Don Adams, Author at Wright "B" Flyer Inc.

Wright B Flyer flies at AirVenture

Don Adams July 23, 2015May 31, 2023 News

OSHKOSH, Wis.—The Wright B Flyer made its first flight in an EAA AirVenture air show Thursday afternoon, July 23—with the air show announcer riding shotgun.

Photo of Wright B Flyer on the flightline at EAA AirVenture 2015. — Wright B Flyer on the flight line at EAA AirVenture 2015. (Wright B Flyer photos by Timothy R. Gaffney)

Danny Clisham, one of the best-known voices in the air show industry, flew in the right seat of the primitive-looking biplane as it trundled slowly through the sky past thousands of spectators with Wright B Flyer Chief Pilot Rich Stepler at the controls.

As they flew, Clisham recited the history of the Wright brothers’ accomplishments that led to their building of America’s first airplane factory in Dayton in 1910 and their first production airplane—the Wright Model B.

Photo of Danny Clisham and Rich Stepler on the Wright B Flyer. — Air Show Announcer Danny Clisham (left) and Wright B Flyer Chief Pilot Rich Stepler ready to fly in Thurday’s AirVenture air show.

The Wright B Flyer in Thursday’s show is a modern lookalike of the original airplane. Instead of wood, wire and cotton, it’s made of modern aircraft materials and components and features modern flight controls—ailerons instead of warping wings, for example.

Wright “B” Flyer Inc., an all-volunteer nonprofit, flies and maintains the airplane in Dayton, Ohio as a flying symbol of Dayton’s, Ohio’s and America’s aviation heritage. It has had the airplane on display all week in the Vintage Area of the Experimental Aircraft Association’s (EAA’s) annual AirVenture fly-in convention on Wittman Airport.

The organization is promoting its project to build a successor to the aging airplane in the original Wright brothers’ factory with the help of EAA members and chapters. Besides building a new airplane, the project is aimed at raising awareness of the historic factory and plans to restore it as a national park site. EAA is supporting the project and invited Wright B flyer to display and fly its airplane here.

The airplane is scheduled to fly again in Sunday’s air show.

Visit wright-b-flyer.org for more information about the organization and its airplane. Visit wrightfactory.org for more information about the Wright Company factory.

Wright B Flyer—a pilot perspective

Don Adams July 21, 2015July 21, 2015 News

Photo of Wright B Flyer on Vintage square, backlit by morning sun. — The Wright B Flyer is backlit by the morning sun as volunteers set it up for display on EAA’s new Vintage Plaza at EAA Airventure 2015. (Wright B Flyer photo by Timothy R. Gaffney.)

OSHKOSH, Wis.—The one-of-a-kind Wright B Flyer, a flyable lookalike of the Wright brothers’ first factory-built airplane, went on display in the Experimental Aircraft Association’s (EAA’s) AirVenture Vintage Area Monday following a nonstop trip from Dayton, Ohio—by truck.

Like every other airplane at EAA AirVenture, the Wright B Flyer is a flying machine. So why did Wright B Flyer’s volunteers haul it here in a semi trailer? Whey didn’t they just fly it here?

Here’s a pilot’s perspective on the Wright B Flyer by Rich Stepler, volunteer chief pilot:

Wright B Flyer President Jay Jabour (with clipboard) tells homebuilders how they can help build the next Wright B Flyer. The airplane is on display on Vintage Square at EAA AirVenture 2015. (Wright B Flyer photo by Timothy R. Gaffney)

The Wright B Flyer (N3786B) is a VFR, day-only airplane that carries 28 gallons of usable fuel. Our engine, a Lycoming HIO-360, burns about 20 gallons an hour, to push our 3,400 pound, extremely draggy airframe through the sky. Since we cruise at about 50 mph, we need to plan routes with airports no more than 40 miles apart. That’s 16 stops between Dayton-Wright Brothers Airport (KMGY) and Wittman Field (KOSH).

If we were able to fly the route nonstop, it would take about nine hours of flight time. But every stop would add about an hour to the trip, giving us a block time of about 25 hours. We must avoid the Military Operating Areas in central Indiana and would be shunned by controllers of the class B airspace around Chicago, as we are so slow. This would make the trip about 385 nautical miles, or about 60 nm longer than flying victor airways.

