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EARLY AERODROMES/AIRPLANE - Many of the experiments and developments during the 1800s led directly to the eventual development of the powered airplane and transatlantic wireless communications in the early 20th century.

The Wright Brothers were skilled at kite flying, and it was their years of kite flying that directly led to the invention of their airplane. One day while flying box kites at Kitty Hawk, the brothers discovered that the kites provided enough lift to be able to lift a man off the ground.

In August of 1899, they built a biplane kite, also known as a warping kite. They discovered that by varying the position of the four lines attached near the kite’s extremities, they could simulate the twisting of the wings of a soaring bird. This twisting they called wing-warping lateral control, a method that was to characterize Wright’s airplane for years to come.

In 1901, Alexander Graham Bell developed a prototype of his tetrahedral kite, a three-dimensional rigid kite that, when connected together, can be built to any size without having to have thicker and stronger sticks as the kite grows bigger.

Bell’s tetrahedral kite would eventually be used to lift as much as 288 pounds and would be the basis of future powered “aerodromes.”

THE SPACE AGE - Since World War II, two kite innovations, Francis Rogallo’s flexi-wing (1948) and Domina Jalbert’s parafoil (1964) kites, have helped develop the modern hang-gliders and sports parachutes respectively.

Rogallo had originally invented the Flexi-wing (also referred to as the Rogallo wing) with the idea to create an aircraft that would be simple enough and inexpensive enough that anyone could have one. In 1952, he used the newly developed Mylar material and created the five-dollar toy “Flexikite.” 

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Rogallo worked with NASA to utilize his design (renamed the Parawing) as an alternative recovery system for the Gemini space capsules. NASA ultimately went with round parachutes, but Rogallo’s design has inspired numerous hang-glider designs.

Another design developed during the 1960s was by Domina Jalbert, who invented a ram-air double-surfaced fully flexible airfoil. This invention would profoundly change kiting, parachuting, and hang-gliding. All parafoils owe their roots to Jalbert’s “Multi-cell Wing Type Aerial Device.”

KITES AS A SPORT - Until the early 1600s, kites were typically used for the amusement of adults. But illustrations started emerging of kids playing with pear-shaped kites around 1618, and kites continued to increase in popularity among children until today.

In 1972, Peter Powell introduced a toy dual-line stunter, and the public began to fly kites not only for fun but also for sport. Millions of his kites were sold, and flying steerable kites became a craze in the mid-’70s. The popularity of all types of multiple-line kite flying today can be attributed directly to Powell’s development of a modern dual-line kite.

Enthusiasts experimented with new designs for the stunt kite, based in part on the work of Rogallo and Jalbert. These kites could fly precise maneuvers, go faster, or perform intricate tricks. 

Being able to do precise maneuvers with a controllable kite gave birth to sport kite competitions. Starting in the early 1970s and continuing today, sport kite competitions are held all over the world. Kite pilots compete in areas of discipline such as ballet, precision, and also together as a team.

In the 1980s, sport kite development utilized new materials such as carbon/fiberglass tubes and rip-stop nylon. Two of the most influential kite developments during this time can be attributed to Don Tabor, who introduced the “Hawaiian” team kite in 1982, and Joseph Hadzicki, who developed and patented the quad-line controllable kite in 1988.’ (Source)

Let’s continue - The Science of Kites!

Start at the beginning – Let’s go fly a kite!