It seems puzzling, as we approach the centenary of the Wright brothers' first flight, that all of a sudden the amazing advancement of aviation over the last 100 years would appear to have come to an abrupt halt. With the final flight of Concorde and the Space Shuttle grounded we are left wondering about what comes next. Ever since flight began, man has continued to fly ever more sophisticated machines, further, faster and higher - or so it would have appeared up until 24 October.
When one reflects on the leaps and bounds made from the Wright Flyer to the Spitfire, the Comet, Saturn V and Concorde, it is difficult to see the Airbus A380 or the Ariane 5 as the next "giant leap for mankind". I find myself wondering how I will explain to my three-year-old boy that when I was his age men walked on the moon and fare-paying passengers could fly from London to New York faster than the Earth could spin on its axis. For the sake of the Wright brothers, let's hope that fare-paying passengers are orbiting the moon and men are living on Mars by the time my son is my age.
Adrian Betts
Paris, France
Source: Flight International
