FARMAN, HENRI

born 1874, Paris died July 18, 1958, Paris French aviator and aircraft constructor who developed ailerons for lateral control, an innovation that subsequently came into general use on all planes. Born to British parents, he was first a painter and later a racing motorist. With his brother Maurice he modified a Voisin pusher biplane and in January 1908 won a 2,000 prize that had been offered for a circular flight of one kilometre. In 1909 he set world endurance and speed records. In 1912 the brothers merged their interests in the Farman works at Boulogne-sur-Seine, making many planes of their characteristic pusher biplane type for military and training purposes. The 1914 model was extensively used for artillery observation and reconnaissance in World War I. The Farman Goliath was the first long-distance passenger airliner, beginning regular ParisLondon flights on Feb. 8, 1919. Farman became a French citizen in 1937.