Prelude to the Aeroplane The principle of Mr Pilcher's gliding machine , in which the unfortunate aeronaut recently came to grief , was that of the kite . The idea was that the wings or aeroplanes of the gliding machine would keep its body , together with the weight of the experimenter , suspended by the pressure of the velocity in a forward direction . He had gradually increased its size , and had added a ' tail ' by which he hoped to be able to steer . 1899