Selon Wikipedia Clement "... Il aurait été le premier à faire décoller un engin motorisé plus lourd que l'air en 1890...." Clément Ader >>>>UPDATE: France's Le Parisien (8-13) "Clement Ader was "L'Homme avait vole" Oct. 9th 1890" (13 ans avant les freres Wright). Tho only centimeters high, it was 50 meters in length. Who knows, maybe there were others...? (As an aviation enthusiast I'm more than aware of who made the first true **controlled** flight...). But....damn interesting, QUESTION! why not rebuild Avion III and see if someone can fly (Control) it!?? Cheers

see story: http://www.leparisien.fr/espace-premium/hauts-de-seine-92/9-octobre-1890-clement-ader-decolle-a-gretz-armainvilliers-13-08-2013-3048631.php

Paris' Musée des arts et métiers. Electrical engineer & aviation enthusiast, Ader built 2 planes before, w/backing by Frances' military, Avion III. Bat-like & made of linen & wood. Oct, 1897 at Satory Ader tires to get '3' airborne but bad weather kills the test. Military sat on results till '10 when it says they were not successful. Discouraged Ader gave '3' to the Obsevatoire in '03. In '09 Ader wrote L'Aviation Militaire which laid out a blueprint for aircraft carriers (flat deck, elevators, hangar bay, etc). His ideas were sent to the US Naval Attache in Paris. In Paris? You must see the Musee des Arts et Métiers! Ader also improved on Bells' telephone & estab'd the telephone network in Paris in 1880 & invented 'telephonic transmission' basically giving users 'stereo' sound. He designed a V8 engine. Musee also Foucault's Pendulum, early steam engine cars, has summer workshops for kids, a great resto, and stunning architecture!