Finally, if Whitehead got his "airplane #21" to fly, why didn't any of his
later creations fly? Certainly he would have improved his design, rather
than starting with a successful design, flying it a time or two, then moving
on to designs that were unable to fly...

Just so. It's like the European "discoveries" of the Americas before
Columbus. If it's not provable, and if it led to nothing, then it
might as well not have happened.

Perhaps in the case of Columbus we use the wrong word, and "opening"
is what he did. And in the case of the Wrights, perhaps what we mean
is "they achieved replicable powered flight." But that is a bit long
to go on a postage stamp.

The Wrights were the first to fly. Put as many asterisks after it as
you like, having to do with power / proof / whatever, but they were
the first to fly.

all the best -- Dan Ford
email: www.danford.net/letters.htm#9

see the Warbird's Forum at www.warbirdforum.com
and the Piper Cub Forum at www.pipercubforum.com