-French create a dirigible powered by Pyreolophore in 1861, works quite well

-people keep working on it, but now is truly workable commercially

-US's Wars > American Civil War (1869-76) sees use of dirigible fleet by particularly the Constitutionalist side

-by French Wars > Fourth French War (1880-4), there are anti-dirigible rockets that target hydrogen airships, resulting in them playing a more lowkey role in war

-also inspires more development of rockets

-but nevertheless, still used by all sides in French Wars > Fifth French War (1890-5)

-growth of civilian use of dirigibles in 1870s to 1890s

-French commercial dirigible company formed in 1874 by burgeoning entrepreneur

-in 1880s, 1890s, it grows rapidly and by 1900 dirigibles around the world

-supplements them with bolides in 1920s, 1930s, and by 1960s fully supplanted

-use of liquid-propelled rockets to do humanity's first flight in 1892

-wartime experiment by French govt

-this prototype called motobolide, from moto (motor) and bolide (from ancient greek bolis), term applied to heavier than air aircraft as a whole

-with term rocket bolide being term used anachronistically

-use in aerial bombing during French Wars > Fifth French War (1890-5)

-bolides with rockets attached, aeronauts drop bombs from it

-postwar, with plans for them leaked, France engages in grandstanding by giving out its patent for free as a gift to the world in a spirit of republicanism

-aerial frames

-successful experiment in flying across English Channel in 1903

-The golden age of rocket bolides only starts to come to an end in the 1920s, as advantages of aerophores become clear and they exceed their achievements - except in speed (and they're still pretty fast)

-in 1890s, experiments with heavier-than-air flight achieve success, with use of new modern liquid-fuelled rockets (Rocketry > ^ead725); however, proves less than successful in taking them further

-experiments with using pyreolophores, inspired by uses of gyrophores thus slowly increase

-in 1914, Alexandru Aldea develops what he calls an aerophore which is able to go further than even the best rocket-powered flyers, and can be stopped and thrust can be throttled

-engine made of alumium, which has only recently been made cheaply thanks to electric decomposition

-w/o Faraday, electrolysis is behind OTL

-in competition with rocket flyers it wins by 1920s, safety helps after various rocket flyer accidents

-aerophores thus become commonplace and dominate bolide space

-with investigation in turbines rather delayed due to their association with "finished" technology of rocket

-also since prototypical engines do badly in tests - partially, metallurgy do not do well enough and they melt

and partially because double-decker planes do not work well with them

-talk rises of making bolide that crosses sound barrier in 1920s

-clear requires rockets to do this

-and clear it's extremely dangerous, numerous attempts end up in failure

-but finally, in 1928, French attempt to cross sound barrier succeeds in lightweight bolide shaped like a bullet

-using alumium, [ramjet]

-in 1960s, rise of turbine bolides

-prominence of rocket planes diminish exploration in the topic since they make it seem like a throwback

-first workable invented in China with new workable designs diminishing issues with knocking

-in China because same western orthodoxy not held to, resulting in more experimentalism

-despite issues as it seems to many a return to the rocket bolide era

-initially with militaries, but flows to civilian airway companies quickly

-kills off flying boats, forces many countries to construct airstrips instead of marine airports

-note that bolides do not unseat bullet lines (Railways > High-speed rail) because of fewer airports which are established better, and so small-range bolides less influential

-by 1980s, supersonic bolides on commercial market, and w/ no equiv of oil embargo they become extremely popular internationally

-soon after invention of rocket bolide, people try out powering rotor-spun craft

-with rockets attached to the rotors

-in 1903, Jan Andel creates gyro-powered rotor craft with rockets at the metal rotor tips

-but fails to create another version with Pyreolophore

-further experimentation occurs with this because it clearly has potential

-in 1906, Hungarian Lajos Grunberg creates gyro-powered rotor craft powered by pyreolophore

-w/o alumium pyreolophores, as can support more relative weight

-in general, gyrophores (as they are called) see development much earlier than OTL

-see maturity in French Wars > Sixth French War (1937-41), where they are quite useful tools of war

-often armed with rockets

-Motobolide - Airplane, from "moto" (motor) and "bolide" (from Ancient Greek bolis, missile)

-Bolide - Plane, pronounced "bolid" from the French

-Rocket bolide - rocketplane

-Aerophore - internal combustion engine-powered airplane

-Turbine bolide - jet plane

-Gyrophore - helicopter