A bit out of the frame: 'Jules Verne - a genius futurist'
Dec 23, 2020 15:48:31 GMT -5
jacklyon and lastivka like this
Post by Deleted on Dec 23, 2020 15:48:31 GMT -5
Jules Verne was a French novelist, poet, and playwright in 19th century.
With his 'Extraordinary Journeys' he created a series of bestselling adventure novels including 'Journey to the Center of the Earth', 'Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea', and 'Around the World in Eighty Days' The two last ones have been filmed, and where blockbusters during the Sixties.
In 1886, Jules Verne published 'Robur the Conqueror' a science fiction novel. The story begins in Philadelphia, USA. The fictious Weldon Institute there, an association of enthusiastic amateur airshipmen, is planning to build a steerable airship. However, the members disagree on whether the propeller should be attached to the front or the rear of the airship.
A stranger named 'Robur' bursts into a general meeting and explains that he has already built a dirigible airship with one screw in the front and one screw in the back.
Robur kidnaps the Weldon Institute's secretary, president, and the president's valet. He takes them on board his ship, a huge, battery-powered, multirotor gyrodyne called the Albatross, which has many vertical airscrews to provide lift, and two horizontal airscrews in a push-pull configuration to drive the vessel forward.
To demonstrate the vessel's superiority, Robur takes his captives around the world in the course of three weeks. The president and secretary are angry at Robur for kidnapping them and unwilling to admit that the Albatross is a fantastic vessel, or that their notions of "lighter than air" superiority are wrong.
The journey leads across the United States, across the Pacific Ocean to China and from there across the Himalayas to India. Furthermore they overfly Russia, Finnland, Denmark, France and Italy. Later the 'Albatross' reaches Tunesia, Southern Algeria and Dahomey. After crossing the South Atlantic it arrives at Punta Arenas, Argentina and Ross Island at Antartica and near Mount Erebus. Flying straight on to New Zealand, they finally have to land at Chatham Islands.
After the horizontal propellers are damaged in a storm, the Albatross is anchored over the islands for repairs. But finally the 'Albatross' explodes and its wreckage plunge into the ocean. Meanwhile, the three escapees are safe on a small but inhabited island and are later rescued by a ship, then make a long journey back to Philadelphia.
Intrigued by this story and the great fantay of the author, I recreated parts of the journey. Understandably there isn't any 'Albatross' available for FS9. So I used the 'Spindrift Flying Boat' done by Unreal Aviation. It's an imaginative mix of ship and dirigable like Verne's 'Albatross'.
The Spindrift leaving Philadelphia
over Chicago
passing Salt Lake City
overfly of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo ...
and the Forbidden City in Beijing
the Spindrift between Himalayan Peaks
Paris
Rome
Cotounou in Dahomey at African West Coast
Ross Island at Antarctica (Mount Erebeus in background)
The final end on Chatham Islands
I admit that Phielas Fogg, Passepartout and Inspector Fix are more familar to me. In fact I came across the story of 'Robur the Conqueror' on this site here:
www.rikoooo.com/more/historic-flight-plan
The author established a flight plan based on what could be red in the book, what in turn allowed me to get the journey as AI flight.
He also created a couple of interesting retro and vintage flight plans. Unfortunately the descriptions are in French.
Anyway, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!
Bernard
