Who are known as Wright Brothers ?

In the winter of 1885-86, an accident changed the course of Wilbur’s life. He was badly injured in an ice hockey game, when another player’s stick hit him in the face.

They observed that birds angled their wings for balance and control, and tried to emulate this, developing a concept called “wing warping.

Wilbur and Orville were the only members of the Wright family who did not attend college or marry.

Though most of his injuries healed, the incident plunged Wilbur into a depression. He did not receive his high school diploma, canceled plans for college, and retreated to his family’s home.

Wilbur’s plans to enter college came to an end when he was injured in a hockey accident in the winter of 1885–86.

When they added a moveable rudder, the Wright brothers found they had the magic formula-on December 17, 1903, they succeeded in flying the first free, controlled flight of a power-driven, heavier than air plane.

Wilbur spent much of this period at home, reading books in his family’s library, and caring for his ailing mother. Susan Koerner died in 1889 of tuberculosis.

He spent the following three years recovering his health, reading extensively in his father’s library, assisting the bishop with his legal and church problems, and caring for his invalid mother, who died of tuberculosis in 1889.

Wilbur flew their plane for 59 seconds, at 852 feet, an extraordinary achievement.

In 1892 the brothers opened a bicycle sales and repair shop, and they began to build bicycles on a small scale in 1896.

In 1889 the brothers started their own newspaper, the West Side News. Wilbur edited the paper, and Orville was the publisher. The brothers also shared a passion for bicycles- a new craze that was sweeping the country.

They developed their own self-oiling bicycle wheel hub and installed a number of light machine tools in the shop.

The Wright brothers soon found that their success was not appreciated by all. Many in the press, as well as fellow flight experts, were reluctant to believe the brothers’ claims at all.

Profits from the print shop and the bicycle operation eventually were to fund the Wright brothers’ aeronautical experiments from 1899 to 1905.

In 1892 Wilbur and Orville opened a bike shop, fixing bicycles and selling their own design.Always working on different mechanical projects and keeping up with scientific research, the Wright brothers closely followed the research of German aviator Otto Lilienthal.

As a result, Wilbur set out for Europe in 1908, where he hoped he would have more success convincing the public and selling airplanes.

In addition, the experience of designing and building lightweight, precision machines of wood, wire, and metal tubing was ideal preparation for the construction of flying machines.

When Lilienthal died in a glider crash, the brothers decided to start their own experiments with flight. Determined to develop their own successful design, Wilbur and Orville headed to Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, known for its strong winds.

Early Glider Experiments


The ability of the Wright brothers to analyze a mechanical problem and move toward a solution was apparent from the outset of their work in aeronautics.

The brothers realized that a successful airplane would require wings to generate lift, a propulsion system to move it through the air, and a system to control the craft in flight.

Wilbur and Orville set to work trying to figure out how to design wings for flight. They observed that birds angled their wings for balance and control, and tried to emulate this, developing a concept called “wing warping.

Lilienthal, they reasoned, had built wings capable of carrying him in flight, while the builders of self-propelled vehicles were developing lighter and more powerful internal-combustion engines. The final problem to be solved, they concluded, was that of control.

When they added a moveable rudder, the Wright brothers found they had the magic formula-on December 17, 1903, they succeeded in flying the first free, controlled flight of a power-driven, heavier than air plane.

Wilbur flew their plane for 59 seconds, at 852 feet, an extraordinary achievement.The Wright brothers soon found that their success was not appreciated by all. Many in the press, as well as fellow flight experts, were reluctant to believe the brothers’ claims at all.

As a result, Wilbur set out for Europe in 1908, where he hoped he would have more success convincing the public and selling airplanes.