AEA June Bug
The
June Bug (or
Aerodrome #3) was an early aircraft designed by
Glenn Curtiss and built by the
Aerial Experiment Association in
1908. Curtiss himself flew it on
May 21, and its performance was so encouraging that the Association decided to use the aircraft to attempt to collect the
Scientific American trophy for the first flight of over 1 kilometer (3,280 ft). It was possibly named after the common
June bug insect.
The AEA contacted the
Wright brothers, offering them the chance to make an attempt first, but when they declined the opportunity, Curtiss took to the air on
July 4, flying 5,360 ft (1.6 km) in a flight of 1 minute 40 seconds, and therefore collecting the trophy and a $US 25,000 cash prize. Amidst the publicity following the flight, the Wrights sent a warning to Curtiss that they had not given permission for the use of "their" aircraft control system to be used "for exhibitions or in a commercial way". In fact, none of the AEA's aircraft used a wing-warping system like the Wrights' for control, relying instead on triangular ailerons designed by
Alexander Graham Bell, which he successfully patented in December
1911. However, the courts upheld even this as an application of the Wright's patent in 1913. As early as three years previous to June Bug's flight, the Wrights had made flights of up to 24 miles (38 km), but their aircraft did not meet the criteria specified by
Scientific American, in particular, with regard to the way they were launched.
From October and November, the June Bug was modified by adding floats to it in an attempt to create a
seaplane. Renamed
Loon, attempts to fly it began on
Keuka Lake on
November 28. Although the aircraft could achieve speeds of up to 29 mph (43 km/h) on the water, it could not take off, and on
January 2,
1909 went out of control and sank. When it was recovered, it finally rotted away in a nearby boathouse.
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