16 Facts About Percy Pilcher

Percy Sinclair Pilcher was a British inventor and pioneer aviator who was his country's foremost experimenter in unpowered flight near the end of the nineteenth century.

Research carried out by Cranfield University in the early 2000s concluded that Percy Pilcher's triplane was more or less workable, and would have been capable of flight with design modifications.

Percy Pilcher was born in Bath in 1867, the son of Thomas Webb Pilcher and Scottish mother Sophia Robinson.

In 1880, at age 13 Percy Pilcher became a cadet in the Royal Navy, and served for seven years.

In 1891 Percy Pilcher began work as assistant lecturer at Glasgow University and took a growing interest in aviation.

Percy Pilcher built a hang glider called The Bat which he flew for the first time in 1895;.

Later that year Percy Pilcher met Otto Lilienthal, who was the leading expert in gliding in Germany.

Percy Pilcher appears in photos taken at the time of Pilcher's public flights.

Percy Pilcher developed a triplane that was to include a 4 hp engine.

However, construction of the triplane put him heavily into debt, and Percy Pilcher needed sponsorship to complete his work.

The canvas on the wings of the Hawk had become saturated by rain; unbeknown to Percy Pilcher, this caused the fabric to contract putting excessive strain on the bamboo frame: Whilst in mid-air, the tail snapped and Percy Pilcher plunged 10 metres to the ground: he died two days later from his injuries, having never regained consciousness, with his triplane having never been publicly flown.

Percy Pilcher's Hawk was again put back on display in the museum.

Percy Pilcher is one of the unsuccessful aviation pioneers mentioned in the Marc Blitzstein composition The Airborne Symphony.

Percy Pilcher's plans were lost for many years, and his name was long forgotten except by a few enthusiasts.

In 2003, a research effort carried out at the School of Aeronautics at Cranfield University, commissioned by the BBC2 television series Horizon, has shown that Percy Pilcher's design was more or less workable, and had he been able to develop his engine, it is possible he would have succeeded in being the first to fly a heavier-than-air powered aircraft with some degree of control.

Percy Pilcher regularly flew his Hawk glider from this location.