Thomas Moy
| Thomas Moy | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Thomas William Moy 1823 Liberty of the Rolls, London, England |
| Died | 1910 |
| Nationality | United Kingdom |
| Occupation | Civil and mechanical engineer and patent agent |
| Known for | Aerial Steamer |
Thomas William Moy (1823–1910) was an English engineer and patent agent best known for his Aerial Steamer of 1875.
Moy was born in the Liberty of the Rolls (now part of Westminster) in London around 1823. In the 1851 Census of Islington he is listed as living with his wife Henrietta and six-month-old daughter and is described as a 28-year-old Law Stationers Clerk. In 1881 Moy was living in Camberwell and was described as a 58-year-old civil engineer. In 1901 he was still living in Camberwell but was now described as a 78-year-old Mechanical Engineer and Patentee; his wife also with him, but she died a few months after the census.
Moy's introduction to aeronautics was through ballooning but he soon became interested in heavier-than-air flight, and performed some experiments with lifting surfaces by towing surfaces in the Surrey Canal in 1861
Moy was one of the earliest members of the Aeronautical Society of Great Britain (later the Royal Aeronautical Society), founded in 1866, and presented a number of papers at its meetings, including one in 1869 describing the soaring flight of albatrosses in a wind.
His best-known work, the Aerial Steamer was constructed in 1874 and tested at the Crystal Palace in South London in July 1875, with limited success: the aviation historian Charles Gibbs-Smith credits the machine with a brief flight, lifting off the ground by 6 in (15 cm) However, according to Octave Chanute's contemporary and detailed account, the aircraft never came close to flying because it was unable to reach the speed necessary for takeoff. The Society described it as "one of the most determined attempts at solving the problem [of powered flight] which has yet taken place." Shortly after the first test the machine was damaged in a storm: Moy rebuilt it with substantial modifications, but after brief tests the project was abandoned owing to lack of money. He was also involved in a dispute over patent rights with Mr. Shill, the engineer who had worked with him on the development of the engine.
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