Greg Farris wrote:
In article ,
says...
Here's the Wikipedia article on the subject:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_flying_machine

I guess the fact that the word "Montgolfier" is not mentioned in the
otherwise well-prepared article pretty much sends them back to the
books to try again . . .

Seems that only heavier-than-air flight (powered and unpowered) makes their
list. If gliders qualify, then manned flight first appears to have occurred
over a thousand years ago - either on the Iberian Peninsula or in China,
depending on ones confidence level requirements.