1899 Wright Kite (Reproduction)

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .

IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.

View manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Object Details

Owner

Rick Young

Physical Description

A biplane kite with square upper and lower wings and canard.

Summary

The Wrights combined their wing-warping control concept and the structural design of the Chanute-Herring glider in their first aircraft, a biplane kite with a 5-foot wingspan, built in July 1899.

To allow for wing-warping, they left the kite unbraced between the front and rear struts (vertical posts). It was controlled with four lines running from the top and bottom of the front outer struts to a pair of sticks held by the operator. Tilting the sticks in opposite directions caused the wing structure to twist.

No photographs exist of the 1899 kite; only a sketch of it illustrating wing-warping, drawn by Wilbur in 1912.

Credit Line

On Loan from Rick Young, Richmond, VA

Inventory Number

I20031236002

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Type

CRAFT-Kites

Materials

Wood

Fabric

See more items in

National Air and Space Museum Collection

Location

National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC

Exhibition

Wright Brothers & The Invention of the Aerial Age

Data Source

National Air and Space Museum

Metadata Usage