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1901 Wright
Glider 
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flew their second glider several hundred times, ranging from 50 to 400 feet at Kitty Hawk
in July and August 1901. This biplane had 22-foot span; 7-foot chord; separation 4.6 ft; 290
sq-foot area; 1/12 camber (later modified to 1/19); 18 sq-foot front elevator; 14-foot
overall length; and weighed 98 lb. (after modifications, 108 lb); and no vertical rudder. Believing
the inadequate lift of the 1900 glider to be shallow 1/23 camber, they initially built the
1901 glider with the 1/12 camber recommended by Lilienthal. Sluggish performance caused
them to change the camber to 1/19, but the 7-foot chord wings (aspect ratio of 3) still
caused marginal performance. They found a slight anhedral (drooping wing tips) provided
resistance to side gusts. Unstable anhedral wings were characteristic on most subsequent
Wright airplanes.
Remaining stored in camp at Kitty Hawk, in 1902 they scavenged its uprights for the
third glider, and destroyed the remainder.
References:
- McFarland, 1953, pp 1184-5; plates 19-29, 35.
- Wright, Orville in Kelly, 1953, p 15-17.
- McFarland, Marvin W. (ed) The papers of Wilbur and Orville Wright. McGraw-Hill
Book Co., New York, 1953, pp 1184-5; plates 19-29, 35.
- Wright, Orville, "How We Invented the Airplane." (from depositions in
Montgomery vs. U.S. 13 Jan 20 and 2 Feb 21; in Kelly, Fred C. (editor) How We Invented the
Airplane, an Illustrated History. Dover Publications, New York, 1953, p 15-17)
[Submitted by Joe W. McDaniel]
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The 1901 Wright glider was a frustration to the Wright Brothers. It did not
produce the expected amount of lift and was difficult to control. On the way home from
Kitty Hawk, a sad and discouraged Wilbur is said to have remarked to Orville that although
he still believed man would fly, it would not be in his lifetime.
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