Editing Fire engine (section)

===Early aerials===
In the late 19th century, means of reaching tall structures were devised. At first, manually extendable ladders were used; as these grew in length (and weight), they were put onto two large wheels. When carried by fire engines these ''wheeled escape ladders'' had the wheels suspended behind the rear of the vehicle, making them a distinctive sight. Before long, ''turntable ladders''—which were even longer, mechanically extendable, and installed directly onto fire trucks—made their appearances.

After [[World War II]], turntable ladders were supplemented by the [[aerial work platform]] (sometimes called "cherry picker"), a platform or bucket attached onto a mechanically bending arm (or "snorkel") installed onto a fire truck. While these could not reach the height of similar turntable ladders, the platforms could extend into previously unreachable "dead corners" of a burning building.