How Accurate Is the EAA’s Replica “Flyer”?
The simple answer is: “as accurate as it could be at the time.” The Wrights never drew complete plans of their 1903 Flyer and kept many of its details secret to protect their patents. The original Flyer was wrecked on the ground by a gust of wind on December 17, 1903, soon after four successful flights. The wreckage was packed up and taken back to the Wright Bicycle Shop in Dayton, OH. There, it remained in storage until 1928, when Orville rebuilt the it for display in the Science Museum of London, England. The aircraft was returned to the United States in 1948 and put on display in the Smithsonian Institution. Today it is in the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum in Washington, D.C.. It is not clear how accurately Orville restored the Flyer in 1928. Parts of the 1903 Flyer, including the engine, were used on other Wright aircraft. And there are features of the Smithsonian’s Flyer that historians and aeronautical engineers have doubts about—Were they original or were they repair
