A quick glance at aviation magazines from the early parts of the last century will show that certain sub-cultures were very concerned with the ability to allow for trouble-free ground transport of aircraft. There were many magazine articles picturing how biplanes could be disassembled for this purpose and up until 1912, or so we are led to believe by the editors of Popular Mechanics, the de Marcay-Mooney monoplane was the first flying machine that was able to have it’s wings fold back (much like a bird or a beetle) and when re-set at 90 degrees for take-off, could fly successfully.
First Folding Wing Aircraft magazine article 1912First Folding Wing Aircraft 1912First Folding Wing Monoplane 1912de Marcay-Mooney monoplane 1912 Magazine ArticleAirplane Design Based Upon Insect 1912
First Folding Wing Aircraft magazine article 1912First Folding Wing Aircraft 1912First Folding Wing Monoplane 1912de Marcay-Mooney monoplane 1912 Magazine ArticleAirplane Design Based Upon Insect 1912