Wright brothers

Biography The Wright brothers were born to the family of Milton Wright, the bishop of the evangelical church, and Susan Katherine Koerner. Wilber (Wilbur) Wright was born in 1867, and Orville - in In total, the family of Susan and Milton had 7 children.

Study period Both brothers attended high school, but did not receive graduation certificates. The unexpected move of the family in 1884 from Richmond to Dayton prevented Wilber from obtaining a certificate after completing 4 years of high school. Orville left high school after finishing his first year of education in 1889 to start a publishing business, designing and building his own print press with Wilber's help.

Interest in flying The brothers became interested in flying in 1890, when they read in newspapers about the flights of the German engineer Otto Lilienthal, who developed, built and tested 11 aircraft himself. Lilienthal studied the structure of bird wings, their flight, his gliders flew like birds. Otto Lilienthal

The device with a motor and the first experiments. In August 1896, Lilienthal died during his flight in Berlin. This message made a depressing impression on the brothers. They were increasingly inclined to the idea that the aircraft needed an engine with which a person could control it. The brothers began their experiments in The first to fly into the sky were kites. Watching their flight, they realized: in order to make a turn, the snake must roll in exactly the same way as the birds do. So, the motionless wing should have its rudders - ailerons.

Aerodynamic tube Then the brothers began to experiment with gliders, but instead of putting a sandbag in the cabin, they rode bicycles with wings attached to them and, in the end, created a wind tunnel to determine the lift.

History of the Flyers Wilber and Orville all designed themselves - a wooden frame of the apparatus, 2 wooden propellers, a gasoline engine and a chain transmission, like a bicycle. After the first successful test of the Flyer aircraft on December 17, 1903, they made two more models, which, however, flew only up to 100 m in length at a speed of 40 kilometers per hour. But already in 1905 their Flyer-3 flew 38 km in 33 minutes. It was an absolute record!

The last triumph of the Wright brothers On October 4, 1909, during a festival in New York, Wilber flew over the city, making a circle over the Statue of Liberty. This was the last triumph of both brothers. In 1912, Wilber fell ill with typhoid fever and died. Orville sold the company and was no longer involved in airplanes.

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