Wright "B" Flyer taxies on Wittman Field at EAA AirVenture on Monday, July 20. — Wright “B” Flyer taxies on Wittman Field at EAA AirVenture on Monday, July 20.

We try to avoid overflying metropolitan areas because our service ceiling is limited to a density altitude of about 3,000 feet MSL. The mid-day July temperatures in the midwest could prevent us from flying as we could not get to the FAA required 1,000 feet AGL over populated areas.

Selection of the airports for landing and refueling can also be a challenge. Out of ground effect, we can only sustain a 50 foot per minute rate of climb (it takes 10 minutes to get to 500 feet above ground level). The length of the runway is not as important as the height of the obstacles off the end of the runway.

There is no trim on the Wright B Flyer, no dihedral on the wings and very low wing loading. Piloting such a machine is very busy and tiring; after about 20 minutes, the pilot is usually begging the copilot to fly for a while.

Photo of Jay Jabour and Ray Johnson on Vintage Plaza at EAA AirVenture. — Wright B Flyer President Jay Jabour speaks about the airplane on Vintage Plaza at EAA’s AirVenture 2015. Watching is Ray Johnson, EAA’s Vintage Area chairman.

We are severely limited by the wind; our takeoff and landing crosswind limit is 10 miles per hour.

Headwind is also a problem. On several occasions, when we flew the the airplane to Indianapolis Executive Airport for the Indianapolis air show, our first fuel stop was Richmond, Ind., about 30 miles west of our home airport. If the wind aloft had exceeded about 15 kt from the west, we would have burned burn half our fuel before we got halfway there, forcing a return to KMGY to refuel and wait for better conditions.

Flight planning for a cross country trip in the Wright B Flyer is not an easy task.

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Wright B Flyer makes AirVenture debut

Don Adams July 20, 2015May 31, 2023 News

Photo of Wright "B" Flyer taxiing from the Vintage Area at EAA AirVenture 2015. — Wright “B” Flyer pilots taxi the “Brown Bird” to a hangar Monday after its first day on display at EAA AirVenture 2015. (Wright “B” Flyer photos by Timothy R. Gaffney)

NEWS
For immediate release
July 20, 2015

Contact: Timothy R. Gaffney
Volunteer media director
Phone (cell): (937) 219-8277
[email protected]

Editors: Click on the photos for downloadable, high-resolution images.

OSHKOSH, Wis.—The one-of-a-kind Wright B Flyer made its AirVenture debut on Monday, July 20, when it went on display at the Experimental Aircraft Association’s (EAA’s) fly-in convention and air show.

Photo of Wright "B" Flyer on display with Wittman Field tower in background. — Wittman Field’s control tower is visible in background as the Wright “B” Flyer is on display at EAA’s AirVenture 2015.

AirVenture 2015 is the first time Wright “B” Flyer Inc., an all-volunteer organization from Dayton, Ohio, has brought its flying airplane, dubbed the Brown Bird, to the world’s biggest gathering of aircraft homebuilders and aviation enthusiasts. The Brown Bird will be on display all week and is to fly in EAA’s daily air show Thursday and Sunday.

EAA invited Wright B Flyer to AirVenture to help spread word about its project to build a new airplane with the help of EAA chapters around the country. The new Wright “B” Flyer will be built in the original Wright Company factory in Dayton.

“We’ve had wonderful cooperation from absolutely everybody,” Wright B Flyer Chief Pilot Rich Stepler said Morning after taxiing the airplane across the field from the hanger where the group’s volunteers reasseembled it last week.

AirVenture visitors crowded around the airplane, which is a modern flying machine made to resembled the Wright brothers’ first production airplane. Unlike the wood-and-cotton original, the Brown Bird is made with steel, carbon fiber, aircraft fabric and other modern materials and components.

“This is one of the things you tell folks back home about,” said Jim Vogt, a retired civil engineer from Cypress, Texas.

Wright B Flyer President Jay Jabour is scheduled to give a presentation about the airplane at 11 a.m. Tuesday on Vintage Plaza. The airplane’s scheduled air show flight times are 2:30 p.m. Thursday and 3 p.m. Sunday.

