Wright Brothers

Achieved humanity's first sustained powered, crewed flight.

Life

Bicycle-shop brothers

Wilbur and Orville came from a family of printing artisans in Dayton, Ohio. The brothers ran their own bicycle shop, building up mechanical knowledge and savings by repairing and making bicycles. At the time many inventors were attempting crewed flying machines, but most failed again and again for lack of power or loss of control, and flight was considered little more than a fantasy.

First powered flight

Through wind-tunnel experiments the brothers systematically tested wing shapes, solved the previously neglected problem of three-axis control, and designed their own lightweight gasoline engine. On December 17, 1903, at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, they made humanity's first sustained, controlled, powered, crewed flight, and over the next few years they kept improving their aircraft and applying for patents.

Patents and disputes

The brothers were at first cautious in dealing with the outside world, and only their public demonstrations in 1908 dispelled all doubts; their invention was quickly adopted by many countries for military reconnaissance and combat. In later years, however, the two were repeatedly embroiled in patent lawsuits with other inventors and were criticized for spending too much energy on legal disputes rather than technical innovation, and sporadic disputes over who was "first" in aviation history persist to this day.

Legacy

Using systematic experimental methods, the Wright Brothers solved the three great problems of lift, propulsion and control. Their "Flyer" is recognized as the first crewed airplane to achieve sustained, controlled powered flight, opening the age of aviation, and their emphasis on measurement and repeated testing is seen as a model of engineering research. In their later years, protracted patent litigation for a time held back the development of American aviation, and their priority dispute with the Smithsonian Institution was not settled until 1942.

Major works & achievements

• First powered flight at Kitty Hawk in 1903
• Invented three-axis control
• Tested wing data in a wind tunnel
• Built the practical Wright Flyer III

Did you know? When Apollo 11 landed on the Moon in 1969, Armstrong carried with him a small piece of wing fabric from the 1903 Wright Flyer.

Key dates

• 1892Opened a bicycle shop in Dayton
• 1899Began studying the principles of flight
• 1901Conducted wind tunnel experiments
• 1903First powered flight at Kitty Hawk
• 1905Built the practical Wright Flyer III
• 1908Gave public flying demonstrations and went to Europe to exhibit
• 1912Wilbur Died of illness
• 1948Orville Died