Wright Flyer won't fly!

"Steven P. McNicoll" wrote in message
nk.net...

"Peter Duniho" wrote in message
...

Are you saying that the Wright's presence in Dayton was any less
coincidental?

I don't see that Kitty Hawk's *or* Dayton's involvement were anything
more
than an accident of history. But the fact of the matter is that the
first
powered, controlled heavier-than-air flight occurred at Kitty Hawk, not
Dayton.

Where do you consider YOUR birthplace? Was it where your mother
delivered
you? Or was it where you were conceived? Most people's birthplaces are
hospitals. Yes, that's because that's just due to the coincidental fact
that most babies are delivered by obstetricians, and OBs like to work in
hospitals. But that doesn't change the fact that the birthplace is the
hospital.

Aviation was conceived thousands of years ago, when the first human
looked
at a bird and thought for the first time "hey, I wonder if there's a way
for
me to do that". The Wright's oversaw the last bit of gestation of
aviation
in Dayton (call it the last week of the last trimester if you like), but
the
actual birth took place at Kitty Hawk with the culmination of thousands
of
years of human progress, represented by that first flight.


Wilbur Wright was born in Indiana. If Bishop Wright hadn't moved the
family
to Dayton, where Orville was born, Ohio would have needed a different
license plate slogan.

And if Bishop Wright hadn't left that god forsaken part of IN we would be
driving automobiles to all those pancake breakfasts. I doubt rural IN
would have sparked the aviation interest in the two brothers or provided the
resources as did urban Dayton. Lotsa _ifs_ surrounding the entire first
flight.

Ron,

the original poster quoted a replica from Ohio. That's not the Wright
Experience, is it? Someone else asked how accurate it was. I don't
think any of the replicas except for the Wright Experience's are very
accurate.

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)

"Thomas Borchert" wrote in message ...
Ron,

the original poster quoted a replica from Ohio. That's not the Wright
Experience, is it? Someone else asked how accurate it was. I don't
think any of the replicas except for the Wright Experience's are very
accurate.

No, there's anther group called the "Wright Aeroplane Company" out of
the Dayton area. There is YET another group in Virginia making a
replica as well (can't remember the name). Ken Hyde's Wright Experience
I do know for a fact is extremely accurate. I've talked to the prop guy and
Steve Hay (the engine builder) at length.

Ron

From latest AW&ST

Picture of 02 glider under tow and off the ground a few feet. Looks
like they attached a "trike' gear to it and also put bows under the
wing tips to prevent damage to them.

Accompanying text:

A replica of the 1902 Wright Glider made 12 flights on Oct 8 from
Wright Experience facility near Warrenton, VA. The 75% scale model of
the 1903 Wright Flyer, with out engine and propellers, is being used
to train the pilot ultimately picked by training coordinator, Scott
Crossfield, to fly the powered 1903 Flyer exact copy at Kill Devil
Hills, SC on Dec 17. Using a small truck to tow the glider, pilots
Terry Queijo, Kevin Kochersberger and Chris Johnson flew during the
early morning flights

end

They talk about the 1902 Glider and then the 1903 Flyer in almost the
same breath. Picture is of a glider not a stripped down Flyer.

In any event, they are continuing to get ready for a Dec 17 try.

I wonder why they didn't choose some pilots that weigh 100-105 pounds
like flew the man powered aircraft across the English Channel and
other flights? A light pilot would give them a leg up on the low
engine power they will have in the replica engine.

Best of luck to them in their try.

Big John



On Tue, 14 Oct 2003 13:23:12 -0400, "Ron Natalie"
wrote:


"Trent Moorehead" wrote in message ...
I just heard that the Ohio group that has built a Wright Flyer replica and
took it down to Kitty Hawk couldn't get it to fly. I understand this to be
practice flights for the December 17th celebration.

The group that's going to fly at Kitty Hawk on Dec 17 is not from Ohio.
They are out of Haymarket, VA. They are practicing by dragging a
modified 02 Glider around behind an SUV with Scott Crossfield yelling
instructions to them out the back.

"Big John" wrote in message ...


They talk about the 1902 Glider and then the 1903 Flyer in almost the
same breath. Picture is of a glider not a stripped down Flyer.

Yeah, it's goofy. There's no scale model. They built a 1902 Wright glider
(accurately), and they've been tweaking it as they go along to make it more
representative of the 03 Flyer

I wonder why they didn't choose some pilots that weigh 100-105 pounds
like flew the man powered aircraft across the English Channel and
other flights? A light pilot would give them a leg up on the low
engine power they will have in the replica engine.

They're trying not to cheat on Wilbur and Orville. They could do any number
of things to make it easier, but they aren't going to. Kevin is pretty skinny, but
he's a tall guy. Terry isn't that large. It will be one of those two.

About the only thing they have up on the Wright Brothers is a lot more practice
flight time in the 02 variant.

Best of luck to them in their try.

Yes, everybody has worked really hard on this thing and they are almost without
exception nice people as well.

"Thomas Borchert" wrote in message
...
Ron,

the original poster quoted a replica from Ohio. That's not the Wright
Experience, is it? Someone else asked how accurate it was. I don't
think any of the replicas except for the Wright Experience's are very
accurate.

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)


The original Wright Flyer is no more. What hangs in the Smithsonian was
pieced together well after the wreck on Dec. 17, 1903. There are three sets
of blue prints, all drawn well after the fact and all of them have problems.

Ron,

Ken Hyde's Wright Experience
I do know for a fact is extremely accurate. I've talked to the prop guy and
Steve Hay (the engine builder) at length.


I talked to both and Ken a lot, too. Other replicas have stronger engines,
different wing profiles and such stuff. Also, there's the wing spar debate...

I saw people at Ken's place tie and untie wire knots again and again until the
knot would look exactly like the one on the 1903 photographs. Very different
knot from the one on the Smithsonian "original", since Orville restored that
one in 1916 presumably tying knots that were used at that time, not 1903.

THAT's the level of accuracy they're going for. A totally amazing group!

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)

Dave,

The original Wright Flyer is no more. What hangs in the Smithsonian was
pieced together well after the wreck on Dec. 17, 1903. There are three sets
of blue prints, all drawn well after the fact and all of them have problems.


I know that.

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)

"Dave Stadt" wrote in message
.com...

The original Wright Flyer is no more. What hangs in the Smithsonian was
pieced together well after the wreck on Dec. 17, 1903.


But since it was pieced together by Orville Wright, it is absolutely
correct. It's just not quite the way it was on December 17, 1903.

"Dave Stadt" wrote in message .com...


The original Wright Flyer is no more. What hangs in the Smithsonian was
pieced together well after the wreck on Dec. 17, 1903. There are three sets
of blue prints, all drawn well after the fact and all of them have problems.

As of last weekend it's not even hanging. For the first time in a at least a
quarter century, the flyer is down on the floor in a newly opened gallery at
NASM. They also have some actors doing Wilbur and Orville impressions
(they put their costumes and make up on in the same space Margy uses
for her office there).

The WE people not only looked at the flyer but many other contemporary
Wright artifacts to understand the technologies involved. I'm sure this is
as close as we're going to come.