Henri Coandă, born on June 7, 1886 in Bucharest, was a world-renowned Romanian engineer and inventor, recognized for his contributions to aerodynamics and aviation. He invented the world's first jet airplane and formulated the "Coandă Effect", a fundamental principle of fluid dynamics.
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Youth and Education
Henri Coandă was the second child of General Constantin Coandă, former Prime Minister of Romania, and Aidei Danet, daughter of French physician Gustave Danet. Coandă was fascinated from childhood by the force of the wind and attended St. Sava High School in Bucharest until the third grade, when he was sent by his father to the Military High School in Iași to pursue a military career.
In 1903, he graduated from the Military Lyceum with the rank of sergeant major and continued at the Artillery, Engineer and Navy Officers School in Bucharest. In 1904, he was posted to an artillery regiment in Germany and studied at the Technische Hochschule in Berlin-Charlottenburg. Here his passion for technology and aviation began to develop. In 1905, he built a rocket airplane for the Romanian army.
Studies and Early Achievements
Between 1907 and 1908, Coandă studied at the Montefiore Institute in Liège, Belgium, where he worked alongside Italian engineer Giovanni Caproni. In 1908, he returned to Romania as an active officer in the 2nd Artillery Regiment, but his creativity was not compatible with military discipline. After receiving approval to leave the army, he traveled the Isfahan-Teheran-Tibet route.
In 1909, he moved to France and enrolled at the Ecole Supérieure de l'Aeronautique et des Constructions in Paris, which he graduated in 1910 as the valedictorian of the first generation of aeronautical engineers.
Invention of the Jet Plane
In 1910, Coandă built the first jet airplane, known as the Coandă-1910, without propeller, which he presented at the Paris International Air Show. During a test flight in December 1910, the plane crashed, due to Coandă's inexperience as a pilot, but he escaped unhurt. This was the first time he observed the phenomenon that would later become known as the 'Coandă Effect'.
Career and Later Contributions
Between 1911 and 1914, Henri Coandă was technical director at the Bristol Aircraft Works in England, where he designed several high-performance airplanes known as the Bristol-Coandă. In 1912, one of his airplanes won first prize at the International Military Aviation Competition in England.
During the First World War, Coandă worked at "Saint-Chamond" and "SIA-Delaunay-Belleville" in France, where he designed reconnaissance planes and the world's first streamliner. In 1916, he created the Coandă-1916, a revolutionary airplane with propellers placed close to the tail, similar to the Caravelle transport airplane, which he later helped design.
The Coandă Effect and Technological Innovations
In 1934, Henri Coandă patented the "Coandă Effect" in France, which describes the deflection of a jet of fluid as it flows along a convex surface. This phenomenon, first observed by him while testing the Coandă-1910 airplane, had important applications in the development of aircraft and other technologies.
Coandă also made numerous other inventions, such as a device to desalinate seawater using solar energy and a system for detecting liquids in the ground for oil prospecting. He built an underwater concrete reservoir for storing oil in the Persian Gulf and developed environmentally friendly modular systems.
Activity during and after World War II
During the Second World War, Henri Coandă worked in occupied France, collaborating with the Nazis to develop sled propulsion systems. After the war, he was recognized internationally for his achievements, receiving numerous awards and distinctions.
In 1969, Coandă returned permanently to Romania and became director of the Institute of Scientific and Technical Creation (INCREST). In 1970, he was elected member of the Romanian Academy and in 1971, together with Elie Carafoli, he reorganized the Department of Aeronautical Engineering at the Polytechnic University of Bucharest.
Awards and Prizes
Henri Coandă received numerous honors during his lifetime, including:
- Title of "Inventor of the first jet airplane" in New York (1956)
- UNESCO Order of Merit for Scientific Research (1960)
- Military Medal from the French Government (1961)
- Doctor Honoris Causa of the Polytechnic Institute of Bucharest (1967)
- Romanian Order of Scientific Merit (1970)
Death and Legacy
Henri Coandă died on November 25, 1972, in Bucharest, at the age of 86, and was buried in Bellu Cemetery. In his honor, the Romanian Post Office issued a postage stamp in 1978 and the National Bank of Romania issued several commemorative coins to celebrate his contributions to aviation.
Henri Coandă remains a symbol of Romanian and world innovation, a pioneer of aviation and one of the greatest inventors of the 20th century.
