Paper airplanes always fascinate me even though there are people with several PhDs under paper airplane aerodynamics. We tend to find new and interesting things from them which solve traditional unsolved mysteries in aviation. Turning the page back to history where historians and experts believe that paper airplanes have always been a part of Chinese culture – where they were excellent in making aircraft like kites and paper airplanes which we use in modern days. Also Japanese have a long history of making and fly paper airplanes with a technique called “Origami” – which is again called Origami plane. The well-written form or illustrated book was founded in 1930 which was written by Jack Northrop who is an aircraft designer himself. Wright brothers also have been using paper-based prototypes for their testing and trial methods.
Paper Aeroplane Evolution:
Continuing the quest of finding the history, as noticed the first book uses the term called “Paper Aeroplanes” with instructions based on paper aircraft published during 1918. Meanwhile, the Wright brothers became a big thing on this planet- by flying a heavier than air aircraft all by themselves for 6 km south of Kitty Hawk on December 17, 1903. Before this event existed kids and the world wasn’t calling the paper airplane an “airplane” or even “planes”. The Wright brothers brought the light to the word “Paper airplanes”. Tracing back into history there are “n” number of mentions and traces about paper planes which were earlier called “paper darts” from an earlier story from 1803 British publication says so. It goes like this,
“he presented himself to the wondering eyes of Euphorion with a huge black bush wig stuck full of paper darts, and as thickly spiked as the back of a porcupine.”
What history tells us about Paper darts:
During American civil and world war – II, the excess material used in warfare and wastages were converted to toys and playable for kids and distributed all over the country for sales and as free offerings through NGOs. One of the books which were circulated around the civil war period is “Every little boy’s book – A complete encyclopedia of in and outdoor games” which helped kids to learn how to make a paper airplane through easy and simple steps. During those times children used stout paper to make paper planes. Paper darts are nothing but paper airplanes that were given different names over different periods of time.
Proofs that paper airplanes existed before the wright brothers:
Paper airplanes have a long historical root dating back to 1881 – a story mentions students throwing paper airplanes at a teacher inside a classroom. The modern age balsa gliders were once used as hybrid paper gliders which were usually having a design made up of Pencil and paper wings. But while comparing all the proofs that we possibly got – it’s the same paper airplane that was once called a paper dart. In older times people used to believe paper airplanes can only fly like a bird by flapping their wings. That is the reason for earlier paper airplanes (darts) from 1890’s book St. Nicholas, Volume 23, Part 1 looks like their wings have a bird wing-like design.
Fig. Picture of concept flying machines from 1890’s book where paper darts also imagined the same way during the time.
USA’s famous and oldest continuously published magazine Scientific American has a paper airplane design published which was looking like a paper bird called “The Albatross in Flight” Even the books from the 19th Century were calling paper airplanes as paper darts because people weren’t accustomed to the new term and most of the kid’s book was calling them as “Darts only”.
Did people fly paper airplanes before the scientific revolution?
Even before science became a big thing on this planet, where there was an Italian polymath, Leonardo Da Vinci was researching how to make gliders as an attempt of first human flight. But his drafts and concepts were a bigger inspiration for the Wright brothers to try on their designs. Even before the Wright brothers’ time, there used to be big blimps (which are balloons filled with helium gas, hydrogen gas, or hot air. In order to find out the paper airplane’s origin, we need to find out the time period when papers were invented. The first trace of paper was found in Gansu Province which is present in China – carbon dating back to 200 B.C. As per the official proof, a court official from a Chinese province called Tsai Lun.
According to the above proof, I assume that paper airplanes should have been invented between 100 – 200 B.C.
The paper airplanes had another complication in earning their name during the 20th century because they are used to the term called Paper Dart and they found no reason or compulsion to change to the airplane. Popular mechanics have a major contribution in changing it permanently to today’s name – also introducing new designs to the society with its attractive wing designs and wind fold.
As the years progressed Modern age airplanes started looking like paper darts because of their intelligent aerodynamic design and wing shape. Today cool paper airplanes are used as a reference for testing new aircraft designs to avoid collateral damages.
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