The Wright Brothers cont.

Hey everyone,

After the brothers historic flight, they went back to Ohio where they continued to improve their aircraft. Many accidents had damaged the original flier, so they constructed the Flier II in 1904. On August 13, 1904, they finally bested their flight at Kitty Hawk with a 1,300 foot flight. By the end of the year, they had accomplished flights of 3 miles, but they still lacked control. Their solution was to build another airplane labeled the Flier III which had independent controls for the rudders and the wing warping which had been previously connected. Still, the craft did not fly well, so they rebuilt the plane with larger rudders and forward elevator. These were placed farther from the wings, and stability greatly improved. By the end of 1905, they had many sustained flights covering distances ranging from 11 to 24 miles. In 1908, they finally showed their airplane to the public in France and by Washington, D. C. Soon, they sold it the design for the craft and, after a patent war, made a fortune. Overnight, they achieved worldwide fame, but Wilbur died in 1912. Orville took over their business and received many accolades until his death in 1948. Still, the airplane probably would have come to existence without the Wright brothers, but they made air travel safe and controllable. Without their work, test pilots would have taken to the air later and possibly not at all. Without the Wright brothers, it's possible that no man would have gone to space at all.