La Passione dell'invenzione: Enrico Forlanini, ingegnere e aeronauta (review)

Edited by Sara Calabrò in collaboration with of a group of enthusiastic authors from Milan Polytechnic and University, this book draws from many unpublished sources on the life of Enrico Forlanini (1848–1931), the Italian aeronautical pioneer and brother of Carlo Forlanini, inventor of the artificial pneumothorax. Born in Milan, Enrico first enrolled in the Accademia Militare and served in the Genio Militare (Corps of Engineers of the army) where he began his experiments with propellers. After leaving the Genio Militare, he graduated in 1875 from Milan Polytechnic, where his interest in aeronautics was encouraged by Giuseppe Colombo, who pioneered electric power in Italy but also had a great interest in human flight. Forlanini started to work as a municipal engineer in a small town near Milan while continuing his aeronautical experiments in his spare time. In 1877 he designed and built a small model of a "helicopter" with two counterrotating propellers powered by a lightweight steam engine. In the course of several demonstrations in Milan, this model reached an altitude of thirteen meters.

Forlanini's passion for invention flourished during his time as director and then owner of the Società Forlivese per l'illuminazione a gas e la fonderia di ferro in the town of Forlì. Although he was mainly occupied with designing and building machines and devices for industry and agriculture, he also continued his experiments with propulsion, built some flying models propelled by rockets, and began to study airships as well. After his return to Milan in 1900, he started to experiment with hydrodynamic lift and to build "flying boats" (hydrofoils) powered by gasoline engines, first testing these on the waters of Lake Maggiore, northwest of Milan, and eventually patenting several different designs. In the spring of 1911, he demonstrated one of his hydrofoils for Alexander Graham Bell, who subsequently bought a license to build hydrofoils in the United States.

Besides hydrofoils, Forlanini's second great passion was semirigid airships. He started building his prototype, named Leonardo da Vinci, in 1901, but was unable to finish until 1909, when he flew it several times over Milan. Popular enthusiasm enabled him to raise a public subscription to fund a larger airship called Città di Milano. This airship made its first flight in 1913, the same year that the British Admiralty ordered a similar airship from Forlanini's company. After the outbreak of the world war, the Admiralty order was canceled and the airship was requisitioned by the Italian army, which completed it with some modifications. The Italian army and navy both used this airship, as well as two others built by Forlanini, for reconnaissance and bombing missions. After the war, Forlanini sought unsuccessfully to promote the use of airships for passenger transport. His last airship, Omnia Dir, was designed not only with propellers but also with air jets, in order to solve the problem of ground maneuverability, but it did not fly until 1931, after Forlanini's death.

When one flies into Milan, one now lands at Enrico Forlanini Airport. La Passione dell'invenzione tells of Forlanini's life and inventions through a series of essays whose authors address his technical training, his enterpreneurial career, his patents, and his passion for invention and for flight. An especially interesting chapter is concerned with the technoindustrial context of northern Italy at the beginning of the twentieth century, and another with the relationship between Forlanini and the European aeronautical culture. While easily readable by nonspecialists, the book is well-documented throughout, with references to original sources, in particular the previously unexplored archives of the Forlanini family and the rich archives of the Dal Fabbro Fund, which are kept at the Aerospace Department of Milan Polytechnic (Cesare Dal Fabbro was Forlanini's closest collaborator). The printing is of high quality, and the book is richly illustrated with vintage photos, drawings, and original sketches by Forlanini, which in many cases have been digitally restored. Because of its fine illustrations, the book will...