Technology: The Cockpit

In This Module

In this lesson we will focus on flight instruments found in the cockpit.  Many were developed during the 1920s and 1930s as changing needs and the efforts of pilots to explore the the edges of what was possible with an airplane drove innovation.

After reviewing this lesson, you will be able to:

• Explain how and why cockpit design and instrumentation moved towards standardization between World War I and World War II

History of the Cockpit

The cockpit or flight deck of an aircraft is where the pilot or pilots control the aircraft.  It typically contains the control systems and instrumentation as well as a place for the pilot or pilots to sit.  Sometimes it also includes a workstation for a navigator or a bombardier, who are respectively tasked with directing the pilots along the flight path and dropping the ordinance or bombs.  However, these features of the cockpit were anything but standardized in the years before World War II.  

Initially the 1903 Wright Flyer required a single pilot to lay down on the aircraft wing in order to limit air resistance.  The cockpit, in this example, was totally open to the air with no protection for the pilot.  By 1908 the Wrights had incorporated seats into their design, but the cockpit still remained open.  Alberto Santos-Dumont, the first man to successfully fly a plane in Europe in 1907, designed his airplane based on prior experience with dirigibles, and thus he stood upright in a cockpit that was essentially a wicker balloon basket inserted into the middle of the aircraft fuselage.  It was not until World War I pilots started to consistently sit in a semi-enclosed space in the aircraft fuselage.

Similarly, the control mechanisms for flying located in the cockpit ranged from wheels to sticks, and from foot pedals for rudder or braking to hand throttle controls for the engines.  Again, standardization of these elements was rare prior to World War II as each manufacturer placed controls and instruments where they saw fit.  

During the 1920s as demands for flying at night and in all weather conditions drove pilots to seek new ways to understand the condition and location of their aircraft, designers also sought to enclose cockpits and cabins for both military and civilian uses for their aircraft.  It became clear that pilots would need more than just a compass while flying, and instruments like a fuel gauge, altimeter (to know one's altitude above sea level), and air-speed indicator were added.  Pilots also needed information about the status of the engine, leading to gauges for things like oil, pressure, temperature, and other performance indicators.  Later, thanks to men like James Doolittle, flight instruments like the attitude indicator were added that enabled pilots to fly totally "blind" to conditions outside the cockpit.

James Doolittle and Instrument Development

You may be familiar with Lt. Col. (later General) James "Jimmy" Doolittle for leading a bombing raid on Japan in April of 1942.  We will talk about the Doolittle Raid in Unit 3.  However, prior to World War II, he contributed significantly to research and development an an aeronautical engineer and test pilot.  

Doolittle was born in 1896 in California, but split his time growing up between living with his father in Nome, Alaska, and his mother in California.  He attended one of the first air meets in the United States at Dominguez Field, California, in 1910, which began a life-long interest in flight.  When World War I broke out, he joined the Army Air Service.  He was such a gifted pilot that the Army kept him in the U.S. to train other pilots, so he did not see combat in Europe during WWI. 

Jimmy Doolittle's impressive flying abilities brought him to the attention of many military and civilian aviation leaders, not the least of whom was Philanthropist Harry Guggenheim (who also worked with Charles Lindbergh after his 1927 flight across the Atlantic).  Guggenheim was in charge of administering his parent's foundation after their deaths in 1924, and the estate included a substantial allocation of money earmarked for the developing science of flight.  

Doolittle was on Harry Guggenheim's radar as a leader in aviation for several reasons.  First, Doolittle had flown across the United States in less than 24 hours in 1924, and he won the prestigious Schneider Trophy Race for seaplanes in 1925 (beating out several U.S. Navy pilots in the process).   Second, the U.S. Army encouraged Doolittle's interest in the science of flight by enabling him to earn both a Master's Degree and Ph.D. in Aeronautical Science (1924 and 1925 respectively) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as an alternative military assignment.  Thus, Jimmy Doolittle was the perfect person to head a research lab because he was both a highly skilled pilot and someone with solid research credentials who understood engineering.

In 1928 Harry Guggenheim collaborated with the U.S. Army Air Corps to establish the Full Flight Laboratory team at Mitchell Field outside Hempstead Plains, New York.  Jimmy Doolittle was stationed there to serve as the lab's director, and it became one of the premiere installations for the U.S. Army Air Corps in the 1920s.  It was through the Full Flight Laboratory that Doolittle developed the instruments to enable a pilot to fly both at night and in fog or bad weather.  Pilots often became disoriented when they could not see the horizon or the ground, and instruments like the attitude indicator allowed pilots to fly regardless of outside conditions.  The ability to train pilots to trust their instruments, and to fly without being able to see outside the cockpit, became critical as aircraft speed and maneuverability increased (leading to greater opportunity for disorientation for pilots if they were not able to rely on instrument flying).

Summary

The cockpit, and the flight controls and instruments that comprise it, were not standardized until World War II when it became necessary to train thousands of pilots to fly any type of plane they may encounter when sent to the front lines of war.  However, important steps were taken in the interwar years to move the industry towards standardization by individuals like Jimmy Doolittle, who demonstrated the importance of navigation, flight, and engine instruments both for flying in all conditions and for keeping pilots oriented physiologically while flying.