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More than 75 years have passed since the Wright brothers' historic first flight of a powered, heavier-than-air aircraft at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on December 17, 1903. During this relatively brief period, the airplane has developed from a useless freak to a highly significant force in modern society. The transformation of the airplane during this period must be ranked as one of the great engineering accomplishments of all time. The magnitude of the achievement is emphasized by the nature of the vehicle and the rigorous requirements for precise design of every element. In no other type of machine, with the possible exception of space vehicles, do the often conflicting requirements of performance, safety, reliability, and economic viability place such a high premium on detailed design optimization, based on quantitative data and analysis. This volume traces the technical development of the airplane from a curiosity at the beginning of World War I to the highly useful machine of today. Included are significant aircraft that incorporated important technical innovations and served to shape the future course of aeronautical development, as well as aircraft that represented the state of the art of aeronautical technology in a particular time frame or that were very popular and produced in great numbers. In order to reduce the scope of material under consideration, primary emphasis has been placed on aircraft originating in the United States. No adverse reflection on the quality of the many fine foreign designs developed over the years is intended by their exclusion. The aircraft described certainly do not include all the significant types designed in the time period 1914-80, but they do illustrate the primary features of the technical evolution of the airplane. If the reader's favorite aircraft is not included, the reference lists at the end of this volume include publications that catalog data and photographs for a wide variety of aircraft. The discussion is related primarily to aircraft configuration evolution and associated aerodynamic characteristics and, to a lesser extent, to developments in aircraft construction and propulsion. The material is presented in a manner designed to appeal to the nontechnical reader who is interested in the evolution of the airplane, as well as to students of aeronautical engineering or others with an aeronautical background. The use of engineering terminology has been kept at a minimum, consistent with accuracy and the intent of the text; where unavoidable, suitable physical explanations have been included.