Alfred Renard
| Alfred Renard | |
|---|---|
| Born |
April 21, 1895 Anderlecht |
| Died | June 20, 1988 (aged 93) |
| Nationality | Belgian |
| Education | Université libre de Bruxelles |
| Engineering career | |
| Discipline | aviation |
| Institutions | Stampe et Vertongen |
Alfred Renard (21 April 1895 - 20 June 1988) was an eminent Belgian aviation pioneer.
Alfred Renard was born in Anderlecht on 21 April 1895. Already as a youngster, inspired by kites he saw his father make, he illustrated his technical ability by installing electricity and telephone at an uncle's farm.
In 1912, his inspiration is kindled by a prize of 10.000 francs, offered by French car builder Peugeot to the first cyclist to cover two flights, of 10 metres each, solely on her/his own muscular power. Alfred conceives and, with help from his brother Georges, concocts his own device for the test: a bicycle augmented with a home-brew propeller and a fabric-covered wing, unfolding through a lever when reaching the proper speed. The machine never flies, however, and the prize is carried by one Poulain.
During the World War I the brothers work a pedal-powered lathe, producing pieces for a Brussels workshop under the rafters of the family home; they also construct engines. They even venture into building a 5 metres long blimp that they fill with compressed air, their parents judging gas too dangerous.
The same World War I forces Alfred Renard to suspend his study at the Université libre de Bruxelles and the "Faculté des sciences appliquées", just at a time when aviation makes great progress. Only in 1920 will he gain his engineer's degree in civil construction, plus a "licence" (more or less a bachelor's degree) in aeronautics.
After study came the tour of soldier's duty - especially important in this small country that had suffered heavily under the war, and was taking part in the occupation of Western Germany. Renard served as a cartographer, designing military aerodromes. During this service he re-acquainted one of his former university teachers, Emile Allard, newly appointed chief of the military aviation technical service TSA, and creator of a Belgian Aeronautical Laboratory. After several visits to Gustave Eiffel in Paris, the two of them would build a wind tunnel at Sint-Genesius-Rode. They also designed an all-metal monoplane, built at Zeebrugge by company ZACCO (best known under the French acronym ACAZ) as the ACAZ T-2. It failed to meet commercial success.
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