First Powered, Sustained and Controlled Flight
Wilbur and Orville Wright are called "The Fathers of Aviation". But they did a great deal more than invent, build and successfully fly the first powered airplane - they approached the challenge using a thoughtful and scientific approach to solving the problems of flight and brought clarity for all time to a subject obscured by centuries of myths, guesses and erroneous calculations. Theories and methods they developed are still used today in the design of modern aircraft.
Wilbur was born in 1867 on a small farm in Indiana and Orville four years later in Dayton, Ohio. Their father was a clergyman who encouraged his two sons to investigate whatever struck their fancy. In their youth, the brothers built and published a newspaper. Later, they opened a bicycle shop. When Otto Lilienthal, a German gliding pioneer, suffered a fatal crash in 1896, their interest focused on aviation.
Initially they relied on the work done by others, but soon came to the conclusion that earlier work was filled with miscalculations and was unreliable. They determined that reliable data could only be developed in the controlled conditions of a laboratory.
With brilliant minds, deft hands and determination, the Wright Brothers developed into engineers and aeronautical theoreticians of towering stature. They designed and built a wind tunnel to test models of wing design, then built full-scale glider models and flew them like kites to test their theories. They did pioneering work to solve problems such as balance, stability and control of an airplane.
When engine manufacturers told them it was impossible to build an engine to their specifications, they designed and built in six weeks an engine with exceptional power-to-weight ratio, far in advance of anything that had ever been done before. They had to design, build and test the propeller that was a marvel for its time, capable of converting 66 percent of engine power into thrust. After many decades of development, today's propellers are 85 percent efficient.
Their efforts led to success at Kittyhawk, North Carolina, at 10:35 am on December 17, 1903. Their aircraft was mounted on a dolly, which rode on an 8-inch high-level rail. The engine was started and when it reached maximum rpm, the line which tethered the aircraft was released. With Orville as pilot, the aircraft accelerated, lifted off the track and flew for 12 seconds, covering a distance of 212 feet, and landed safely. It was the first powered, sustained and controlled flight in history. They made three more successful flights that day, the longest lasted 59 seconds and covered a distance of 582 feet. The average speed was 31 miles per hour. Man's ancient dream of flight was finally realized.
This dramatic moment initiated great changes in civilization and opened the doors to a new aviation industry that has grown by leaps and bounds and benefited humanity in countless ways. In less than 60 years, technology advances achieved an aircraft speed more than 4000 miles per hour. Today, an airplane has blown around the world nonstop and refueled, and commercial airlines each day fly millions of miles, carrying passengers to all parts of the globe in just a few hours.