I saw a vision of a raptor jumping up and flapping its arms as it crashed into the ground. I think this is the evolution of flight, which is that of jumping dinosaurs (using their large feathered arms for flapping as they neared the ground). It looks like it has downy though, like baby ducklings, which does make sense because I would think that original mammals had no fur. Similarly, early feather would have been downy.
I can see into the past, and I think anyone can. The spirits of the dinosaurs still remain.
I am thinking that feathers not only evolved to serve better maneuvering, but also helped dinosaurs survive their extreme activity which may have been jumping up and landing. They could glide to the ground, which would be good for avoiding tough impacts.
So, I do believe feathers evolved to help animals while jumping as well as running. Overtime the creatures, as they began to climb trees, probably used the feathers in leaping large distances. It is then a short distance to learning to fly.