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Wright Glider |
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In 1896 Orville and Wilbur Wright started to pursue their
dream of powered, controlled flight. The brothers took
a scientific approach, utilizing the accumulated knowledge
of flight from their predecessors and contemporaries, and
developing scientific experiments of their own. They
built a series of gliders to test new ideas on, and the 1902
glider was used to perfect the control system that they had
developed. The controls included a rudder to keep the
aircraft headed in a straight line, wing-warping to bank the
wings in order to turn, and a forward elevator to change the
pitch of the aircraft.
The Wrights set unofficial world records for the largest glider ever built, the longest time in the air and for gliding at the lowest angle of descent to date with this aircraft. Their longest flight with it was 622’-6" and the flight lasted 26 seconds. The success of this glider led them to develop the 1903 Wright Flyer that became the first aircraft to achieve powered, controlled sustained flight on December 17, 1903, and their dream was realized.
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