Michael Braukus
Headquarters, Washington, DC                       March 3, 1999
(Phone:  202/358-1979)

Michael Mewhinney
Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
(Phone:  650/604-3937)

RELEASE:  99-31

NASA BEGINS TESTING REPLICA OF HISTORIC 1903 WRIGHT FLYER 

     NASA is conducting a wind tunnel test of a full-scale replica 
of the historic 1903 Wright Flyer this month to learn more about 
its stability, control and handling characteristics. 

     During the two-week test, March 1-14, project engineers will 
study the replica's stability, control and handling at speeds up 
to 30 mph.  Tests are being conducted at NASA's Ames Research 
Center, Moffett Field, CA, in the world's largest wind tunnel.  
Test results will be used to compile a historically accurate 
aerodynamic database of the Wright Flyer.  

     "I can't think of anything as exciting as using modern 
technology to test an aerodynamic replica of the biplane that 
Orville and Wilbur Wright flew for the first time in 1903 at Kitty 
Hawk," said Pete Zell, Ames' wind tunnel test manager.  "NASA is 
here as a resource for the public and to inspire young people.  
This project seeks to educate and inspire youth," Zell said.

     "Testing the Wright Flyer gives us a chance to re-live 
history," said Craig Hange, Ames' wind tunnel test engineer.  "By 
understanding the flying characteristics of the Wright Flyer, we 
gain a better understanding of the Wright brothers' science and 
engineering skills, as well as an appreciation of the process that 
led to the development of the airplanes we fly today." 

     A team of volunteers from the Los Angeles section of the 
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) built 
the replica using precise data from the original airplane provided 
by the Smithsonian.  The replica features a 40-foot-4-inch 
wingspan reinforced with piano wire, cotton wing coverings, spruce 
propellers and a double rudder.  Although it will replicate the 
1903 Wright Flyer in design, size, appearance and aerodynamics, 
some changes have been made to strengthen the airplane for the 
wind tunnel tests. 

     Upon completion of the tests, the replica will be transported 
to Los Angeles, where it will be permanently displayed in the 
lobby of the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Western 
Pacific Regional Office in Hawthorne, CA.  The lobby will be 
renamed the FAA Flight Deck Museum and include a variety of other 
exhibits depicting the history of aviation.

     Using the wind tunnel test data, a second Wright Flyer will 
be built by the AIAA volunteers and flown on Dec. 17, 2003, 
commemorating the 100th anniversary flight of Orville and Wilbur 
Wright at Kitty Hawk, NC.  During a re-creation of the Wright 
brothers' first flight, the aircraft will fly low and travel at 
only 30 mph, the same speed flown by the Wright brothers, whose 
first flight traveled only 120 feet during its 12 seconds in the 
air.  Fred Culick, 63, of Altadena, CA, a private pilot and an 
aeronautics professor at the California Institute of Technology, 
Pasadena, CA, will be the first to fly the airplane. 

     Orville and Wilbur Wright were responsible for a host of 
aviation inventions, including wing warping, which provides 
lateral control and allows an airplane to bank left or right.  
They also invented the forward stabilizer, which controls the 
airplane's up and down movement, and the moveable rear rudder, 
which enables the pilot to turn the aircraft.

     "The work of the Wright brothers founded the science and 
technology of aeronautics, and their accomplishments form one of 
the grandest chapters in history," said Jack Cherne, TRW engineer 
and chairman of the Wright Flyer Project.  The project is composed 
of volunteers from the Los Angeles Section of the AIAA.  In 
contrast to the Wright brothers, who took less than a year to 
build their biplane, AIAA volunteers spent their Saturdays for the 
past 18 years planning and assembling the replica.  

     The replica underwent special tests as a prerequisite for 
entering the NASA wind tunnel.  During static testing, more than 
three times the flight load (or more than 3,000 pounds) was 
applied successfully.  The replica also underwent tests of its 
propeller system at Able Corp. in Yorba Linda, CA.  In the NASA 
wind tunnel, the replica will be powered by a NASA electric motor.

     The replica has about $100,000 worth of donated materials 
from companies such as Northrop Corp./Aircraft Division, Torrance, 
CA, which also provided the project a home base for 15 years; 
International Die Casting, Gardena, CA; McDonnell Douglas, Long 
Beach, CA; Rockwell International, Downey, CA; and TRW Redondo 
Beach, CA.

     Biographies, live Internet webcasts, K-12 lesson plans and 
more test information are available at the NASA Quest website 
located at:
           http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/aero/wright/

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