The Brown Bird has been flying since 1982, but increasing maintenance needs and the difficulty of transporting it to distant venues has prompted the organization to build a replacement.

Wright “B” Flyer Inc. is an all-volunteer, membership based, 501c3 nonprofit that displays and flies replicas of the Wright brothers’ first factory-built airplane. Its hangar-museum is open Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Admission is free. Wright B Flyer is a partner of the National Aviation Heritage Alliance, which is supporting its AirVenture visit.

Visit http://wrightfactory.org for more information about the Wright Company factory. Visit https://www.wright-b-flyer.org for more information about the organization and its mission.

Wright B Flyer to showcase aviation heritage at world’s biggest fly-in

Don Adams July 19, 2015May 31, 2023 Uncategorized

NEWS
For immediate release

Contact: Timothy R. Gaffney
Volunteer media director
Phone (cell): (937) 219-8277
Email: [email protected]

Editors: Click on the photo for a downloadable high-resolution image.

OSHKOSH, Wis.—Wright “B” Flyer Inc.’s one-of-a-kind airplane is ready to showcase America’s aviation heritage at the world’s biggest general aviation fly-in.

Photo of Wright B Flyer in front of the Basler Hangar at Wittman Field in Oshkosh, WI. — The reassembled Wright “B” Flyer at the Basler Hangar on Wittman Field in Oshkosh, Wis.

The Wright “B” Flyer is set to go on display Monday, July 20, at the Experimental Aircraft Association’s (EAA’s) AirVenture 2015 convention, fly-in and air show. The primitive-looking flying machine is a modern lookalike of the Wright brothers’ first factory-built airplane, the Wright Model B.

The Miamisburg, Ohio-based nonprofit organization’s all-volunteer crew shipped the airplane here in a trailer here last week, and on Friday assembled it here and gave it a checkout flight.

The big biplane will put Dayton’s aviation heritage on display to an expected 500,000 people over the course of the week. It will also make EAA members aware of an opportunity to help build the next Wright “B” Flyer in the original Wright brothers’ factory in Dayton—America’s first aircraft factory.

The airplane will be on display in the Vintage Area on Monday. On Tuesday, it will be the feature attraction on Vintage Plaza, where Wright “B” Flyer President Jay Jabour will give a presentation about the airplanes and the new airplane project. It’s scheduled to fly in the daily air show on Thursday and Sunday.

The Brown Bird has been flying since 1982, and the amount of time volunteers need to spend on maintenance has been growing. That and the difficulty of shipping it to remote venues like AirVenture are the main reasons why the organization has decided to build a new one.

Like this airplane—nicknamed “Brown Bird” for its color—the new airplane will use modern materials and components, but it will be made so that two people can load it into a standard shipping container and reassemble it for flight.

Wright “B” Flyer Inc. is an all-volunteer, membership based, 501c3 nonprofit that displays and flies replicas of the Wright brothers’ first factory-built airplane. Its hangar-museum is open Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Admission is free. Wright “B” Flyer is a partner of the National Aviation Heritage Alliance.

Visit http://wrightfactory.org for more information about the Wright Company factory. Visit https://www.wright-b-flyer.org for more information about the organization and its mission.

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Wright B Flyer Float Won Award

Don Adams June 23, 2015June 23, 2015 Uncategorized

On Saturday, May 30, 2015 the Wright “B” Flyer, Inc. float won the City of Moraine’s 50^th Anniversary Parade “Best 50^th Year Theme Award” with its “Half-scale Flyer” float. The float depicts Orville Wright and his father, Milton, in a Model “B” flyer while Orville was taking the 82-year-old Milton for his first and only flight. According to city sources the parade had over 70 units including floats, classic cars, the color guard and three bands.. Other units included “the West Carrolton Marching Band, Mail Carriers’ Band and Kettering Civic Band.

See Wright B Flyer at Dayton Air Show

Don Adams June 15, 2015February 9, 2025 Events

UPDATE June 18, 2015: A maintenance issue has forced Wright “B” Flyer to cancel its participation in the air show.

