Alexander Fedorovich Mozhaysky

Alexander Fyodorovich Mozhaysky was a Russian naval officer, rear admiral, inventor, and one of the pioneers of aviation. After graduating from the Naval Cadet Corps he served aboard ships of the Baltic and White Sea fleets. In 1853–1855 he took part in the Far Eastern voyage of the frigate Diana to Japan; after the frigate was lost, he participated in the construction of the schooner Heda. He later took part in the Khiva expedition and subsequently commanded the clipper Vsadnik. During a temporary transfer to civil service he served as a candidate to a peace mediator in Gryazovets Uyezd of Vologda Governorate and participated in the practical implementation of the peasant reform. From the mid-1850s he systematically studied bird flight, kites, propellers, and the possibility of creating a heavier-than-air flying machine. In 1876 he publicly demonstrated flights of his models, and on 3 November 1881 received a privilege for his 'aeronautical projectile'. His full-scale fixed-wing machine became one of the early practical experiments in aircraft construction in Russia. In 1882 Mozhaysky was promoted to major general and later to rear admiral. His marriage to Lyubov Dmitrievna Kuzmina produced two sons, Alexander and Nikolai.