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Take a look at this. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_21_%28plane%29 Shocker isn't it.  :o After all these years most people think it happened in 1903 in Kitty Hawk, NC but it actually happened in Fairfield, CT in 1901. This is really amazing.

So he was kept out of history books because he forgot to write logs... now thats a shame

He was kept out of history because he failed to write logs and acted in a manner that would make anyone suspicious. If he really was the first man to achieve powered flight then why would he do all his flights at night/early morning when no one could watch?

He was kept out of history because he failed to write logs and acted in a manner that would make anyone suspicious. If he really was the first man to achieve powered flight then why would he do all his flights at night/early morning when no one could watch?

Well maybe he did it at night/early morning because he didn't want to crash into any people. That wouldn't be good. At night, people are sleeping so if the plane did something strange and crashed into a sidewalk or road, there wouldn't be anybody to hit. I don't think the plane was big enough to damage houses. As far as flight logs, not everybody wants to go public with things. However, the US Air Force teaches that he was the first to fly.  :)

This has cropped up before. A quick google will show that Gustave Whitehead is not the only one who could claim to be the first man to fly. Here's just a few who some people believe should have the credit.

The Wright Brothers Myth
Alberto Santos-Dumont
Sir Hiram Stevens Maxim
Richard Pearse

The fact is that the Wright Brothers are internationally accepted as the first & no amount of argument will change that.

If he really was the first man to achieve powered flight then why would he do all his flights at night/early morning when no one could watch?

The most likely reason is that the wind tends to drop in the early morning & evening. The calmer air would make these the best times for testing those early flying machines. The same reason they wait tiil dusk to fly the Edwardian machines at Old Warden.

This has cropped up before. A quick google will show that Gustave Whitehead is not the only one who could claim to be the first man to fly. Here's just a few who some people believe should have the credit.

The Wright Brothers Myth
Alberto Santos-Dumont
Sir Hiram Stevens Maxim
Richard Pearse

The fact is that the Wright Brothers are internationally accepted as the first & no amount of argument will change that.

If he really was the first man to achieve powered flight then why would he do all his flights at night/early morning when no one could watch?

The most likely reason is that the wind tends to drop in the early morning & evening. The calmer air would make these the best times for testing those early flying machines. The same reason they wait tiil dusk to fly the Edwardian machines at Old Warden.

The only reason that makes me believe that Whitehead did fly first is that the US Air Force teaches that he was the first to fly and trust me, they wouldn't teach that if they we not sure that he did fly first.  ;)

[quote]The only reason that makes me believe that Whitehead did fly first is that the US Air Force teaches that he was the first to fly and trust me, they wouldn't teach that if they we not sure that he did fly first.

For some strange reason I can't find that page anymore where it says that the US Air Force says that he was the first to fly, but I am 100% sure that it said that somewhere. If anyone happens to come across it please give me the link.

I found this but I don't think a retired Air Force Major represents the official USAF position on it. http://www.rccaraction.com/fj/articles/wff/wff1.asp

That wasn't the page but that still sheads some more light on it. Thank you for that link but if you find any others please post them so we can see them.

He was kept out of history because he failed to write logs and acted in a manner that would make anyone suspicious. If he really was the first man to achieve powered flight then why would he do all his flights at night/early morning when no one could watch?

Many test flights are made in secrecy, partly to avoid embarassment in case of failure (definitely bad if you have lots of oyher people's money invested in the venture) and also to make sure nobody steals your idea and beats you to the patent office.

Also, I'd guess that early "kites" like Whitehead's benefitted a great deal from launching at dawn or dusk when the wind is generally calmer.

Bleriot departed before dawn on his Channel crossing; that's one example.

Maybe he didn't keep log books because there was no official way of doing things aeronautically back then. There weren't even airplanes, so who say's you have to have a log book? Oh, and for the record, I don't really care who was first. Even if they all made their flights simultaneously, they all developed their ideas independently so each one was a new invention in itself.

From all the reading I've done on this subject the general consensus seems to be that the Wright Brothers were the first to make a CONTROLLED powered flight and the first to be able to sustain and extend their flights under full control.  All possible powered flights claimed before the Wright Bro's were not considered to be controlled enough to be sustainable.

Maybe he didn't keep log books because there was no official way of doing things aeronautically back then. There weren't even airplanes, so who say's you have to have a log book?

Not the formal logbooks pilots use today but a diary or any sort of written records with dates & witness reports. Photos would also be useful as proof.

[quote]From all the reading I've done on this subject the general consensus seems to be that the Wright Brothers were the first to make a CONTROLLED powered flight and the first to be able to sustain and extend their flights under full control.