Leonardo da Vinci designed an ornithopter, a flying machine with flapping wings.
The word ornithopter means a machine that flies by moving its wings like a bird or insect. Leonardo studied bird anatomy, wing structure, and the movement of air while developing several flapping-wing designs. His sketches show a pilot operating wing mechanisms with pedals, levers, or hand controls.
None of Leonardo’s ornithopters flew. Human muscle power was not sufficient to lift the proposed machine and pilot, and the designs did not include the lightweight engines needed for sustained powered flight. Their importance lies in the systematic way Leonardo connected observation of animals with mechanical design.
An ornithopter is different from an aerial screw, which uses a rotating helical surface, and from a glider, which relies on forward motion and fixed wings. Leonardo investigated all of these ideas as part of his broader study of flight.