In Saqqara (Egypt) they found a wooden statue dated to III. century BC. Some consider it a glider (non-powered aircraft) and others just a depiction of a bird.

Similar findings lead mainstream archaeologists into dead ends because they cannot cope with them. On the other hand, there is a group of scientists who are happy to create alternative theories and stimulate passionate debates in the scientific community.

Archaeologists are constantly surprised by the skills of ancient Egyptians. But are they able to fly?

Mysterious object - bird or plane?

Dr. Khalil Messiha

In 1898, an object was discovered in one of the tombs in the Egyptian village of Saqqara, dating back to the 3rd century BC. The object was considered a bird and other objects found in the cemetery were handed over to the Kahir Museum. In 1969, the subject was seen by Dr. Khalil Messiha, who examined on closer examination that it was a model of an ancient aircraft (glider / glider), and whose real version probably has not survived to this day.

John H. Lienhard, an emeritus professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Houston, explained in his book Engines of our ingenuity: "Other birds have their feet. He does not have it. Other birds have painted feathers. He does not have it. Other woody birds have feathers in a horizontal tail as well as real birds. In this case, however, the end of the wooden model narrows to the vertical helmets. The wing profile has an ideal aerodynamic shape in cross section. There are too many coincidences. "

Some Egyptologists believe that what looks like the tail of an airplane is actually a decorative depiction of bird feathers on mast ships, similar to what is depicted in reliefs in the Temple of Chons (?).

Maneuvers on the Mast

Airplane testing

Brother Dr. Messi tried to construct an enlarged model and test his ability to fly. His experiment was successful.

Lienhard states that 3. the century before our time was a time of great inventions. She writes: “To get the right shape of an aircraft, you need to work on a large scale. This small wooden model is unique. Maybe they were working on a larger model that could hijack a man. ”

Martin Gregory, a specialist in projecting, constructing and managing gliders, tried to repeat the experiment of Messi's brother, but failed. He said that without the tail fin which, in his opinion, had never been on the model, bird of Sakkara, was completely unstable… Martin Gregory wasn't so sure if a prototype (cargo?) plane really went. Rather, he leaned toward the idea that it worked jen a wardrobe or just a toy for children.

The official Egyptology still does not clearly know whether it was a model aircraft or an imperfect depiction of a bird.

And even with the tailplane “planning features were disappointing.” Martin Gregory was not sure that the “sakkarskaya bird” was a prototype freighter at low speed. He believed that the artifact could be a weather vane, or even a child's toy.

Despite all the disputes, they were carried out with the support of Dr. Algund Eenboom and Simon Senderson (aviation expert) further tests on a large scale (approx. 5x magnified model). The model was placed in a wind tunnel. It has been proven that with the addition of a high wing to the rear, it is a fully functional glider with a very modern wing design.

The plane from Sakkara

Further examination of the original model revealed that there was a scratch on the tail, indicating that something had once been placed on its upper edge that was probably lost over time. The missing subject will probably be just that high-rise rudder, which provided the aircraft with the necessary stability.