For a long time people living in Tehran remembered the day when the terrifying sound of an iron bird echoed in their ears. They panicked and went to the streets to see the shadow of the two wings on the ground, twisting and turning on all sides. The frightened people took refuge against the walls, fearing that the iron bird might fall any moment and break into pieces. The pilot, who had difficulty reducing the plane’s height, saw people fleeing in fear. He may have also heard the voices of some pointing at the plane and shouting “Plane! plane!”
Until before the reign of ahmad Shah Qajar Tehran residents hadn’t seen a plane. They had heard things, and they knew that the blue-eyed foreigners had made iron birds flying in the sky. They heard these stories and started wondering: “Is it possible to fly? It is just a fairy tale that the foreigners have made up.”
But it was not long before the same skeptical people saw this iron winged bird with their own eyes. The exact day is recorded as noon of the 14th of December 1913. On that day a Polish pilot flew “Bleriot XI” over Tehran and landed in the middle of the city.
What happened is that “Kozminski”, a Polish pilot, brought the separate parts of the Blériot plane from Russia to Bandar Anzali and, after assembling it, decided to fly it over Tehran. Kozminsky was a famous adventurer in search of excitement and fun! He knew very well that with this flying machine, he could surprise the people of Tehran and make a lot of money through the show. He had flown in the skies of other countries and started a profitable business with his performance. This time it was the turn of Tehranians to pay to see the plane fly.
The first flight in the sky of Tehran
It was 10 years since the Wright brothers launched their first flight into the sky. their flight last only 12 seconds, though they did try three more times. Kozminsky had chosen one of the best aircraft of the time, the Blériot XI, to fly in the Iranian skies. Blériot was a military training aircraft considered one of the pioneer aircraft of aviation at that time; A light biplane that could fly long distances.
Kozminsky flew his plane from Anzali; It passed through the mountains and plains until it reached Tehran. The air was clear and sunny when the shadow of his iron bird fell over the city. People took to the streets to watch and saw the plane coming down with their disbelieving eyes. When Kozminsky flew over the city, he saw no flat ground suitable for landing his plane until he saw the area of Maidan Mashkh, where Tehran’s police headquarters would be located a few years later, and landed the plan with great difficulty. His flight height was shallow, and this increased the fear of Tehranian. The aircraft was damaged in that sudden landing. The damage, however, was not so significant that it could not rise again.
As soon as Kozminsky and his plane landed, people hurried to the training ground and circled the plane so loudly that riot police were forced to keep people rushed to Mashgh Square and circled the plan with such noise and commotion that the police force had to keep the people away from the plan, but no one cared for the police warnings and everyone was trying to get close to the plane to touch it. But they would soon withdraw their hands, fearing their hands would be bitten! Finally, the people were told that they could come to the same place the next day to see the plane, provided they buy a ticket! But the next day, people from all over the city and even the villages around Tehran who had heard the news of the arrival of the fantastic iron birds flocked to the training ground. They bought a ticket from Kozminsky, encouraging him to fly again. One can imagine how happy the Polish pilot was at that moment, counting the money that he would earn from this show.
The plane’s landing in Mashgh square was considered an important and exciting event. So, the next day, Ahmad shah and several of his courtiers and entourage went to the square to see the plane and posed with the pilot for pictures. Very soon, a photo of Ahmad Shah and the pilot was published in the French newspaper Liberation.
After that royal meeting, Kozminski immediately started selling tickets to the people of Tehran. After showing off his work and attracting people’s attention, he flew the plane once again and after taking a few rounds around Tehran, amidst the astonishment of the people, he waved to those who were looking towards the sky, and made his way towards the Alborz range to go back to Russia. But a sad end was awaiting Kozminsky. His plane crashed into the mountains and he died on spot. A few days later, the dismembered parts of the aircraft were placed on horseback and brought to Tehran, where they were dropped off at Toupkhaneh Square.
Another flight
Only two years later, the second flight took place over Tehran. This time it was the turn of a British pilot to bring his propeller plane to Tehran and bring it down on the same training ground. Once again the people swarmed to see the plane and by buying tickets, saw the show of the British pilot and his plane. The reason this plane flew to Tehran was because it was supposed to take an employee of the British embassy to Iraq. Being afraid of flying, the poor employee refused to board the plane. He was forced to board the plane with great force, and the door was closed on him, while the unfortunate man was crouching in the corner of the plane out of fear and was shaking violently! Eventually, the pilot got ready to fly and turned on the plane, but no matter how hard he struggled, the plane did not take off, and and after going a short distance and making a lot of dust, the pilot rested the plane in a corner, in front of the eyes of the crowd. The british pilot did not give up and tried flying again the next day. But this time, too, he failed, and his plane fell behind the moat of the British embassy after taking off low. Therefore the British plane crashed, but its pilot was not harmed.
Since those days, several planes were seen in Tehran’s sky. One of them was a Russian plane that seemed to have appeared in the sky of Tehran during the October Revolution of Russia in 1917 and crashed around Tehran. During the First World War, British planes flew over Tehran many times. Until the Iranians finally thought of forming an air fleet. In 1922, the first Iranian military aircraft was purchased by the government. A year later, in June 1923, the first pilot’s license was issued to an Iranian. Several years later, in 1942, Iran’s first airline was founded.
