Bicycle-based aircraft (or would-be aircraft)

Stargazer

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The Nelson Glide-O-Bike...
 

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And, worse, it was recommended for kids !
(from Popular Mechanics DEcember 1930)
 

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On another forum that I frequent, the aeroplane (?) illustrated below is vexing many people. The two photographs apparently have been offered for sale on eBay. It is supposed to be the Jarty Aviette of 1935 and the annotation on the reverse of the first photograph claims that was taken at Villacoublay on 17 July 1940. Apparently the second photograph is cropped but it is claimed that in its uncropped form, there is a man shown standing to the right of the aeroplane and its upper wing is in line with his mid chest. Thus if it's a manned aeroplane, the likelihood is the pilots other than midgets did not need to apply to fly it! Thus it may be a model - but if so it's a large scale offering - or a scale prototype of a project that did not get off the ground (actually and metaphorically). Apparently there's mention made of it in 'le Trait d'Union' (issue no. 215 of May/June 2004) - which I haven't seen - and in the Smithsonian NASA Museum archives - from which I'm too far to access. So can any of the experts on this forum say whether the photographs are of the Jarty Aviette; and if so, whether that which is illustrated is a manned aeroplane, a scale protype, a model or what; and shed any more light on the Jarty Aviette. Finally if someone with access to the issue of 'le Trait d'Union', in which mention is made of the Jarty Aviette, will post the relevant extract, that will be most helpful.
 

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The second image shows a man's sleeve at the rightmost edge of the picture. I've drawn a green box around it. I've drawn a blue box around what I think are the man's fingers. That should give you an indication of the aircraft's size. Unfortunately, I can't help you with the Trait d'Union issue.
 

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From L'aérophile, Bulletin officiel de l'Aéro-club de France, 1935:
Une aviette montée par Bréau.

Bréau, bon champion cycliste, a dernièrement essayé une aviette sur cycle, avec propulsion aérienne. Les résultats n'ont sans doute pas répondu aux espoirs, car nous n'avons plus de nouvelles de ces expériences.

Translation: « Bréau, the able cycling champion, recently tried a cycle-based, air-powered aviette. The results probably didn't meet the expectations as we have not heard of these experiments since. »
 
Thank you, Stargazer2006. In case it helps at all, the second photograph on eBay can be found at http://cgi.ebay.de/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?VISuperSize&item=230940774637.
 
More on Bréau's wacky 1930s inventions from Le chasseur français N°646, December 1950:

Le patinage sur le vélo-glace ! L'invention de Henri Bréau, qui avait substitué un patin à la roue avant, permettait de tracer les meilleures figures sur la glace. Nous en usâmes en compagnie de renommés champions professionnels, il y a moins de vingt ans. On n'en parle plus.

Translation: « Skating on a ice-bike! Henri Bréau's invention, which replaced the front wheel with a skate, enabled to execute some better figures on the ice rink. We used it in the company of renowned professional champions, less than 20 years ago, but it's now forgotten. »


And a picture from the Huntingdon Daily News from December 05, 1933 here below:
 

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If the machine in the photographs is the Jarty Aviette, I wonder whether the 'pedal power' was generated by means of a set up, within the fuselage, similar to the modern recumbent cycle? If so, that might explain why such a slender fuselage and a low set airframe could have been employed for a manned aeroplane because the pilot would, in effect, have lain within the fuselage, perhaps with his head only protruding above the top decking, with his feet close to the 'engine bay' so that the 'drive', between the pedals and the fan, was of the minimum possible distance in order to generate maximum possible power.
 
Picture below shows the FlyingWheel of Frenchman Raymond de Mangel. In 1919 he made ​​his attempts at a public presentation and actually managed to rise to a low height for a very short moment — but then fell unceremoniously to the ground...
 

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Hi,

here is one from little known French early flying bicycle,designed by Mr. Peugeot.
 

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The image shows Gabriel Poulain.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel_Poulain
Gabriel Poulain was a French champion cyclist. He made several attempts to achieve human-powered flight and in July 1921 won a prize of 10,000 francs awarded by Peugeot for a flight of ten metres at a height of one metre, on a bicycle with two wing planes in the Bois de Boulogne in Paris.
The winged bicycle was not Mr Peugeot's design.
 
So weird,

in old two encyclopedias,they called it Peugeot design ?.
 
Gabriel Poulain was not only a cyclist champion , but he designed before the Great War some monoplanes , in France and in Germany (Johannisthal/Berlin) .
I suppose he was able to design his aviette in 1921 .

http://www.befr.ebay.be/itm/44-SAINT-NAZAIRE-MONOPLAN-GABRIEL-POULAIN-MOTEUR-ANZANI-10-CYLINDRES-100-HP-/221939276922

http://claudel.dopp.free.fr/Les_planeurs/Histoire/Velo-vole/Velo-vole.htm
 
The caption said that he was competing for a prize offered by Peugeot.

