Man, who always dreamt of flying achieved his dream on the 17th of December 1903 with the first successful flight launched by the pioneer brothers in aviation named Orville and Wilbur Wright. Therefore, this day is known as “Wright Brothers day”. The “Wright Flyer ” which is also known as “Flyer I” was the final result of a four year hardwork comprised of research and development conducted by Wilbur and Orville Wright in the beginning of the year 1899.
Who are these Wright brothers?
Wilbur and Orville Wright were American nationals who initially worked at Dayton, Ohio based shop containing bicycles, motors and other machineries. In December 1892, they inaugurated “Wright Cycle Exchange” which later turned as “Wright Cycle Company” as a result of national craze towards bicycle. Their interest towards flight grew by the photographs of the German national Otto Lilienthal’s dramatic glides.Lilienthal who tested various gliders eventually met with an accident which occured in his glider. And this tragedy persuaded the Wright brothers to conduct more research in flights.
The First Flight
The Wright Brothers got ready for their first flight on December 14, 1903 at Kitty Hawk in South Carolina. They tossed a coin and decided who would fly first. As a result, Wilbur won the toss. He flew for 3 1/2 seconds covering 105 feet, causing little damage to the airplane. After the repairs, they got ready for the second attempt on December 17,1903. Orville took the second chance to fly. His flight lasted for 12 seconds covering 120 feet with a total distance of 37 metres. They flew four times within a day and the fourth flight which was flown by Wilbur Wright covered 852 feet, a distance of 260 metres in 59 seconds. The Wright Flyer was later modified into versions like Wright Flyer II and Wright Flyer III. The Wright Flyer III Version made a 39 minute flight covering 24 miles.
Features of the Wright Flyer
The Wright Flyer was a Canard bi-plane which contained one 12 horse power Wright horizontal four cylinder engines. The linear skids acted as landing gears. Materials like Wood was used for the Air frame, Muslin Cloth for Fabric covering and Aluminium accompanied for the engine Crank case.
Today, these giant metallic birds rule the sky. It fascinates us day to day. We should always remember that without Wrights, no aviation have ever been succeeded.
