Henri Coanda was one of the pioneers of Romanian aviation, and the godfather of the modern jet aircraft, paving the way for the fast military jets and passenger airliners of the second half of the 20th century.

In 1910, he built the world's very first jet aircraft. Named the 'Coanda', it was exhibited at the 2nd Aeronautical Exhibition in Paris and astonished crowds with its sleek metal construction - and lack of a propeller!

The most known, studied and applied discovery of Henri Coanda is the 'Coanda Effect' as demonstrated by his groundbreaking 1910 aircraft. After studies, which lasted more than 20 years, (carried out by Henri and other scientists) it was recognised as a new achievement in aerodynamics, which would revolutionise air travel.

In its simplest form, the Coanda Effect recognises how steam emerging from a nozzle tends to follow a nearby curved surface, as long as the curvature of the surface or angle the surface makes is not too sharp.

You can test this out yourself at home. If a stream of water is flowing along a solid surface which is slightly curved, the water will tend to follow the surface. Take a spoon and place it under a gently running tap and watch as the water follows the curvature of the utensil.

What does this mean in terms of flight? Many scientists suggest that due to the shape of an aircraft wing, air moving along it will be deflected downwards, due to the Coanda Effect. As it leaves the wing, it pushes the craft up into the air and gives the plane lift. As well as other experiments, Henri Coanda tested out this effect on nothing other than a prototype for a flying saucer!