Eduardo Bradley

Born: Eduardo Bradley April 9, 1887 La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Died: May 4, 1951 Buenos Aires, Argentina
Resting place: Cementerio de la Recoleta
Nationality: Argentina
Occupation: aviator
Known for: Crossing of the Andean on Hydrogen Balloon
Predecessor: Jorge Newbery
Children: Eduardo Bradley
Relatives: Eduardo Montes-Bradley, Ricardo Ernesto Montes i Bradley, Nelson Montes-Bradley

Eduardo Bradley, born in the city of La Plata, Argentina, on April 9, 1887 embodied the Spirit of Aviation in Argentina where he was a major contributor in the funding of civil aviation. The son of Tomx¡s Bradley Sutton, veteran of the Paraguayan War and of Mary Hayes O’Callaghan. Eduardo Bradley begun his pilot career next to veteran aviator Jorge Newbery. Bradley brevet´s was the first issued following the newly created regulations of the International Civil Aviation Organization. Shortly after Newbery's death in 1914, Eduardo Bradley set forth to honor his late friend by attempting to cross the Andean in an aerostat. Bradley was already an experienced balloonist with over one hundred ascensions and proven records of altitude: (6.900m); endurance on flight (28h10min) and distance covered in-flight (900 km, to Rio Grande do Sul from Buenos Aires).

Crossing of the Andes

Preliminary studies had determined the crossing should be Eastbound, which was the direction the winds carried at the altitude required. This later implied moving to Santiago de Chile to make the necessary arrangements. Eduardo Bradley presented his plans to Aero Club Argentino, which eventually provided two balloons and the necessary gear to produce high volumes of hydrogen. Although the balloons turn out to be useful, the hydrogen producing gear was absolutely worthless. Of the two balloons the one named “Eduardo Newberyâ€� was the largest and the one chosen by Bradley for the odyssey at hand. The second balloon, named “Teniente Origoneâ€�, was used for testing prior to the actual crossing of the Andean. Bradley’s first choice for co-pilot was Julio Crespo Vivot, a seasoned aviator who had already flown with Bradley when the later obtained the record of altitude. Crespo Vivot’s refusal to come along on the adventure turn Bradley’s interest towards a young Army Lieutenant by the name of Angel Marx­a Zuloaga.

Once in Chile the crew had serious difficulties with the generation of hydrogen due to the accidental loss of most of the Sulfuric Acid imported from Argentina. Bradley decided then and there to resort to coal gas produced in Chile and readily available with a high percentage of hydrogen. The odyssey would have been impossible without the determination of the Chileans authorities which responded to every request for better support from Bradley’s native Argentina. The crossing of the Andean Mountains on an aerostat filled with coal gas was finally accomplish successfully on June 24, 1916. At an altitude of 8.100m; the temperature dropped to -30°C. The adventure lasted three and a half hours from the moment of lifting in Santiago until the “Eduardo Newberyâ€� landed in Cerro de la Cepa, Uspallata, Mendoza, Argentina.

After the facts

Picture - Eduardo Bradley next to Santos Dumont.

Bradley and Zuloaga were welcomed in Argentina as National Heroes. The years following the crossing of the Andean were dedicated by Bradley to develop the local civil aviation industry to which he devoted the rest of his life. He pioneer NYRBA in Argentina, a company founded by Ralph O’Neil; was manager for Pan American Grace Airways and later president of Pan-American Argentina.

On September 4, 1929 Eduardo Bradley becomes the first passenger on a direct fly from Buenos Aires to Miami on a fly of Pan American. The journey lasted 56 hours. The purpose of his visit to the US was to compete for a second time in the Gordon Bennett Cup in ballooning. Eduardo Bradley died in Buenos Aires on May 4, 1951. He’s buried in the Cementerio de la Recoleta.

Bibliography

Picture - Biography by NM-B

Mx¡s liviano que el aire. Eduardo Bradley (Lighter Than Air) Historias con globos, by Nelson Montes-Bradley. Xlibris, Philadelphia, USA, 2007
Una vida en las alturas. Memorias del autor. by Washington Bradley. Editorial Dunken, Buenos Aires, 2004
Jorge Newbery, el conquistador del espacio. by Raxºl Larra. Editorial Futuro, Buenos Aires, 1960
La aerostacix³n Argentina y sus precursores. by Julio Vx­ctor Lirx³n. Buenos Aires, 1958.
La victoria de las alas. Historia de la aviacix³n Argentina. by x�ngel Marx­aZuloaga. El Ateneo. Buenos Aires, 1948
La Travesx­a de los Andes en Globo. by Eduardo Bradley. Imprenta Argentina Jacobo Peuser, Buenos Aires, 1916

External references

Gordon Bennet

More airplanes.

Source: WikiPedia