Peugeot have manufactured automobiles in France for a century or so ... I suspect that Peugeot also manufactured bicycles and offered various prizes to encourage inventors. It is possible that inventors attached wings to stock bicycles manufactured by Peugeot.
 
Peugeot started marking bicycles in 1882, and haven't stopped since. With a long history of making other products as diverse as coffee-mills, pepper-grinders, mopeds, cars, trucks, armoured vehicles and artillery shells, it wouldn't have surprised me at all if the company had tried its hand at aircraft.
 
I suppose that it's always possible that the bicycle was manufactured by Peugeot but the wings were made and/or added to that by/for Gabriel Poulain.
 
Great find my dear Richard,

there is a Peugeot design in it,and we can out them here;
 

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And;
 

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Finally;
 

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Do these count?

condor-660x530.jpg


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MacCready_Gossamer_Condor

602px-Gossamer_Albatross_II_in_flight.jpg


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MacCready_Gossamer_Albatross
 
Flying bicycles: https://www.facebook.com/laughingoutloudpage/videos/1154453981275250/
 
Hi,

http://www.avia-it.com/act/biblioteca/periodici/PDF%20Riviste/Ala%20d'Italia/L'ALA%20D'ITALIA%201927%2006.pdf
 

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hesham said:
http://www.avia-it.com/act/biblioteca/periodici/PDF%20Riviste/Ala%20d'Italia/L'ALA%20D'ITALIA%201927%2006.pdf

Again,the flying bike of Mr. Aldo Corazza.

http://www.avia-it.com/act/biblioteca/periodici/PDF%20Riviste/Ala%20d'Italia/L'ALA%20D'ITALIA%201931%2007.pdf
 

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And the same concept.
 

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I have found this photo of the Ferruccio Vignoli Bicicletta Aerea.
I have no further details
 

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Hi Ermeio,it is not mentioned in this site also;

http://claudel.dopp.free.fr/Les_planeurs/Histoire/Velo-vole/Velo-vole.htm
 
Here is a Flying bike from designer,maybe called Motta,but what was thsi rotoplane
in picture 5 ?.

http://www.avia-it.com/act/biblioteca/periodici/PDF%20Riviste/Ala%20d'Italia/L'ALA%20D'ITALIA%201937%2008.pdf
 

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Hi,

http://modernizor.tumblr.com/post/106914913480/the-cycle-glider-science-and-mechanics-vintage
 

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avion ancien said:
On another forum that I frequent, the aeroplane (?) illustrated below is vexing many people. The two photographs apparently have been offered for sale on eBay. It is supposed to be the Jarty Aviette of 1935 and the annotation on the reverse of the first photograph claims that was taken at Villacoublay on 17 July 1940. Apparently the second photograph is cropped but it is claimed that in its uncropped form, there is a man shown standing to the right of the aeroplane and its upper wing is in line with his mid chest. Thus if it's a manned aeroplane, the likelihood is the pilots other than midgets did not need to apply to fly it! Thus it may be a model - but if so it's a large scale offering - or a scale prototype of a project that did not get off the ground (actually and metaphorically). Apparently there's mention made of it in 'le Trait d'Union' (issue no. 215 of May/June 2004) - which I haven't seen - and in the Smithsonian NASA Museum archives - from which I'm too far to access. So can any of the experts on this forum say whether the photographs are of the Jarty Aviette; and if so, whether that which is illustrated is a manned aeroplane, a scale protype, a model or what; and shed any more light on the Jarty Aviette. Finally if someone with access to the issue of 'le Trait d'Union', in which mention is made of the Jarty Aviette, will post the relevant extract, that will be most helpful.

Another photo of this strange machine

https://www.ebay.de/itm/Orig-Foto-kleines-franz-Beute-Flugzeug-am-Flugplatz-VILLACOUBLAY-Frankreich/392134978132
 

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Arjen said:
The image shows Gabriel Poulain.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel_Poulain
Gabriel Poulain was a French champion cyclist. He made several attempts to achieve human-powered flight and in July 1921 won a prize of 10,000 francs awarded by Peugeot for a flight of ten metres at a height of one metre, on a bicycle with two wing planes in the Bois de Boulogne in Paris.
The winged bicycle was not Mr Peugeot's design.

A little more on M Poulain's aerial exploits - from The Aeroplane of 22 June 1921.
 

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From Decollage 6/1947.
 

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Hi,

here is a flying bicycle,designed by Mr. Alfredo Robles Domínguez in Mexico,called Aerocurvo.

 

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From TU 170,and a French designer;

at the Frette Mr. Jean Adolphe,a convinced researcher, became interested in flying in the 1930s. In 1935, he made a "Helicycle",made up of a bike with a little stayer wheel and a big three-blade propeller forward, this propeller being
driven directly by the pedal board.
 

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Last edited:
From Aerophile 1912,

here is a two designs for flying bicycle,and a human-powered bicycle-airplane,designed by Mr, Graf Piuseux.
 

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