The "The Wright Brothers Take To The Sky" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, December, 1903 and the Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur are preparing for another try at flying!  They had placed the track 150 feet up the side of the slope and put the machine on it, facing the wind.  They had no doubt they would get up to flying speed that day.  Their chief concern was being able to keep the plane balanced on the track while it was moving.  It could not start until the pilot released a wire which held it to the rail, so he would have time to have the engine running properly.  The two brothers flipped a coin and Wilbur won.  But, Wilbur was not destined to make the first flight.  Orville held one end of the wings to help with the balance and the machine ran down the track.  The aircraft started down so quickly that Orville couldn't keep up with it; so it ran on the track free and about 40 feet from the start it left the rail, climbed a few feet, stalled and settled to the ground.  Took two days to make the repairs, but they were used to that by now.  By the afternoon of December 16 it was ready to take flight once again.  The next morning, December 17, they found the wind blowing at about 27 miles an hour.  They remained inside until about 10 o'clock, waiting and hoping that the wind would die down.  But, the wind continued to blow, but they made the decision to fly despite the high winds.  Today was Orville's turn to take the controls.  He took his place in the seat of the machine and after running the motor for a few minutes to heat the engine, Orville released the wire and the plane started into the wind.  Wilbur ran along the side holding one of the wings to balance it on the rock.  The wind shielded the back of the plane so that it started down the track slowly, so Wilbur could run with it until it lifted free.  From this point forward the flight was very erratic, because of the bumpy air and because of inexperience in handling the machine.  During a sudden lunge, it touched the surface, thus ending the flight.  The first flight lasted 12 seconds.  The machine was in the air for a distance of about 120 feet.   It had attained a speed of about 35 miles an hour.  Three more flights were made that day by both brothers, the longest being 852 feet.  Shortly after, the wind hurled itself upon the little aircraft, as if bent on wreaking vengeance for man's conquest.  One angry gust struck the machine, caught under the wings, and turned it over.  That ended the flights of 1903.  Tomorrow would be 1904.  Try again next year!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.