Do a Good Deed and We'll Give You a Wright Airplane

first-to-fly.com is offering this historic replica if you will help us save another important but irreproducible aviation treasure, the Wright Company papers.

Wilbur and Orville Wright formed an airplane manufacturing company in 1909, backed by some of the wealthiest people in the world, including Cornelius Vanderbilt and R. J. Collier. It was the first company of its kind, and the very beginning of the aerospace industry. Later it merged with two other early aircraft manufacturers, the Curtiss Company and the Martin Company.

The business papers of these early aviation companies were presumed lost, and their absence has created a huge hole in the historical record. But they recently were found again, to the delight of aviation historians. Joe Gertler, the "Indiana Jones" of aviation, is working to place these documents in a  museum or library, where they can be made available to the public.

Despite the obvious value of this historical treasure, Gertler had a difficult time finding a home for these documents where they can be kept all together. He is offering them for 40% of the estimated value, but has had no offers from suitable institutions.

first-to-fly.com has been working to procure the documents for the Special Archives and Collections in the Paul Laurence Dunbar Library at Wright State University, which houses the largest collection of Wright brothers memorabilia in the world. To this end, we recently arranged the first public viewing of these documents. At this viewing, Joe Gertler  announced that we will offer a full-size, flying, historically accurate replica of the 1902 Wright Glider to any company or individual who would donate the first $100,000 to help launch a fund-raising campaign.

"It's a much bigger thank you than a bronze plaque," said Nick Engler, director of first-to-fly.com. "And it would look wonderful in a company lobby, reminding employees and visitors what a little courage and imagination can accomplish."

What if more than one individual or company comes forward to chip in at the beginning of our campaign. "We'll build two gliders. Or three or four -- whatever it takes to save these documents. It's hard to convince someone who hasn't seen the papers of their importance. But I'd bet the history remembers them as one of the major archaeological finds in this century. They are that awesome."

Nick is the leader of a team that has already built one 1902 Wright Glider replica. Jack Tiffany, a renowned airplane restorer who has taken honors three times at Oshkosh, inspected the replica for accuracy and craftsmanship and pronounced it "incredible!" The first reproduction, which we christened The Spirit of Dayton, will tour schools and museums as the centerpiece in a traveling Wright brothers museum.

"We built a pretty good airplane the first time," says Engler. "And we'll do even better on the second. We're much more familiar with the way the inventive minds of Orville and Wilbur worked."