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Was born
Wilbur was born in 1867 and Orville was born in 1871 -
helicopter
In 1878, the brothers’ father, Milton Wright, brought home a rubber band powered toy
helicopter. Designed by French aeronautical experimenter Alphonse Pénaud, this toy did
not simply fall to the ground as expected. -
bicycles
But it wasn’t until 1892, when they formed the Wright Cycle Company to sell
bicycles, that they found a successful business that also allowed them spare time for other
projects. -
otto
Their energies were
focused by two events of 1896; the death of Otto Lilienthal, the celebrated glider
experimenter, in a flying accident, and the successful unmanned launching of powered
models by Samuel Langley. -
literature
The Wrights’ serious work in aviation began in 1899 when Wilbur wrote the Smithsonian
for literature. -
1900
For some years I have been afflicted with the belief that flight is possible to man. My disease
has increased in severity and I feel that it will soon cost me an increased amount of money if
not my life. I have been trying to arrange my affairs in such a way that I can devote my entire
time for a few months to experiment in this field. -
1901
This was the year the Wrights sharpened their focus. Trying to overcome the lift problem,
they increased the camber of the 1901 glider. They also lengthened its wingspan to 22 feet,
making it the largest glider anyone had attempted to fly. But at their new Kill Devil Hills
camp, lift was still only a third of that predicted by the Lilienthal data upon which the wing
design was based. And the glider pitched wildly, climbing into stalls. When they returned
to the earlier camber, they achieved long -
1902
The 1902 machine embodies the Wrights’ research. They gave it efficient 32-foot wings and
added vertical tails to counteract adverse yaw. The pilot moved a hip cradle to warp the
wings. Some 400 glides proved the design workable, but still flawed. Sometimes, when the
pilot tried to raise the lowered wing to come out of a turn, the machine instead slid
sideways toward the wing and spun into the ground. Orville suggested a movable tail to
counteract this tendency. After Wilbur thought to link the -
Twelve seconds that changed the world
The brothers were dressed in coats and ties that December morning — a touch of private
ceremony for an event that would alter the world. The pools around their camp were icing
up, and the break in the weather might be their last chance of the season. Words were
impossible over the engine’s roar, so they shook hands and Orville positioned himself on
the flyer. Then, on a remote, sandy beach, in the year 1903, he broke our bond to the earth.
He flew. It lasted only 12 seconds, and the distance of -
Take off
They were the first prople to fly a heavier-then-air power-controlled machine
