The roaring ’20s, ’30s and ’40s

Abstract

The period after World War I saw great strides in both aircraft and balloon design. The primary focus for aircraft was on speed and distance; not altitude. Prizes were offered for all kinds of categories of flight. There was the Pulitzer Prize, the Thompson Trophy, the Cleveland Air Show, and even the Women’s Air Derby. By 1920, biplane altitudes reached 33,113 feet. By 1927 a Wright Apache set the record for seaplanes at 38,419 feet. By 1936 aircraft altitude records climbed to 49,967 feet. Then in 1938 it went to a staggering 56,046 feet, which is clearly within the stratosphere. Given how early these altitudes were achieved and the primitive nature of the open cockpit aircraft, we should regard these pilots as pioneering stratonauts. Aeronaut balloonists were going even higher, setting a record at 72,395 feet that lasted for two decades.