The Fascinating History of Extent That When The US Entered

Welcome to another journey through aviation history! In this article, we explore some incredible early developments in aeronautics.

Key Takeaways

• extent that, when the U.S. entered World War I in April 1917, no acceptable American-designed
• airplanes were available, and American forces were compelled to use French machines. Orville and Katharine

The Full Story

extent that, when the U.S. entered World War I in April 1917, no acceptable American-designed airplanes were available, and American forces were compelled to use French machines. Orville and Katharine Wright believed Curtiss was partly responsible for Wilbur's premature death, which occurred in the wake of his exhausting travels and the stress of the legal battle. === Victory and cooperation === In January 1914, a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the verdict against the Curtiss company, which continued to avoid penalties through legal tactics. Orville apparently felt vindicated by the decision, and much to the frustration of company executives, he did not push vigorously for further legal action to ensure a manufacturing monopoly. In fact, he was planning to sell the company and departed in 1915. In 1917, with World War I underway, the U.S. government pressured the industry to form a cross-licensing organization, the Manufacturers Aircraft Association, to which member companies paid a blanket fee for the use of aviation patents, including the original and subsequent Wright patents. The "patent war" ended, although side issues lingered in the courts until the 1920s. The Wright Aeronautical Corporation (successor to the Wright-Martin Company), and the Curtiss Aeroplane company, merged in 1929 to form the Curtiss-Wright Corporation, which remains in business today producing high-tech components for the aerospace industry. Aviation historian C. H. Gibbs-Smith stated a number of times that the Wrights' legal victory would have been "doubtful" if an 1868 patent of "a prior but lost invention" by M. P. W. Boulton of the UK had been known in the period 1903–1906. The patent, titled Aërial Locomotion &c, described several engine improvements and conceptual designs and included a technical description and drawings of an aileron control system and an optional feature intended to function as an autopilot. In fact, this patent was well known to participants in the Wright-Curtiss lawsuit. A U.S. federal judge who reviewed previous inventions and patents and upheld the Wright patent against the Curtiss company reached the opposite conclusion of Gibbs-Smith, saying the Boulton patent "is not anticipatory". === Public reactions === The lawsuits damaged the public image of the Wright brothers, who were generally regarded before this as heroes. Critics said the brothers were greedy and unfair, and compared their actions unfavorably to European inventors, who worked more openly. Supporters said the brothers were protecting their interests and were justified in expecting fair compensation for the years of work leading to their successful invention. Their 10-year friendship with Octave Chanute, already strained by tension over how much credit, if any, he might deserve for their success, collapsed after he publicly criticized their actions. == In business == The Wright Company was incorporated on November 22, 1909. The brothers sold their patents to the company for $100,000 and also received one-third of the shares in a million dollar stock issue and a 10 percent royalty on every airplane sold. With Wilbur as president and Orville as vice president, the company set up a factory in Dayton

---

This article was adapted from public domain historical archives to bring you accessible, plain English history.