Alfred LeBlanc
Alfred Leblanc (April 13, 1869 - 1921) was a pioneer French aviator.[1]
[edit] Biography
He was born on April 13, 1869 in France. He was assistant to Louis Bleriot and handled the logistics for Bleriot on the morning of his cross channel flight July 25, 1909. On October 18 of that year, his plane plunged into a crowd at the Juvisy air show, mortally wounding a woman and injuring a dozen others. In 1910 he set an cross-country flight airspeed record by flying 485 miles in a record time of 11 hours, 55 minutes, and 59 seconds.
In the milieu of aviation pioneering, LeBlanc's mechanic on his Morane-Saulnier was Léon Lemartin who went on to become a record breaking pilot.
[edit] Records
- 1910 - first pilot to receive a license through an official examination.[2]
- 1910 - flight airspeed record for 1 mile.[3]
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Leblanc in airplane, being congratulated by Henri Deutsch de la Meurthe, at Nancy, France after the Circuit de l'Est d'Aviation
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[edit] References
- ^ "Alfred Leblanc". Early Aviators. http://earlyaviators.com/eleblanc.htm. Retrieved 2010-12-27.
- ^ Anzovin, Steven, Famous First Facts 2000, p. 25 item 1310, ISBN 0-8242-0958-3
- ^ "Le Blanc Flies Fast Mile. Covers St. Louis Course in 53 Seconds. Will Be in International Race". New York Times. October 15, 1910. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10D15FC385417738DDDAC0994D8415B808DF1D3. Retrieved 2010-12-28. "Alfred Le Blanc, who is to pilot the French balloon Isle de France in the international balloon race for the James Gordon Bennett Cup here next week, established to-day what is said to be a world's record for aeroplane speed over a measured course. With a Bleriot monoplane Le Blanc made a mile in 53 seconds, incidentally setting an American speed record."
