who came up with the idea of flying
History of aviation The origin of mankind's desire to fly is lost in the distant past. From the earliest legends there have been stories of men strapping birdlike wings, stiffened cloaks or other devices to themselves and attempting to fly, typically by jumping off a tower. The Greek legend of Daedalus and Icarus is one of the earliest known; others originated from India, China and the European Middle Age. During this early period the issues of lift, stability and control were not understood, and most attempts ended in serious injury or death.
Hot air balloon In the 18th century the Portuguese jesuit priest Bartolomeu de Gusmão envisioned an aerial apparatus called Passarola which was the predecessor of the hot air ballon. The purpose of Passarola was to serve as air vessel in order to facilitate communication and as a strategical device[5]. In 1709 John V of Portugal decided to fund Bartolomeu de Gusmão's project following a petition made by the jesuit priest [6] and an unmanned demonstration was performed at Casa da India in presence of John V, the queen Maria Anna of Austria, having as witnesses the Italian cardinal Michelangelo Conti, two members of the Portuguese Royal Academy of History, one Portuguese diplomat and one chronicler. This event would bring some European attention to this event and this project. A later article dated on October 20, 1786 by the London Daily Universal Register would state that the inventor was able to raise himself by the use of his prototype. Also in 1709, the Portuguese jesuit wrote Manifesto summário para os que ignoram poderse navegar pelo elemento do ar (Short Manifesto for those who are unaware that is possible to sail through the element air). Persecuted by the Inquisition he was prevented to continue his research, however, he left designs of a manned air vessel.