The History Of an Airplane

Orville Wright and Wilbur Wright - Inventors of the First Engined AirplaneOrville Wright (1871-1948) and Wilbur Wright (1867-1912) requested a patent application for a "flying machine" nine months before their successful flight in December 1903, which Orville Wright recorded in his diary. As part of the Wright Brothers' systematic practice of photographing every prototype and test of their various flying machines, they had persuaded an attendant from a nearby lifesaving station to snap Orville Wright in full flight. The craft soared to an altitude of 10 feet, traveled 120 feet, and landed 12 seconds after takeoff. After making two longer flights that day, Orville and Wilbur Wright sent this telegram to their father, instructing him to "inform press."

Wilbur & Orville became skilled pilots in their two years of test flights with gliders, and were prepared to trade off instability in normal flight for increased control in turbulent conditions.The canard configuration is generally recognised to have saved the Wright Brothers from serious accidents as they learned to fly. However the resulting longitudinal instability certainly made for some interesting flights