Percy Sinclair Pilcher (16 January 1866 – 2 October 1899) was a British inventor and pioneer aviator.
He was planning a flight with a motor-driven hang glider, but died in the crash of another glider before he could make the attempt.
Percy Pilcher flying his Hawk hang glider. British, 1897.
Shown might be Miss Dorothy Pilcher, Percy's cousin who was towed in a flight.
In 1891 Pilcher began work as assistant lecturer at Glasgow University and took a growing interest in aviation.
He built a hang glider called The Bat which he flew for the first time in 1895.
Later that year Pilcher met Otto Lilienthal, who was the leading expert in gliding in Germany.
These discussions led to Pilcher building two more gliders, The Beetle and The Gull.
Based on the work of his mentor Otto Lilienthal, in 1897 Pilcher built a glider called The Hawk with which he broke the world distance record when he flew 250 m (820 ft) at the grounds of Stanford Hall near Lutterworth in Leicestershire, England.
Source: Wikipedia
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