam engine; burner cowling; alcohol/naptha-fired burner; and boiler, designed and made by John Stringfellow, Chard, Somerset, England, 1847-1848. John Stringfellow made the engine and boiler for a William Henson designed ten-foot wing-span model aircraft.
Original Horizontal single cylinder slide-valve steam engine; burner cowling; alcohol/naptha-fired burner; and boiler made for the 1847-8 John Stringfellow flying machine. 1847-1848, Stringfellow makes a ten-foot wing-span model aircraft based on the designs of William Henson. The model has a combined wing and tail surface area of 17 square feet and is powered by this steam engine. The engine drives twin pusher airscrews. 1848 - the Stringfellow flying machine is tested at Chard and at Cremorne Gardens. However, there is no proof that the Stringfellow model was capable of sustained powered flight. 1866 - John Stringfellow is a founder member of the Aeronautical Society (now the Royal Aeronautical Society).