It took seven full-time craftsmen and dozens of volunteers almost three years to build the wooden plane from spruce and ash. Two pilots were chosen to fill the brothers’ roles, and they learned to maneuver the craft using only their hips and hands. Last month they joined Hyde on the dunes for practice glider runs before testing out the powered Flyer on the historic ground where Orville recorded 120 feet. The first practice was successful, but on a later flight the plane crashed, damaging the front rudder. (Subsequent runs fared better.) At least this time the future of flight isn’t also riding on the wings.
