Aurel Vlaicu Romanian engineer, inventor, aircraft designer and pilot Date of Birth: 19.11.1882 Country: Romania

1. Birth and Early Life
2. Education and Engineering Career
3. Early Aeronautical Pursuits
4. "A Vlaicu I" and Military Aviation
5. Continuing Aircraft Development
6. "A Vlaicu Nr. III" and Its Legacy
7. Tragic Demise
8. Legacy and Honors

Birth and Early Life

Aurel Vlaicu,a renowned figure in the history of aviation, was born on November 19, 1882, in the village of Bintinti (later renamed Aurel Vlaicu in his honor), near Geoagiu in Transylvania, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (present-day Romania). He received his early education at the Calvinist high school in Orăștie and earned his baccalaureate degree in Sibiu in 1902.

Education and Engineering Career

Vlaicu continued his studies at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME) and the Technical University of Munich (TUM), graduating with a degree in engineering in 1907. He served in the Austro-Hungarian Navy from 1907 to 1908 before securing a position as an engineer at the Opel automobile plant in Rüsselsheim, Germany, on September 1, 1908.

Early Aeronautical Pursuits

In March 1909, Vlaicu left Opel and returned to Bintinti, where he and his brother Ion constructed their first glider, which successfully took flight in the summer of 1909. Inspired by his friend Octavian Goga, Vlaicu moved to the Kingdom of Romania in October of the same year, where he secured financial support from Romanian-Transylvanian expatriates to build his first powered aircraft.

"A Vlaicu I" and Military Aviation

On November 1, 1909, Vlaicu began constructing his first aircraft design, the "A Vlaicu I," in Bucharest, with funds provided by Romania's Ministry of National Defense. He also received a monthly salary of 300 lei from the Ministry of Education. The "A Vlaicu I" made its maiden flight on June 17, 1910, at Cotroceni airfield. During autumn maneuvers on September 28, 1910, Vlaicu flew the aircraft from Slatina to Piatra Olt to deliver a message, marking one of the first uses of an aircraft for military purposes.

Continuing Aircraft Development

Vlaicu commenced work on the "A Vlaicu Nr. II" in December 1910, with a budget of 16,000 lei. The new aircraft made its maiden flight in April 1911. From June 23 to 30, 1912, Vlaicu competed with 42 other aviators at the International Aviation Week, including Roland Garros of France. He won a monetary prize of 7,500 Austro-Hungarian crowns for precision landing, maneuvering, and flying around a pylon. This achievement earned Vlaicu pilot's certificate number 52 from the International Aeronautical Federation.

"A Vlaicu Nr. III" and Its Legacy

The "A Vlaicu Nr. III" was a two-seat monoplane powered by a modified 80 hp (60 kW) Gnome "Gamma" series engine. It was commissioned by Marconi Company for experiments in receiving electromagnetic waves. At the time of Vlaicu's death, the "A Vlaicu Nr. III" was only partially complete. The project was completed by Vlaicu's friends, and several brief test flights were made in 1914 by military pilot Petre Macavei. However, further testing was hindered by the aircraft's unusual control system. After the German occupation of Bucharest in 1916, the monoplane was captured and sent to Germany. The aircraft was last documented at an aviation exhibition in Berlin in 1942, as reported by Romanian officers, but there is no record of it in the exhibition's official documentation.

Tragic Demise

Vlaicu's career culminated in his attempt to make the first flight across the Carpathian Mountains on September 13, 1913, in the "A Vlaicu Nr. II." However, he crashed near Câmpina, on the outskirts of Bănești commune, and was killed. He was buried in Bellu Cemetery in Bucharest. In 1948, Vlaicu was posthumously elected to the Romanian Academy.

Legacy and Honors

The cause of Vlaicu's crash remains unknown. Sabotage was ruled out by his friends Giovanni Magnani and Constantin Silisteanu, who were the first to examine the wreckage. The most likely cause is thought to be an engine failure, resulting in a loss of airspeed and a stall.

June 17, the date of Vlaicu's first controlled flight, is celebrated as Aviation Day in Romania. The second-largest airport in Romania, Bucharest Băneasa International Airport Aurel Vlaicu, and an Airbus A318-111 aircraft operated by TAROM are named after the Romanian aviator. Vlaicu's name is second on the list of heroes inscribed on the Heroes of the Air Monument in Bucharest, after Gheorghe Caranda and ahead of Gheorghe Negel, who died in a car accident one month after his friend Vlaicu on October 11, 1913.

Vlaicu's portrait and a drawing of one of his aircraft, as well as a cross-section of its engine, are featured on the obverse and reverse of the Romanian 50 lei banknote. The story of Vlaicu's life inspired the novel "Flăcăul din Binținți" ("The Boy from Bintinti") by Constantin Ghiban, published in 1953. A film entitled "Aurel Vlaicu" was directed by Mircea Drăgan in 1977.