Date:	Wednesday 18 December 1907
Time:
Type:	Blériot VII
Owner/operator:	Louis Blériot
Registration:	Unregistered
MSN:	N/K
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Other fatalities:	0
Aircraft damage:	Substantial
Location:	Issy-les-Moulineaux, near Paris -   France
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Demo/Airshow/Display
Departure airport:	Issy-les-Moulineaux, near Paris, France
Destination airport:	Issy-les-Moulineaux, near Paris, France
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
The Blériot VII appeared in 1907. It marked a milestone for flight performance and aerodynamics. The plane had low, cantilever wings, a covered fuselage, a rudder, and a large, tail assembly. The two parts of the tail assembly could be moved jointly to act as elevators or independently to act as ailerons. The enclosed Antoinette engine drove a four-blade metal tractor propeller, which was directly connected to the crankshaft.

The aircraft was first flown on 16 November 1907 when Louis Blériot made a flight of around 500 metres (1,600 ft) from Issy-les-Moulineaux, near Paris, and further flights were made during November. The aircraft made a total of six flights. In two flights, the plane covered more than 1,640 feet (500 meters) at a speed of about 50 miles per hour (80 kilometers per hour).

At the end of November further modifications were made: the wing was moved from its position immediately above the lower longerons to a position about two thirds of the way up the fuselage, and a tubular steel cabane structure was added to take the wing's bracing wires.

In this configuration the aircraft was flown by Blériot on 6 December. On this occasion he succeeded in making a U-turn in the air, and the performance of the aircraft was impressive enough for Patrick Alexander to write "I think Blériot is now leading the way".

However, the next flight trials, on 18 December, ended with a crash: the left wheel collapsed, causing the wing to dig in and the aircraft to turn over, resulting in its destruction. Blériot escaped without serious injury, his life possibly saved by the cabane structure, which acted as a roll bar.

1. Elliott, Bryan A. (2000). Blériot: Herald of an Age. Stroud: Tempus. ISBN 0-7524-1739-8.
2. Opdycke, Leonard E. (1990). French Aircraft Before the Great War. Atglen, PA: Schiffer. ISBN 0-7643-0752-5.
3. Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 161.
4. Devaux, Jean and Michel Marani. "Les Douze Premiers Aéroplanes de Louis Blériot". Pegase No 54, May 1989.
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bl%C3%A9riot_VII
6. https://earlyaviators.com/ebleriot1.htm
7. https://aircraftinvestigation.info/airplanes/Bleriot_VII.html
8. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/bleriot/imag-nf.html
9. https://www.aahs-online.org/pubs/journals/files/82097.pdf
10. https://www.centennialofflight.net/essay/Aerospace/Bleriot/Aero47.htm
11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Issy-les-Moulineaux

Postcard of Louis Blériot at the Blériot VII, Issy-les-Moulineaux, near Paris, France November/December 1907

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
08-Mar-2008 22:10	Bleiente	Added
08-Jul-2021 18:03	Anon.	Updated [Operator, ]
20-Dec-2024 08:24	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Registration, Cn, Operator, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative, Category, ]