Fewwords better capture the dreams, desires, fantasies,
and fears of humankind than “flight.” The English language
is filled with its imagery. People have flights of
fancy, let their imaginations soar, aspire to greater heights,
fly into the face of adversity, rise to the occasion. They
sometimes refer to their apprehensions about life as “fear
of flying.” To fly is to go fast, to excel, to be excited, to live
life to its fullest. Yet, except for a tiny fraction of the span
of human existence, flight could only represent a dream.
Images of flight have been an important part of humankind’s
experience for thousands of years. Ancient myths
and legends are pervaded with fantasies of flight. The earliest
known civilizations used everything from cave paintings
to stone carvings on temple walls to record visions of
gods and animals and even humans endowed with wings.
There are legends of flying carpets, flying broomsticks,
flaming flying chariots, lions and horses with wings, ancient
rulers carried aloft by giant birds, and numerous mortals
who fell to earth while attempting to soar on birdlike
wings. Sacred writings of most religions tell of gods and
their messengers who migrate through the skies to communicate
with humankind. To fly is to emulate the gods, to
dare to enter their heavenly domain. Flightwas, and still is,
a kind of magical fantasy, capable of transforming the
toils, frustrations, and limitations of day-to-day existence
into the world of dreams.