First in Flight
Jean Pierre Blanchard, born July 4, 1753 in Petit Andelys, France, was a French balloonist who made the first aerial crossing of the English Channel, and made the first balloon flight in England, Germany, Belgium, Poland, and North America. In the 1770’s, he worked on the designs of heavier-than-air flying machines based on rowing in air currents with oars and tiller. After witnessing demonstrations by the Montgolfier Brothers, he took up ballooning.