Nautical Research Journal 9


1. Santos-Dumont Hydroplane on the Seine River. Wikimedia Commons.


T e Santos-Dumont No. 18 Hydroplane (1907) By Greg Davis


Background and Development of Plans


In 1907, spurred on by bet to create the fi rst boat to cover a kilometer-long course in two directions along the Seine River in France, Alberto Santos-Dumont created the No. 18 Hydroplane.


One of eight children, Alberto Santos-Dumont was born in Brazil on 20 July 1873; his father being Henrique Dumont and his mother Francisca de Paula Santos. During a good part of his formative years,


his father operated a sizable coff ee plantation that is said to have had fi ve million coff ee trees, ninety-six kilometers of railroads, and seven locomotives.


T e family was very well off . Unfortunately, in 1890 Henrique was involved in an accident on the planation that leſt him unable to run the business— in 1891 it was sold off for fi ve million dollars. T e children shared the inheritance evenly.


Alberto moved to Paris where he continued to develop his immense interest in aeronautics. At fi rst it was balloons—during his fi rst trip to Paris he wanted to go for a balloon ride but soon learned that he could have one of his own constructed for less than the ride would cost. He co-designed and successfully fl ew his fi rst balloon. Soon his attention turned to airships. In 1901 with Airship No. 6, Santos-Dumont won the


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