Joy ride
"Prior art" was of course the cause that Curtis sought to provide evidence to invalidate the Wrights' case against him. Thus the remains of the late Langley's "Aerodrome' ( Langley being a past secretary of the Smithsonian) were acquired for restoration to flight. This machine duly flew off the river at Hammonsdport ( Lake Keuka) in 1914 thus supporting the fatuous claim that Langley " had succeeded in building the first aeroplane capable of sustaining free flight with a man."
Thus the aircraft was disingenuously displayed in the Smithsonian proclaiming it "the first-man carrying aeroplane in the history of the world capable of sustaining free flight"
Unfortunately for this august institution, photographic evidence proved that the aircraft had been modified enormously for flight ,then surreptitiously back converted to its original 1903 configuration prior to display. All this was revealed in a paper delivered to the Royal Aeronautical Society in London in October 1921. Thus the Smithsonian's associates had been caught out "fiddling with aviation history".
As a consequence the Wrights loaned the alleged 1903 " Flyer" ( it is largely a hybrid of later machines) to the U.K. Science Museum in London. By 1942 , after negotiation, the Smithsonian bargained back the Flyer from the Wrights' estate post WW2 , but subject to such terms that its hands were effectively tied to supporting the somewhat extravagant claims tied to holding the machine, which returned to the USA at the end of 1948. This unholy covenant was uncovered by the publication of "History By Contract" by Major William J. O'Dwyer,USAFR. in 1978. Among many other stipulations revealed regarding its presence is that the Smithsonian is not permitted to "recognise that any other aeroplane was capable of powered,sustained and controlled flight carrying a man before 17th December 1903."
This stipulation is also extended to:
"any other agency bureau or facilities, administered for the United States of America by the Smithsonian Institution or it's successors shall publish or permit to be displayed a statement or label in connection with or in respect of any aircraft model or design of earlier date that the Wright aeroplane of 1903 , claiming in effect that such aircraft was capable of carrying a man under it's own power in controlled flight."
This revelation of a blatant attempt at dictating nationally terms of Aviation History, by suppressing any alternative view whatsoever is exactly what is, arguably justifiably, been supporting some of the grievances of the Whitehead fraternity .
This situation was , I think, originally the motivation of this thread ,before being hijacked along the road by some silly and irrelevant flights of fantasy.