Victor Tatin (1843-1913) built a model of a compressed air airplane that flew in 1879.

-The fuselage had a compressed air cylinder, front wings, and a tail fin as we understand it today.

-Two propellers on the leading edges of the wings.

-A model of this airplane is in a display case at the MAE in Paris.

“Tatin's airplane model”

-We see that the front of the fuselage is the metallic pressure cylinder and above the wing the reciprocating machine driving the two propellers.

From Appendix A7/6: In 1879, Victor Tatin made a model of an airplane powered by two counter-rotating propellers (great at the time), driven by a compressed air engine.

"Tatin, side view drawing"

-The compressed air was in a large cylinder that occupied the central part of the fuselage, topped by two cones so as not to offer too much resistance to the advance.

-The initial pressure was about 20 Kg/cm2, (282 psi approx.).

-Many years before the first powered flight, this model demonstrated to the Chalais-Meudon establishment staff that flight was possible.

-The information indicates that it only did so in circles, without its own flight control, which had not yet been resolved.

“Top-view drawing”

-(Info from La Navigation Aerienne).