1903 : First airplane flies
Near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, Orville and Wilbur Wright make the
first successful flight in history of a self-propelled,
heavier-than-air aircraft. Orville piloted the gasoline-powered,
propeller-driven biplane, which stayed aloft for 12 seconds and
covered 120 feet on its inaugural flight.
Orville and Wilbur Wright grew up in Dayton, Ohio, and developed an
interest in aviation after learning of the glider flights of the
German engineer Otto Lilienthal in the 1890s. Unlike their older
brothers, Orville and Wilbur did not attend college, but they
possessed extraordinary technical ability and a sophisticated approach
to solving problems in mechanical design. They built printing presses
and in 1892 opened a bicycle sales and repair shop. Soon, they were
building their own bicycles, and this experience, combined with
profits from their various businesses, allowed them to pursue actively
their dream of building the world's first airplane.
After exhaustively researching other engineers' efforts to build a
heavier-than-air, controlled aircraft, the Wright brothers wrote the
U.S. Weather Bureau inquiring about a suitable place to conduct glider
tests. They settled on Kitty Hawk, an isolated village on North
Carolina's Outer Banks, which offered steady winds and sand dunes from
which to glide and land softly. Their first glider, tested in 1900,
performed poorly, but a new design, tested in 1901, was more
successful. Later that year, they built a wind tunnel where they
tested nearly 200 wings and airframes of different shapes and designs.
The brothers' systematic experimentations paid off--they flew hundreds
of successful flights in their 1902 glider at Kill Devils Hills near
Kitty Hawk. Their biplane glider featured a steering system, based on
a movable rudder, that solved the problem of controlled flight. They
were now ready for powered flight.
In Dayton, they designed a 12-horsepower internal combustion engine
with the assistance of machinist Charles Taylor and built a new
aircraft to house it. They transported their aircraft in pieces to
Kitty Hawk in the autumn of 1903, assembled it, made a few further
tests, and on December 14 Orville made the first attempt at powered
flight. The engine stalled during take-off and the plane was damaged,
and they spent three days repairing it. Then at 10:35 a.m. on December
17, in front of five witnesses, the aircraft ran down a monorail track
and into the air, staying aloft for 12 seconds and flying 120 feet.
The modern aviation age was born. Three more tests were made that day,
with Wilbur and Orville alternately flying the airplane. Wilbur flew
the last flight, covering 852 feet in 59 seconds.
During the next few years, the Wright brothers further developed their
airplanes but kept a low profile about their successes in order to
secure patents and contracts for their flying machines. By 1905, their
aircraft could perform complex maneuvers and remain aloft for up to 39
minutes at a time. In 1908, they traveled to France and made their
first public flights, arousing widespread public excitement. In 1909,
the U.S. Army's Signal Corps purchased a specially constructed plane,
and the brothers founded the Wright Company to build and market their
aircraft. Wilbur Wright died of typhoid fever in 1912; Orville lived
until 1948.
The historic Wright brothers' aircraft of 1903 is on permanent display
at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1903 : First airplane flies
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihVideoCategory&id=7114
1944 : U.S. approves end to internment of Japanese Americans
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5608
1975 : "Squeaky" Fromme sentenced to life
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5609
1990 : Aristide wins Haiti's first free election
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5610
1996 : Peruvian rebels seize Japanese ambassador's home
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5611
#########################################
Near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, Orville and Wilbur Wright make the
first successful flight in history of a self-propelled,
heavier-than-air aircraft. Orville piloted the gasoline-powered,
propeller-driven biplane, which stayed aloft for 12 seconds and
covered 120 feet on its inaugural flight.
Orville and Wilbur Wright grew up in Dayton, Ohio, and developed an
interest in aviation after learning of the glider flights of the
German engineer Otto Lilienthal in the 1890s. Unlike their older
brothers, Orville and Wilbur did not attend college, but they
possessed extraordinary technical ability and a sophisticated approach
to solving problems in mechanical design. They built printing presses
and in 1892 opened a bicycle sales and repair shop. Soon, they were
building their own bicycles, and this experience, combined with
profits from their various businesses, allowed them to pursue actively
their dream of building the world's first airplane.
After exhaustively researching other engineers' efforts to build a
heavier-than-air, controlled aircraft, the Wright brothers wrote the
U.S. Weather Bureau inquiring about a suitable place to conduct glider
tests. They settled on Kitty Hawk, an isolated village on North
Carolina's Outer Banks, which offered steady winds and sand dunes from
which to glide and land softly. Their first glider, tested in 1900,
performed poorly, but a new design, tested in 1901, was more
successful. Later that year, they built a wind tunnel where they
tested nearly 200 wings and airframes of different shapes and designs.
The brothers' systematic experimentations paid off--they flew hundreds
of successful flights in their 1902 glider at Kill Devils Hills near
Kitty Hawk. Their biplane glider featured a steering system, based on
a movable rudder, that solved the problem of controlled flight. They
were now ready for powered flight.
In Dayton, they designed a 12-horsepower internal combustion engine
with the assistance of machinist Charles Taylor and built a new
aircraft to house it. They transported their aircraft in pieces to
Kitty Hawk in the autumn of 1903, assembled it, made a few further
tests, and on December 14 Orville made the first attempt at powered
flight. The engine stalled during take-off and the plane was damaged,
and they spent three days repairing it. Then at 10:35 a.m. on December
17, in front of five witnesses, the aircraft ran down a monorail track
and into the air, staying aloft for 12 seconds and flying 120 feet.
The modern aviation age was born. Three more tests were made that day,
with Wilbur and Orville alternately flying the airplane. Wilbur flew
the last flight, covering 852 feet in 59 seconds.
During the next few years, the Wright brothers further developed their
airplanes but kept a low profile about their successes in order to
secure patents and contracts for their flying machines. By 1905, their
aircraft could perform complex maneuvers and remain aloft for up to 39
minutes at a time. In 1908, they traveled to France and made their
first public flights, arousing widespread public excitement. In 1909,
the U.S. Army's Signal Corps purchased a specially constructed plane,
and the brothers founded the Wright Company to build and market their
aircraft. Wilbur Wright died of typhoid fever in 1912; Orville lived
until 1948.
The historic Wright brothers' aircraft of 1903 is on permanent display
at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1903 : First airplane flies
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihVideoCategory&id=7114
1944 : U.S. approves end to internment of Japanese Americans
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5608
1975 : "Squeaky" Fromme sentenced to life
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5609
1990 : Aristide wins Haiti's first free election
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5610
1996 : Peruvian rebels seize Japanese ambassador's home
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5611
#########################################
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