Richard Crosbie was the first Irishman to make a manned flight[1]. He flew in a hydrogen air balloon from Ranelagh, on Dublin's southside to Clontarf, on Dublin's northside in 1785.
Crosbie, who was six feet three inches, was from Crosbie Park, near Baltinglass, County Wicklow. He studied at Trinity College, Dublin. His brother, Sir Edward Crosbie, was executed for treason.
Crosbie launched several balloons containing animals before attempting the first human flight on Irish soil. One of which, containing a cat, was seen passing over the west coast of Scotland, before descending near the Isle of Man. The cat and the balloon were both rescued by a passing ship.
His achievement[2] occurred just 14 months after the first-ever manned balloon flight by the Montgolfier Brothers in France and is commemorated in Dublin[3].