Smithsonian Releases Wright Brothers' Contract: Who Really Was First in Flight

The Smithsonian has released a contract that seems to suggest that the museum can never say another powered aircraft flew before the Wright brothers' plane--at least, not without losing the historic artifact. Still binding, the contract has been displayed to allow the public to make their own decision about who flew the first plane.

Recently, Australian historian John Brown discovered new information that seems to suggest another man made a sustained powered flight before the Wright brothers. A German immigrant named Gustav Whitehead first took to the skies in a heavier-than-air machine on August 14, 1901--that's two years before the Wright brothers. In order to record the flight, Whitehead invited the chief editor of the "Bridgeport Herald" to observe the historic moment. Unfortunately for Whitehead and for history, the visit resulted in a very blurry image that may or may not show the German immigrant in flight.

Brown, though, insists that the picture does show evidence of Whitehead's flight. He recently discovered a century-old image that shows a picture of the picture that depicts the moment. By blowing up the image by 3,500 percent, he revealed something that looks vaguely like a very blurry man in flight.

Brown isn't alone. Paul Jackson, editor of "Jane's All the World's Aircraft," accepts that the evidence is enough to support Brown's claims. In addition, he believes that the Smithsonian may be biased when it comes to the Wright brothers--mainly due to the contract the institution signed with Orville.

Yet there are some of those that doubt the evidence. Peter Jakab, associate director of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, believes that the photo is too blurry to be conclusive, according to NPR. It's also strange that after this historic moment, Whitehead never again made a successful flight.

"The strongest argument against the Whitehead claims is to be found in the fact that not one of the powered machines that he built after 1902 ever left the ground," said Tom Crouch, curator of aeronautics on the National Air and Space Museum's website. "Are we to assume that he forgot the secret of flight?"

The release of this latest contract, though, may point to the fact that the Wright brothers actually didn't make the first flight. Even so, Crouch still stands by his previous statement.

"I can only repeat that if substantial evidence of a pre-Wright flight claim were to be produced, I hope I would have the courage to admit it," said Crouch in an interview with Fox News.

Want to see the contract for yourself? It can be found online here.