Pitot tube
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A pitot tube measures fluid flow velocity. It was invented by French engineer Henri Pitot during his work with aqueducts and published in 1732, and modified to its modern form in 1858 by Henry Darcy.
Aircraft use pitot tubes to measure airspeed. This example, from an Airbus A380, combines a pitot tube (right) with a static port and an angle-of-attack vane (left). Air-flow is right to left.
Pitot tube on Kamov Ka-26 helicopter
A Formula One car during testing with frames holding many pitot tubes
Location of pitot tubes on a Boeing 777
Birgenair Flight 301
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Birgenair Flight 301 was a chartered flight by Turkish-managed Birgenair partner Alas Nacionales from Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic to Frankfurt, Germany, via Gander, Canada, and Berlin, Germ
Pitot tube
…accidents have been traced to a failure of the pitot-static system. Examples include Austral Líneas Aéreas Flight 2553, Northwest Airlines Flight 6231, Birgenair Flight 301, and one of the two X-31s. The French air safety authority BEA said that pitot tube icing was a contributing factor in the crash of Air France Flight…
TC-GEN, the aircraft involved in the accident, pictured in 1994
Memorial for the victims of Birgenair Flight 301 in Puerto Plata
Memorial for the victims of Birgenair Flight 301 in Frankfurt's main cemetery