I greatly appreciated the invitation of your Society to give this lecture on recent progress of aeronautical science in France; and if I hesitated a moment to accept it was only because I feared the difficulty of the task.

As a matter of fact, aeronautical science covers such a wide field that it is difficult to give an exact idea of the progress made in the different branches. Many results are obtained by the improvement of various details, and it is not easy to see clearly the influence of every one of them. I shall endeavour to be as clear as possible, and to describe to you the main purposes of. the French engineers and the results they have obtained in the way of their realisation.

The main objectives of French aeronautical progress have been safety in flight, development of commercial aviation, and metal construction. In every part of aeronautical science we shall find progress along those lines. They concern aerodynamics, building of aircraft, flying boats, motors and aerial navigation.