Were They the First?
Wilbur and Orville were pioneers in aviation who achieved great success and deserve acclaim, but it seems that anyone who questions the claims made on their behalf is considered ignorant, or worse. Although there are records of the time that show what really happened, the popular version as taught to school children seems to have been accepted by even aviation professionals. These brothers, talented as they undoubtedly were, did not wake up one day and decide to invent an airplane. They used other work, by other aviation pioneers, as a starting point. …
