Title: The Smithsonian Strikes Again
Product review: The subtitle; "Glenn Hammond Curtiss and the Race to Invent the Airplane", says much about the book. Curtiss had nothing to do with the invention of the airplane. Instead, the author vigorously argues in favor of Curtiss and the AEA (Aerial Experiment Association) as they blithely tried everything they could think of to steal, ignore, circumvent, or otherwise discredit the Wright's achievement. Their most odious act was the reconstruction of the Langley aerodrome, with the connivance of the Smithsonian, which has managed to so distort the historical record it is still fooling people today. This book carries their torch into the 21st Century. The AEA would be proud.For those of you reading these reviews, what the Wrights discovered/invented was not the Curtiss lawyer's narrow focus on wing-warping versus ailerons, but full three-axis control plus propulsion. Find an aircraft designer today who thinks those items are "obsolete".
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