The Wright Stuff.....
It was exactly 100 years ago today that the world changed dramatically courtesy of the Wright Brothers, Wilbur and Orville. For most of us over the years, the brothers seemed like two bicycle mechanics who got lucky with their amateur tinkering. As I've learned over the last several years, nothing could be further from the truth.
The Wrights were serious amateur scientists who were voracious readers. Not only did they "invent" the first succesful aircraft, in fact they invented the science of aeronautical engineering. They constructed the first workable wind tunnel that measured lift and drag which led to throwing out all previous work on wing design. Finding that translating naval propellers into useable aircraft propellers did not work, they designed the first aviation airscrew with the dimensions mimicking the wing shape.
It is stunning to consider the progression of aviation after 1903. Just 12 short years after the "first flight", aircraft had progressed to the point of usefulness in the military. 24 years after Kitty Hawk, Charles Lindbergh flew non-stop across the Atlantic. By 30 years hence, commercial aviation was in full bloom and just 36 years after man first left the ground, Hitler overran all of Europe with a massive airforce. All except England, which was saved by aircraft. 44 years into manned flight and Chuck Yeager flew faster than the speed sound and 66 years after, man landed on the moon. My Grandmother was 5 years old in 1903 and remembered the event......her grandson, my brother, helped design the space shuttle.
Aircraft and aviation has changed the world as much as any one single invention, both for the good and the not so good, but the pace of aerospace development signaled a new way of living, not only in the air but in every facet of our lives.
And I have to think that it was a good thing the Wright's developed their aircraft in the time period they did. It couldn't happen today. Government regulations would prevent such a thing. Think about it.
OSHA would have shut their shop down for safety violations. The EPA would have filed suit to prevent the pollution caused by their homemade engine, and for the destruction of coastal wetlands on the beach at Kitty Hawk. The IRS would have required advanced tax payment on the future earnings from their invention. Leftist PhD's would have filed lawsuits saying that, obviously, two bike mechanics lacking a college education could not have come up with this own their own....it was an idea stolen from some more educated man.
All I can say today is, "Thanks Orville and Wilbur", not only did you prove flight could work, you proved that through reading, study, and hard work anything is possible.
It was exactly 100 years ago today that the world changed dramatically courtesy of the Wright Brothers, Wilbur and Orville. For most of us over the years, the brothers seemed like two bicycle mechanics who got lucky with their amateur tinkering. As I've learned over the last several years, nothing could be further from the truth.
The Wrights were serious amateur scientists who were voracious readers. Not only did they "invent" the first succesful aircraft, in fact they invented the science of aeronautical engineering. They constructed the first workable wind tunnel that measured lift and drag which led to throwing out all previous work on wing design. Finding that translating naval propellers into useable aircraft propellers did not work, they designed the first aviation airscrew with the dimensions mimicking the wing shape.
It is stunning to consider the progression of aviation after 1903. Just 12 short years after the "first flight", aircraft had progressed to the point of usefulness in the military. 24 years after Kitty Hawk, Charles Lindbergh flew non-stop across the Atlantic. By 30 years hence, commercial aviation was in full bloom and just 36 years after man first left the ground, Hitler overran all of Europe with a massive airforce. All except England, which was saved by aircraft. 44 years into manned flight and Chuck Yeager flew faster than the speed sound and 66 years after, man landed on the moon. My Grandmother was 5 years old in 1903 and remembered the event......her grandson, my brother, helped design the space shuttle.
Aircraft and aviation has changed the world as much as any one single invention, both for the good and the not so good, but the pace of aerospace development signaled a new way of living, not only in the air but in every facet of our lives.
And I have to think that it was a good thing the Wright's developed their aircraft in the time period they did. It couldn't happen today. Government regulations would prevent such a thing. Think about it.
OSHA would have shut their shop down for safety violations. The EPA would have filed suit to prevent the pollution caused by their homemade engine, and for the destruction of coastal wetlands on the beach at Kitty Hawk. The IRS would have required advanced tax payment on the future earnings from their invention. Leftist PhD's would have filed lawsuits saying that, obviously, two bike mechanics lacking a college education could not have come up with this own their own....it was an idea stolen from some more educated man.
All I can say today is, "Thanks Orville and Wilbur", not only did you prove flight could work, you proved that through reading, study, and hard work anything is possible.
