CORGI WRIGHT FLYER SMITHSONIAN (**)

In collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution, Corgi, the venerable diecast metal toy manufacturer, have collectively produced a scale replica, diecast metal collection of renowned aircraft and spacecraft displayed in the Washington, D.C. based Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Designed in England to exacting standards with extraordinary detail and quality that will satisfy any ardent aeronautic or space enthusiast, the Smithsonian Collection by Corgi is perfect for older children and novice collectors. The Smithsonian Collection by Corgi 1903 Wright Flyer, which measures approximately 2-1/4-inches long with a 4-3/8-inch wingspan, is a period correct, accurate reproduction of the actual aircraft, and features detailed graphics and markings. A Display Stand is included. According to the Smithsonian, the Wright Brothers inaugurated the aerial age with the world's first successful flights of a powered heavier-than-air flying machine. Beginning in 1899, the Wright Flyer was the product of a sophisticated four-year program of research and development conducted by Wilbur and Orville Wright. After building three full size gliders, the Wright's first powered airplane flew at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina on December 17, 1903, with Orville piloting, making a 12 second flight, traveling 36-meters (120-feet). The best flight of the day, with Wilbur at the controls, covered 255.6-meters (852-feet) in 59 seconds. The Wrights pioneered many of the basic tenets and techniques of modern aeronautical engineering, such as the use of a wind tunnel and flight testing. Their seminal accomplishment encompassed not only the breakthrough first flight of an airplane, but also the equally important achievement of establishing the foundation of aeronautical engineering.