Aviation Marvel, Article Critique Example

The author argues that Wright Brothers might have been first to attempt a successful flight but Glen H. Curtiss contributed more towards the promotion and development of aviation technologies. I agree with the author because Wright Brothers’ legal fight indicates they were more interested in the commercial aspect of their invention while Curtiss was more interested in advancing the aviation sector.

The writer claims that flight technology was being developed all over the Europe as well and even if Wright Brothers had not attempted the first successful flight, someone else would have succeeded sooner or later. The writer also believes that Wright Brothers pursued legal options because they wanted monopoly over the aviation technology and prevent rivals from making any technological breakthroughs.

The writer presents several evidences to support his claim that Curtiss was more interested in the advancement of aviation sector than Wright Brothers. First of all, Wright Brothers’ attempt was cloaked in secrecy while Curtiss attempted the first pre-announced flight so as to spark interest in the public. He also invented the first seaplane in 1911 and the first flying boat in 1912. Similarly, he also opened the first flying school as well as the first water-cooled engines to enable long-distance air travel.

There are certain shortcomings in the author’s arguments. First of all, technologies are rarely invented in isolation and often more than one party would be working on it. It also happened in the case of cars and telephones but usually the first person to present a practical proof gets the invention credit. Similarly, every technology is a simple prototype at first but first step is usually important because it proves the validity of an idea which encourages further development. Thus, Wright Brothers rightfully deserve credit and their pursuit of patent rights is not something unusual in the world of inventions. Trafford Doherty’s claim that the credit given to Wright Brothers for inventing the airplane is oversimplification is also misleading because the credit for invention is never based on later contributions or added innovations.

In order to emphasize Curtiss’ contribution towards the development of an infant aviation sector, the author sometimes appears overzealous to downplay Wright Brothers’ contributions. Curtiss can be given credit for innovations but Wright Brothers rightfully deserve the credit for invention. In addition, Wright Brothers invented airplane through their own efforts while Curtiss got involved only after he received an invitation from Aerial Experiment Association.