All of us have heard the story, perhaps apocryphal, of the development of wing warping: One of the Wrights, while speaking with a customer, absent-mindedly twisted the ends of a long, rectangular box and noticed that it sprang back to its original shape upon release.

Why didn't he notice, instead, his hinged front door and attempt to fashion similar wing sections as Glenn Curtiss would do about a dozen years after Kitty Hawk? Curtiss attempted to patent the aileron. However, the courts deemed it an infringement of the Wright Flyer patent.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Bob

They did. They also investigated rotating wing tips for roll control but finally settled on wing warping because it was the lightest and a natural when they decided to adapt the wire braced biplane for lightness and strength. Everbody else concentrated on more power while they decided that control was most important.

Thanks for the reply, Chuck. I see your point about warping being a natural. By making this system part of the wire bracing, you could maintain strength without excessive weight or complication. Before your note, I viewed warping as only a limitation on roll.