Steam-powered bi-plane, circa 1933

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MAKE subscriber Will Pickering sent us a link to this fascinating video. Will writes:

This came through one of my steam email lists. Pretty cool plane modified with a 150hp flash boiler steam engine. Made for an almost silent airplane. And it can even go in reverse!

From the lengthy YouTube description:

A Travel Air 2000 biplane made the world’s first piloted flight under steam power over Oakland, California, on 12 April 1933. The strangest feature of the flight was its relative silence; spectators on the ground could hear the pilot when he called to them from mid-air. The aircraft, piloted by William Besler, had been fitted with a two-cylinder, 150 hp reciprocating engine.

[Thanks, Will!]

The Besler Steam Plane

10 thoughts on “Steam-powered bi-plane, circa 1933

  1. SDC says:

    That wasn’t particularly impressive.

  2. jefro.myopenid.com says:

    Quiet and 150hp are fantastic. Carrying enough water and fuel to make it a viable aircraft for any distance is the tough part, as both water and fuel are heavy.

    And let us not forget John Hartford:

    1. Gareth Branwyn says:

      “Take us home on the ol’ steam-powered airplane..”

  3. anon says:

    it’s a life size airhogs model plane

  4. John Corall says:

    Hail steam. Water (Hydrogen and Oxygen) and electricity the key to future energy generation and uses.

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Gareth Branwyn is a freelance writer and the former Editorial Director of Maker Media. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books on technology, DIY, and geek culture. He is currently a contributor to Boing Boing, Wink Books, and Wink Fun. His free weekly-ish maker tips newsletter can be found at garstipsandtools.com.

View more articles by Gareth Branwyn

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