Such success. And the US government learned about this when (IIRC) Theodore Rosevelt read an article in Scientific American.

Lucky this wasn't a Government program under Obama's watch, he'd have scuttled it for another of FLOTUS' obesity programs.

Have you noticed that Orville Wright's name is misspelled in this most famous telegram? Or perhaps, it is history that been spelling his name wrong over the years.

I have read several histories of the Wrights, and also their collected papers. I never get over the pleasure of reading in their own words how Wilbur went to France, and was treated as a "bluffeur" by the elite French "aeronauts" who were flying around at 10 feet altitude, in ground effect, making wide skidding turns and calling it "flying".

Wilbur's first flight at the exhibition grounds in Le Mans, which IIRC involved a climb to 1200 feet, put an end to that shit.

What I learned in school: One of the greatest achievements of mankind....the result of imagination, perseverence and hard work.

What they teach in school now: Privileged white men make another machine that ruins the environment. The airplane is racist. I mean, when was the last time you saw a skycap who wasn't a brother?

Using the word "Christmas" would be considered hate mail today. Orville and Wilbur would be put on the TSA no-fly list. The Flyer would be taken to a corner of the KItty Hawk beach and inspected by four government agencies for possible explosive residue.

I spoke with an engineer and test pilot who is a serious hobbyist in radio controlled model airplanes, and designs and builds his own. This accomplished individual said quite matter-of-factly that the Wright brothers were geniuses, as if they were from some different universe and he was just fooling around in their wake.

Gerald,

Five years back I went with the Mrs. and relatives to Nag's Head, NC. Just a few miles away is Kitty Hawk & Kill Devil Hill, where Orville and Wilbur are pictured. Close by the first flight monument stands a life sized sculpted replica of the same picture, with Wilbur running along side. Just about every one visiting that day had someone take a picture where they too were running alongside Orville as he took off. 100+ years later people still wanted to catch some of the magic of that moment.

Not too shabby for two boys who never graduated high school and didn't attend college, eh?

I left a comment here last night which should have been the first, but hasn't shown up. I got a screen saying it was in moderation. I included two links, so maybe that was the problem. I'll try breaking it up into two parts. First:

Although it's not really comparable to the Wright Brothers' achievement, I believe that December 8, 2010 will also be remembered for the spectacularly successful first flight of SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft. It has the potential to dramatically lower the cost of space launches, which will make flights more frequent and open space up to more businesses, universities, and individuals. I haven't been this excited about a space flight since the Apollo era.

Second:

An excellent book about the Wright Brothers is To Conquer the Air. It's mostly a biography of the Wrights, but also details the activities of their contemporaries Langley, Bell, Curtiss, and various European pioneers of flight in the first decade of the 20th Century.

After their first flights at Kitty Hawk in 1903, the Wrights went back to Dayton and spent a couple of years refining their machine and practicing their piloting skills, out of the public eye for the most part. Meanwhile, the first flight in Europe took place in 1906. In 1908 Wilbur toured Europe giving demonstrations and stunned everybody with his ability to maneuver his craft. The Wrights were far ahead of everyone else in the world for a time.

The Euros quickly got up to speed, though. While the Wright Brothers were clearly state-of-the-art in 1908, by the outbreak of World War I in 1914 the Europeans had taken the lead in aviation technology. Almost all the aircraft that took part in WWI were of European design.

It would be interesting to learn more about the mysterious but crucial 1909-1914 period in aviation history.

Well Bill, anyone else have film of the occurrence? Guess you're the only one holding to the myth.

Bill:
It's well known that there were a number of people working to solve the problem of heavier-than-air flight. The Wright Brothers were strongly influenced by Otto Lilienthal and Octave Chanute.

Some or all of the people in your link may have made it into the air for short hops, but the text in the link itself reveals that many of them realized that their flights were not useful or practical. And how many successful airplane designs were built based on the machines shown in those photos?

The Wrights recognized that it wasn't simply a matter of getting airborne. They had to be able to control their machine, too. That was where they really excelled. They derived the principles of aerodynamics based on their own research, including wind tunnel testing.

rickl: I was at Michigan State at breakfast when I read an obituary in the student paper. Sir Thomas Sopwith had died, and they actually ran his obituary.

It was, I thought (and still do) a piece of real news, and they actually had the sense to run it. A true pioneer, and very much a man.

If you folks ever get out to Dayton, the entire Aviation Trail is fascinating stuff. And try to tour the Engineers' Club (which was basically a clubhouse/workshop away from home for the Wrights and the many other successful Dayton engineers).

There are many excellent books about the Wrights, but Wilbur and Orville by Fred Howard makes all the aeronautics info about them and their contemporaries very accessible and interesting.

And 80 years later I got on a 747 and went to Paris. And saw the 24 hours of LeMans. And Normandy. And met my wife's relatives. And made friends I'll treasure forever. I'm not sure how I really feel but I'm thinking that I could live without the Internet but not without those wonderful airliners and the folks who fly 'em.

Maureen: I took a nephew on a day-trip to the US Air Force Museum. Should have spent three days there.

'Steven - that is a Jenny; your great-grandfather trained on those when he was in the RFC back in 1916.'

At least I think so, his photos showed airplanes that looked like 'Jennies'.

My ex was a pioneer in hang glider design, and was the first to try laying the rider prone, like the Wright's. He has a kite hanging in the Air and Space Museum. The Wright brothers are his heroes.

Earlier this week, Paul Allen and Burt Rutan held a press conference announcing the formation of a new company, Stratolaunch Systems. It will use an air-launch technique to send payloads into orbit, potentially including manned spacecraft.

The carrier aircraft will be the largest airplane ever built, with a wingspan more than three times longer than the Wright Brothers' first flight.

See the YouTube video "Stratolaunch Systems, A Paul G. Allen Project". I tried linking it, but was sent to "Thank You for Commenting" purgatory.

To visit Kitty Hawk and stand on the same ground as the wonderful men who changed this world, would be akin to a visit to the moon to see the first footprint.

Like Maureen, I highly recommend the Fred Howard biography. It does indeed make the science very accessible--and it provides a wonderful understanding of who these people were. The Wright brothers were completely devoted to thinking clearly. It's instructive and illuminating to read about their courage and good sense.

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