Aviation history at the academy

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Sillysailor74

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So last week at I-day as I spoke to cadets, parents, and a few officers of various rank I came across the same realization. No one has a freakin clue about the birth place of the inventors (fine… patent holders for the aileron). I would introduce myself to folks, tell them that we come from the birthplace of the inventors of powered flight, and all the above said… “You’re from North Carolina?”. To which I said “No, the place where Orville and Wilbur lived”, to which I got “I thought they were from North Carolina?”. Now, I think we have some serious work to do on aviation history. Just sayin.
 
Sillysailor74 said:
So last week at I-day as I spoke to cadets, parents, and a few officers of various rank I came across the same realization. No one has a freakin clue about the birth place of the inventors (fine… patent holders for the aileron). I would introduce myself to folks, tell them that we come from the birthplace of the inventors of powered flight, and all the above said… “You’re from North Carolina?”. To which I said “No, the place where Orville and Wilbur lived”, to which I got “I thought they were from North Carolina?”. Now, I think we have some serious work to do on aviation history. Just sayin.
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There's a reason "Wright-Patterson AFB" has the name "Wright" in it.

Hint: its location.
 
Probably because the North Carolina license plate says "First In Flight" and they proudly claim their heritage as the location of the first powered flight so where the Wright Brothers were actually born, ran a bicycle shop and did their inventing and planning gets forgotten.
 
All3Services said:
Probably because the North Carolina license plate says "First In Flight" and they proudly claim their heritage as the location of the first powered flight so where the Wright Brothers were actually born, ran a bicycle shop and did their inventing and planning gets forgotten.
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And did 99% percent of the perfecting of their aeroplane. Just irritated the crap out of me. Learn your history! The first flight was a whopping 120 feet. Anyway, this needs to be addressed in aviation history classes!
 
There’s also a lot of states claiming Abraham Lincoln. He was born in Kentucky but most of his career was Illinois.

He lived in Indiana for a bit too while he was younger
 
This is pitiful. Zero excuse. Armstrong and Glenn are from the same state. Sorry folks - if an officer doesn’t know this basic stuff, what else is missing? Last thing - this tells me some ALO s and admissions are not asking the right questions or encouraging the proper historical background preparation, for applicants to be on top of the candidate screening process.
 
You think knowing where historical figures were born should be a requirement to be an officer? 😂

Good luck with that candidate pool.

Would you have been able to tell me what city Roland Garros was born in?
 
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Ivy22 said:
Ooh French Open and tennis. The women’s finals match was pretty good this year! American Coco Gauff won!
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But do you know he was, and what's his claim to fame?
(Hint: it's NOT tennis)
 
Asgard. Respectfully- I’m not getting in a back and forth with you. Your analogy is weak and you know it is weak. Who we are and what we do? In any organization- that story should roll off the top of your head. People should proudly know their story - be able to communicate basic background information. It’s says you read a little bit - shows interest in a cause. It says you care. That’s all I mean. No need to be a museum quality historian. All the best to you.
 
Common Sense for USAFA said:
Asgard. Respectfully- I’m not getting in a back and forth with you. Your analogy is weak and you know it is weak. Who we are and what we do? In any organization- that story should roll off the top of your head. People should proudly know their story - be able to communicate basic background information. It’s says you read a little bit - shows interest in a cause. It says you care. That’s all I mean. No need to be a museum quality historian. All the best to you.
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I think you have a valid point, but I also think Asgard has a valid point. Can you be a good officer and not know where the Wright brothers lived? Sure. Can you be a great officer and not know where they lived? Sure. Will knowing where they lived make you a better officer? Potentially, as knowing the past can give an appreciation for the future. But in the overall picture, there are more important qualities in an officer. As a big history guy, I do understand where you’re coming from, and it is something that warrants some concern.
 
I believe everyone should know who the Wright Brothers were. I believe nobody outside of Ohio needs to know where they lived (and seemingly everyone in Ohio had better know)

And respectfully, if we are talking military aviation history, I think Roland Garros fits in just fine as far as what should be known.
 
Asgard said:
You think knowing where historical figures were born should be a requirement to be an officer? 😂

Good luck with that candidate pool.

Would you have been able to tell me what city Roland Garros was born in?
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See, a French pilot, versus the bothers that perfected powered flight (well, got the ball rolling), who are from the US, and have a gigantic CONUS base named for them is important. More importantly, is the actual place where they did all of their flying is right outside of the gates of WPAFB area B. We don’t expect these guys to name the play that Lincoln was watching when he died (our American cousin), we are asking them to have some basic knowledge. The French pilot used parts in their plane that the brothers held the patent for.
 
I’m sure very few people at West Point could tell you where General Sherman was born and raised, even if it seems like common knowledge in Lancaster.

If you like planes that can fire guns, you might enjoy this quick piece on Garros:

If not here are some excellent rallies:
 
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Ivy22 said:
WWI French Aviator
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Much more than that...his invention was crude, but highly effective for what it was.

Antony Fokker took it apart and then improved it immeasurably, changing aerial combat forever.
 
Sillysailor74 said:
So last week at I-day as I spoke to cadets, parents, and a few officers of various rank I came across the same realization. No one has a freakin clue about the birth place of the inventors (fine… patent holders for the aileron). I would introduce myself to folks, tell them that we come from the birthplace of the inventors of powered flight, and all the above said… “You’re from North Carolina?”. To which I said “No, the place where Orville and Wilbur lived”, to which I got “I thought they were from North Carolina?”. Now, I think we have some serious work to do on aviation history. Just sayin.
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intelligence is understanding that you can be wrong and understanding what you don’t know. Wilbur was born in Indiana. I would have responded Indiana or Ohio or North Carolina, or did you mean Langley? Let’s not be so quick to judge others based on each of our own tight and narrow memory and expertise.
 
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