structural:summarization, stylistic:style_transfer
Aviator

In 1909, Houdini became fascinated with aviation. He purchased a French Voisin biplane for $5,000 (equivalent to $163,500 in 2023) from the Chilean aviators José Luis Sánchez-Besa and Emilio Eduardo Bello, and hired a full-time mechanic, Antonio Brassac. After crashing once, he made his first successful flight on November 26 in Hamburg, Germany.

The following year, Houdini toured Australia and brought along his Voisin biplane with the intention to be the first person to fly in Australia.