Wright Brothers - Piloted Heavier-than-Air Powered Flights - Early Aircraft Companies - First Scheduled Air Service - World War I
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Piloted Heavier-than-Air Powered Flights

The Wrights first became interested in flight after they began reading of Lilienthal's gliding flights in Germany. Upon his death they vowed to continue his progress. The Wright Brothers began flying gliders near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. For 4 years they made 1000 successful gliding flights on those dunes.

Unable to find an engine manufacturer to meet their specifications of 8 horsepower and engine weight of less than 200 pounds, they decided to design and build their own engine. Aided by their bicycle mechanic Charlie Taylor, they were able to build an engine that produced 12 horsepower. With the engine built, they then faced the problem of how to build a propeller since very little was known on the subject. Surprisingly, with their previously collected wing data, they were able to build accurately the engine propellers. Using the basic airframe of their 1902 Glider, the Kitty Hawk Flyer was born.

After numerous improvements, and studying how birds fly they were ready to test the Flyer out. They flipped a coin, and Wilbur won. They tested the Flyer, but the plane crashed after a wing dipped down. On December 17, 1903 it was Orville's turn which resulted in a 120-foot, 12-second flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The aircraft represented the first powered flight in a heavier-than-air machine.

After their success the Wright Brothers tried to sell their design to other governments.Since the brothers never made a official and public flight the governments were not about to spend on something they didn't even know that worked.

The first person to fly as a passenger was Leon Delagrange, who rode with French pilot Henri Farman from a meadow outside of Paris in 1908. Charles Furnas became the first American airplane passenger when he flew with Orville Wright at Kitty Hawk later that year.
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Early Aircraft Companies

In 1905 Charles and Gabriel Voisin started the world's first aircraft company. They two French fliers set up a factory outside of Paris to build the custom planes. This was the first of many European companies to start.

The first US airplane company was founded by Glenn Curtiss in Hammondsport, New York. The first commerical airplane sale was made by this company to the Aeronautic Society of New York for 5,000 dollars.

In 1909, two other American aiplane companies were formed. The Wright brothers esablished one, and Glenn Martin formed another. The Wright brothers had their first official public flight in 1908. The US government, amazed by the capablility of the plane, ordered a specialized plane for 30,000 dollars. The world's first military plane was for use in the Army Signal Corps. In November of 1909, a group of wealthy Americans loaned the Wright brothers money to start their own plant. They started the Wright Company which quickly became the leading supplier of military planes. Later Wilbur died of typhoid in 1912, and Orville sold his portion out in 1915 to Eastern investors.
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First scheduled air service

The first scheduled air service began in Florida on Jan. 1, 1914. Glenn Curtiss had designed a plane that could take off and land on water and thus could be built larger than any plane to date because it did not need the heavy undercarriage required for landing on hard ground. Thomas Benoist, an autoparts maker, decided to build such a flying boat, or seaplane, built for a service across Tampa Bay called the St. Petersburg-Tampa Air Boat Line. His first passenger was ex-St. Petersburg Mayor A.C. Pheil, who made the 18-mile trip in 23 minutes, a considerable improvement over the two-hour trip by boat or 12-hour trip by rail between the two cities. The single-plane service accommodated one passenger at a time, and the company charged a one-way fare of $5. After operating two flights a day for four months and carrying a total of 1,205 passengers, the company folded with the end of the winter tourist season.
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World War I (1914 - 1918)

These and other early flights were headline events, but commercial aviation was very slow to catch on with the general public, most of which was afraid to ride in the new flying machines. Improvements in aircraft design also were slow. However, with World War I, the military value of aircraft was quickly recognized and production increased significantly to meet the rising demand for planes from governments. Most significant was the development of more powerful motors, enabling aircraft to reach speeds of up to 130 mph, more than twice the speed of pre-war aircraft. Increased power also made bigger aircraft possible.

On the other hand, the war was bad for commercial aviation in several ways. It focused all design and production efforts on building military aircraft. In the public's mind, flying became almost totally associated with bombing runs, surveillance, and aerial dog fights. In addition, there was such a large surplus of planes at the end of the war that the demand for new production was almost non-existent for several years. As a result, many aircraft builders went bankrupt. Some European countries such as Great Britain and France helped commercial aviation by starting air service over the English Channel. However, nothing similar occurred in the United States where there were no such natural obstacles isolating major cities and where railroads could transport people almost as fast as an airplane, and in considerably more comfort. The salvation of U.S. commercial aviation industry following World War I was a government program, but one that had nothing to do with the transportation of people.
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