Harold Nisaac

One man can be honored with the invention and studies in airship technology. Though previous tests and examples existed prior, none reached the level of progress and ingenuity as those of Harold Nisaac.

Born in 506AV, Harold grew up in an Aquilan household in Monterey. His father was a  respected merchant, who made his success in the lucrative steel industry. His mother was a homemaker, taking care of young Harold and his two sisters - Gabriella and Matilda.

His love of flight grew when he first saw the Royal air balloon sit silently in the sky, moored to the Royal Palace. Excelling in his studies, Harold showed great interest and proficiency in the sciences. Dismayed, his father invited him to the steel factories he owned, hoping his son would follow in his footsteps.

Alas, nothing could assuage young Harold’s curiosity, and in the spring of 524AV he became a pupil of the Aquilan Science Academy. Again, the curious Harold excelled, proposing some amazing ideas of future transport.

Halfway through his studies, his father died, forcing Harold to return and takeover the family business. Poor management, and his mother falling ill, further forced Harold into selling the business and moving the family north to Valborough, near Lake Velana just two years later. Here, he hoped to rehabilitate his mother and continue his experiments with the final profits from the sale of the steelworks.

Times were unkind to Harold (now 28), and with multiple failed attempts at creating a viable airship, he worked three jobs to keep his family well.

The moment of clarity came when he switched to the idea of creating a turnscrew propeller as a form of pushing air by and creating direction. It was during a walk with his family that he marvelled at all the sycamore pods falling delicately down to earth. Using this knowledge, he created the first propellers, aptly named Sycamores.

In 547, Harold Nisaac used this technology in conjunction with an air balloon. Hand-cranked, he was successfully able to move the balloon towards its final destination.

With the christening of the RGS Caelius in 559 AV, a new age of war began. The steam-powered air vessel, the first to be commissioned into the Royal Guard, proved that air superiority was now key to any military victory.

Unlike the times of static observation balloons, the RGS Caelius was a mobile observation platform that also had high bombing capability.