page_title: History of human-powered aircraft
section_title: First flights
hierarchical_section_title: History of human-powered aircraft / First flights
caption_attribution_description: English: Southampton University Man Powered Aircraft (SUMPAC) on display at the Solent Sky museum
context_page_description: HPAs are aircraft belonging to the class of vehicles known as human-powered vehicles. Early attempts at human-powered flight were unsuccessful because of the difficulty of achieving the high power-to-weight ratio. Prototypes often used ornithopter principles which were not only too heavy to meet this requirement but aerodynamically unsatisfactory.
  Human-powered aircraft have been successfully flown over considerable distances. However, they are still primarily constructed as engineering challenges rather than for any kind of recreational or utilitarian purpose.
context_section_description: The first officially authenticated take-off and landing of a man-powered aircraft (one capable of powered take-offs, unlike a glider) was made on 9 November 1961 by Derek Piggott in Southampton University's Man Powered Aircraft (SUMPAC) at Lasham Airfield.
  The best flight out of 40 attempts was 650 metres.
  The SUMPAC was substantially rebuilt by Imperial College with a new transmission system but was damaged beyond repair in November 1965.
  The Hatfield Puffin first flew on 16 November 1961, one week after SUMPAC.  The Hatfield Man Powered Aircraft Club was formed of employees of de Havilland Aircraft Company and had access to company support.  Eventually its best distance was 908 metres (993 yd).  John Wimpenny said he was very pleased with the performance of the Puffin, which handled beautifully during the flight.  His record stood for 10 years.
  Puffin 2 was a new fuselage and wing around the transmission recovered from the original Puffin.  It flew on 27 August 1965 and made several flights over a half-mile, including a climb to 5.2 metres.  After Puffin 2 was damaged, it was handed over to Liverpool University who used it to build the Liverpuffin.
  After this date several less successful aircraft flew, until 1972 when the Woodford Essex Aircraft Group's Jupiter, designed and built by Chris Roper, piloted by John Potter flew 1,070 metres and 1,239 metres in June 1972. Due to Roper's ill health, the project was later continued at RAF Halton - Potter was a serving Royal Air Force (RAF) officer at the time.
  In early 1977, a Japanese aircraft Stork completed three-quarters of the figure eight course before grounding a wingtip.
caption: SUMPAC: The first successful human powered aircraft
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