Power plants of the first aircraft

The article is dedicated to the 140th anniversary of the construction of the first Russian aircraft designed by Alexander Fedorovich Mozhaisky. The main attention is paid to a comparative assessment of the parameters of the power plants of the Mozhaisky aircraft and some of the best known of the first heavier-than-air manned aircraft driven by a propeller. For the analysis, data published in various sources were used, primarily on the parameters of the elements of power plants (engines and propellers). An assessment was made of the sufficiency of the engine power of the first aircraft needed for their flight. The published materials of detailed studies of the aerodynamics of aircraft by A.F.Mozhaisky and the Wright brothers were used as the basis for an expert qualitative assessment of the aerodynamic characteristics of the compared aircraft. An analysis of the known statistical data and the results of the calculated estimates made it possible to show the impact of engine improvement on the progress in aviation.