Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 July 2016
Frank Lanchester was born in 1863 and died in 1946. He lived through, and contributed significantly to, an astonishing expansion in aerodynamic knowledge and understanding. When he was a very small child, the Aeronautical Society of Great Britain was formed. Arguments about the underlying principles of aerodynamics were abundant, and manned powered flight was some 40 years into the future. When he died aerodynamics was well-established, codified and central to efficient aircraft design. Transonic flight through jet propulsion had almost been achieved.