He conceptualized the Parachute, Glider, Helicopter and Landing Gear

Leonardo da Vinci was enthralled by the flight of birds and dedicated his life to realizing his dream of inventing the flying machine. He created the concept for the earliest known modern parachute, which was successfully tested in 2000 by Adrian Nicholas of the United Kingdom. Four and a half centuries before it became a reality, Da Vinci envisioned the helicopter, drawing the first known drawing of any helicopter-like machine. In practice, however, his human-powered aerial screw would not have functioned. The glider and landing gear were also designed by Da Vinci.

After a 17-year stay in Milan, Leonardo da Vinci returned to Florence in 1500. His sojourn in the north of Italy was fruitful, yielding not only the magnificent Virgin on the Rocks but also the Last Supper, which his patron, Ludovico Sforza, predicted would be one of history's most magnificent paintings. However, back in Florence, Leonardo pondered whether his best work was still to come. He wrote in a private letter at the end of 1500 that it was now important to focus less on painting and more on building "machines for seeing" in order to "acquire a real and perfect understanding."