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| u.s. aircraft 1910-1919 | |
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Christmas had little expertise in aircraft manufacturing or design, but convinced the U.S. military that he had been in charge of the German airplane industry, and that he could develop for them a plane uniquely well designed for the audacious mission of kidnapping Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany. They were persuaded, and awarded him a contract to build the plane, anointed "The Bullet" or the "Christmas Bullet". His design lacked any kind of struts or braces for the wings. Christmas apparently believed that, in flight, the wings would flex or even flap like those of a bird to provide lift. On its maiden flight, the wings of the Bullet peeled from the Fuselage and the airplane crashed to the ground. The pilot was killed. A second plane was built to similar specifications, with an identical outcome. Some histories record that the U.S. military was sufficiently impressed to award him $100,000 for his efforts (this amounts to over $1.2 million in 2005 dollars). The truth is somewhat more complicated — Christmas did receive a patent for the Bullet design in 1914, and Christmas later claimed to have sold the rights to his design for moveable ailerons in 1923, for $100,000. However, this has never been substantiated. SOURCES
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