Continued, page two. Special Report.
John Taylor: Wright Flyer pilot Wayne Larsen sat at the controls of the Utah State University replica and waited for exactly the Wright moment. Then, precisely 100 years to the minute after the famous brothers' historic first flight at Kitty Hawk, Wayne smoothly advanced his throttle and lifted into a clear blue Utah sky.
The Utah State Flyer, which flew at 10:35AM, EST, on December 17th, 2003. The Wrights would have been proud..and curious about the updates.
A couple thousand miles to the east, at the original Kitty Hawk site, the President of the United States and other dignitaries at the official celebration looked out at the rain and smiled. There'd be an attempt, but no flight at Kitty Hawk today.
At the Brigham City airport in Utah, however, the crowd of students, project engineers, Utah State University officials and members of the general public were thrilled by the roar of the big Harley Davidson Twin Cam engine as Wayne flew their version of the Wright Flyer again and again.
Whatszat? A Harley? If you are asking that question you didn't read my earlier piece about the Utah State Wright Flyer in JimSladesAirLines.com. Instead of just replicating the original Flyer, a team of USU aeronautical students here decided to see if they could build a Flyer using modern materials and the latest aeronautical technology. They created the Flyer that the Wrights would have built if they'd had the benefit of 21st Century know-how.
It looks like the Wright machine, but is far lighter, thanks to composite materials, and far more powerful. It also has all of the CG and control bugs ironed out. (For more details see previous issue and watch the Wright Challenge this week on the History Channel).
Pilot Larsen, a crop duster by trade and brother of co-project manager Chuck Larsen, started his flight with a simple 12-second hop to simulate the first successful flight by the Wrights. Then he turned around on the Brigham City, Utah runway and flew back toward the crowd for 59 seconds. The second flight by the Wrights.
Wayne Larsen takes her out and lets her fly. Beautiful, just beautiful.
Then, with more than 200 successful flights under his belt, he just let it fly. The USU Wright Flyer climbed smartly despite the nearly 5000 ft airport elevation and soared up along the edge of the snowcapped Wasatch Mountains. Larsen had none of the control problems the historic brothers encountered 100 years ago today. His Flyer was rock steady and performed so smoothly you'd have thought you were watching a Beech Bonanza instead of a 100-year-old design.
He landed back at Brigham City to be clapped on the back by USU President Kermit Hall and the students and volunteers who had put so much of their time and talents into this most unusual effort. Everyone knew this marked the end of a successful yearlong project and might be the last time the USU Flyer takes to the air. Ironically, many of the students (picture below) who had cut their aeronautical teeth on the Wright Flyer project weren't around to see this commemorative flight. They had already graduated and taken the skills and experience they gained in this unique venture to aviation and aeronautical companies around the country.
Which is exactly what USU Professors Dave Widauf and Chuck Larsen had in mind all along.
Utah report by John Taylor
See John's previous report on the Utah Flyer by clicking here. "Letters From The West": The Wright Stuff.