DAYTON, Ohio—Wright “B” Flyer Inc. will bring history to life this weekend at the Vectren Dayton Air Show Presented by Kroger with flybys of its one-of-a-kind lookalike of the Wright brothers’ first factory-built airplane.

The Wright “B” Flyer is a symbol of Dayton’s aviation heritage because the original Model B was produced in Dayton, where Wilbur and Orville Wright lived and invented the airplane. The Wright brothers formed the Wright Company in 1909 and produced approximately 120 airplanes in its West Dayton factory. The “B” was its first and most popular model.

The original Wright factory buildings—the first in America built for the purpose of manufacturing airplanes—are about to become active again.

Later this year, Wright “B” Flyer will begin building its next Model B lookalike at the factory site. The all-volunteer, 501(c)(3) nonprofit is raising funds for the project to build a successor to the current airplane, which has been flying since 1982. Most construction will take place in an adjoining building, but final assembly is to be accomplished in one of the original buildings.

The National Aviation Heritage Alliance (NAHA) and the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) are supporting the effort. NAHA is developing a workspace for the project at the factory site. EAA, a worldwide association of aviation enthusiasts based in Oshkosh, Wis., is helping Wright “B” Flyer recruit volunteers to help build parts for the airplane.

NAHA is a nonprofit organization designated by Congress to manage an eight-county area of southwestern Ohio known as the National Aviation Heritage Area. It’s one of 49 National Heritage Areas across the United States and the only one dedicated to aviation heritage. Wright “B” Flyer and the United States Air and Trade Show Inc., the air show’s governing body, are among the 16 heritage partners NAHA represents.

The Vectren Dayton Air Show is one of America’s top annual aviation events. This year’s headliner act will be the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds. Joining them will be the U.S. Navy F-18 Super Hornet, U.S. Army Golden Knights and a U.S. Coast Guard search and rescue (SAR) demonstration. Making its first appearance in Dayton will be the Breitling Jet Team from Dijon, France, on its first North American Tour.

The show will also feature Jack Link’s Screamin’ Sasquatch Jet WACO, Mat Younkin’s Beech 18 aerobatics, the legendary Sean D. Tucker, the Shockwave Jet Truck and the Wright “B” Flyer, a lookalike of the Wright brothers’ first production airplane.

Discount general admission tickets are on sale at area Kroger Stores. The Greater Dayton RTA is offering Park & Ride express shuttle service from the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. Gates are open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. The feature show takes place from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

More Mobile Wright “B” Flyer

Don Adams June 11, 2015June 11, 2015 Uncategorized

When Wright “B” Flyer Inc. takes its one-of-a-kind airplane to AirVenture 2015 in July, it will require more than filing a flight plan. The current Wright “B” Flyer can only fly short distances between refueling stops and is tiring to fly. So instead of flying to AirVenture, volunteers will laboriously disassemble the 3,400-pound biplane, carefully load it into a custom trailer, and have it hauled overland to Oshkosh — where the same scenario will play out in reverse to put it together and fly it.

Transporting the next-generation, more mobile Wright “B” Flyer, will be a much simpler affair. This one will be designed for easy disassembly and scaled to fit in a standard shipping container that will allow the organization to show and display the airplane worldwide. Wright “B” Flyer Inc. has received more than $125,000 towards its $300,000 fundraising goal for the project, with a challenge grant to match up to another $50,000. The fundraising campaign recently advanced with the donation of a steel container by Benedict Tractor and Containers Inc. (BEI) of Monroe, Ohio. Wright “B” Flyer estimates the donation saved it more than $4,000.

“This container is exactly what we will need to represent America’s aviation heritage across the country and overseas. We’re extremely grateful for BEI’s support,” Wright “B” Flyer President William J. “Jay” Jabour said.

Like the current “B”, the new airplane will resemble the original, 1910-era Wright Model B Flyer, but it will use modern materials and meet modern safety standards. It will be built at the original Wright Company factory in Dayton with support from the National Aviation Heritage Alliance and the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA). The factory is where the Wright brothers produced the first Model B flyers more than a century ago, launching America’s aviation industry.

In addition to the shipping container, Wright “B” Flyer’s “wish list” includes an engine, instruments, materials, tools, professional services, and volunteers.
This article is from an earlier NAHA press release.