| CIA NOTABLE FLIGHTS AND PERFORMANCES | Part T. Technical development |
| 1625 | First description of hydrogen. first to use the word "gas". Founder of pneumatic chemistry. |
| | Johann Baptista van Helmont¹ |
| 1755 | Repeated Helmont's discovery that different gases exist |
| | Joseph Black¹ |
| 1766 | Discovered and isolated a gas. 11 times lighter than air |
| | Henry Cavendish¹ |
| 1774-08-01 | Isolated and categorized hydrogen and seven other gases. |
| | Joseph Priestley¹ |
| 1774-09-30 | Discovered and produced oxygen |
| | Carl Wilhelm Scheele¹ |
| 1784-03-02 | First trial with a dirigible balloon. |
| | Jean-Pierre Blanchard | Blanchard No 1. Hydrogen. |
| 1784-07-15 | First flight with an elongated balloon with ballonet. |
| | Marie-Noël Robert. (the younger) | Hydrogen. "La Caroline" |
| 1785-09-08 | First Aerial view published. trail rope first described |
| | Thomas Baldwin | Lunardi |
| 1789 | Described combustion and proved that the Phlogiston theory is invalid |
| | Antoine Lavoisier¹ |
| 1803-07-18 | First expressly scientific ascent. |
| | Etienne Gaspar Robertson | "Entreprenant". hydrogen. |
| 1821-07-19 | First use of coal gas. |
| | Charles Green | Green. "George IV". Coal gas. |
| 1836-11-08 | First flight over 600 km. First use of drag rope. |
| | Charles Green | "Royal Vauxhall". Coal gas |
| 1839-04-27 | First use of Rip Panel |
| | John Wise |
| 1858- | First aerial photograph. |
| | Gaspard-Félix Tournachon ("Nadar") |
| 1861-06-18 | First telegraph message from the air. |
| | Thaddeus Sobieski Constantine Lowe | "Enterprise" |
| 1872-12-13 | First use of internal gas combustion engine for dirigible |
| | Paul Hänlein | Hänlein |
| 1897-11-03 | First flight of a rigid (metal outer cover) airship. |
| | Ernst Jaegels | David Schwartz No 2 |
| 1909-xx-xx | Radio-controlled airship model demonstration |
| | Mark O. Anthony |
| 1910-08-22 | Radio-controlled airship model demonstration. |
| | Raymond Phillips | "Raymond Phillips" |
| 1921-12-01 | First airship to fly filled with helium |
| | US Navy C-7 |
| 1933-09-04 | 21th Gordon Bennett race 1933. 4th place. Flew a netless balloon |
| | Richard Schütze | "Deutschland" |
| 1948-11-18 | Early modern hot air balloon |
| | James A. Contos | Homebuilt |
| 1953-xx-xx | Early modern hot air balloon |
| | Edward Yost | Homebuilt |
| 1956-04-15 | Early modern hot air balloon. |
| | James A. Contos | Raven |
| 1956-05-xx | Logging by balloon tested in Sweden |
| | British Barrage balloon. hydrogen |
| 1960-10-22 | First modern Hot air Balloon prototype |
| | Edward Yost | Raven Mark 1. Vulcoon |
| 1966-08-20 | First modern European Hot Air Balloon |
| | Veikko Kaseva | Homebuilt. OH-XVK |
| 1973-01-04 | First successful flight of a Hot Air Airship. Bristol. |
| | Donald A. Cameron | Cameron D96. |
| 1973-03-14 | Test with logging balloons to load/offload ships |
| | Unmanned | Raven. Helium |
| 1973-05-01 | First flight on pure solar heat |
| | Tracy Barnes | Barnes. "Solar Firefly". Tetrahedron. |
| 1974-01-01 | First European solar powered balloon |
| | Dominic Michaelis | Cameron |
| 1974-03-09 | Manned paper balloon flown. Kerosene burner |
| | Jan Fröjdman | Homebuilt |
| 1978-02-06 | Solar flight. |
| | Fredrick Eshoo | Raven. "Sunstat". |
| 1998-10-18 | Flight with cluster of 72 Latex Balloons |
| | John K Ninimoya | Homebuilt cluster balloon. 72 elastic balloons |
| | © CIA, Hans Åkerstedt | | 2024-12-04 |