First Flight; The Wright Brothers and the Invention of the Airplane

[6], 394 pages. Illustrations. Notes. Bibliography. Index. Minor DJ wear. Minor edge wear. Thomas A. Heppenheimer (Jan. 1, 1947- Sept. 9, 2015) was a major space advocate and researcher in planetary science, aerospace engineering, and celestial mechanics. His books recommended by the National Space Society. Thomas A. Heppenheimer held a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering from the University of Michigan, and was an associate fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He held research fellowships in planetary science at California Institute of Technology and at the Max Planck Institute in Heidelberg, Germany. He had been a free-lance writer since 1978. He has written extensively on aerospace, and the history of technology. He was a frequent contributor to American Heritage and its affiliated publications, and to Air & Space. He had written 300 published articles for various publications. An aviation expert uncovers the brilliance behind the first successful flight of an engine-powered plane, In the centennial year of the Wright Brothers' first successful flight, acclaimed aviation writer T. A. Heppenheimer reexamines what Wilbur and Orville Wright achieved. In First Flight, he debunks the popular assumption that the Wrights were simple mechanics who succeeded by trial and error, demonstrating instead that they were true engineering geniuses. Heppenheimer presents the background that made possible the work of the Wrights and examines the work of Samuel P. Langley, a serious rival. He places their work within a broad historical context, emphasizing their contributions after 1903 and their convergence with ongoing aeronautical work in France.…