Press Room

Simine Short

Simine Short

Simine Short is an aviation researcher and historian. She has written more than 100 articles on the history of motorless flight and is published in the United States and Europe. Her recently released book, “Locomotive to Aeromotive. Octave Chanute and the...

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WWII Glider Pilot Still Soaring

WWII Glider Pilot Still Soaring

Lt. Col. (RET) Al Hulstruck of the US Army WWII Glider Pilots, Silent Wings, joins Soaring 100 with an exhibit that he personally funded, built, and shares with aviation enthusiasts, historians, and the public. Hultruck has the distinction of serving as a US Army...

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Comparing Ribs

Comparing Ribs

Rick Young, 1911 Glider reproduction builder for Soaring 100 Exhibit and First Flight Foundation Director, visits Flight Room at Wright Brothers National Memorial.  Notice the difference in the curvature of the rib for the Wright 1902 Glider on display at Wright...

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Russell E. Lee

Russell E. Lee

Lee earned a Master’s Degree in American History from George Mason University. He recently published a biography on Reimar Horten, titled Only the Wing: Reimar Horten’s Epic Quest to Stablize and Control the All-Wing Aircraft. Lee has flown a variety of single-engine...

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Peter L. Jakab, Ph.D.

Peter L. Jakab, Ph.D.

Jakab holds a BA, MA, and Ph.D. in American history from Rutgers University. He has been with NASM since 1983. In addition to his position in curatorial affairs, Jakab also serves as a Curator of Aeronautics at the museum. Jakab’s areas of specialization include the...

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Mr. Harry B. Combs

Harry Combs' Gift Brings the Flyer Home Harry Combs' Gift Brings the Flyer Home Thanks to the generosity of Harry B. Combs, a full-scale, authentic reproduction of the 1903 Wright Flyer will become a permanent exhibit at Wright Brothers National Memorial. Combs, noted...

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Wolf Aviation Fund

Wolf Aviation Fund

Kitty Hawk, NC    The First Flight Foundation is a 2011 recipient of the Wolf Aviation Fund for Soaring 100, which commemorates the international centennial celebration of Orville Wright’s world record glider flight of October 24, 1911. The public event will be held...

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Paul Dees

Paul Dees

Paul Dees had his first soaring flight in a hang glider in 1984 on the California coast, ten years after his first attempt to fly a homebuilt bamboo hang glider.  He was a basic instructor at Kitty Hawk Kites prior to earning his MS in Aeronautical Engineering. It was...

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Dr. Bernd Lukasch

Dr. Bernd Lukasch

Under Lukasch’s leadership the museum has been awarded the title "National Memorial" by the State Minister for Culture and Media of the Federal Republic of Germany.  In 1999, the museum was the first in the former East Germany to be awarded the "European Museum of the...

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John D. Anderson, Jr., PhD

John D. Anderson, Jr., PhD

Dr. Anderson holds a Bachelor of Aeronautical Engineering Degree from the University of Florida. He attended the Ohio State University under the National Science Foundation and NASA Fellowships, graduating with a Ph.D in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering....

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Tom Crouch, Ph.D.

Tom Crouch, Ph.D.

Born in Dayton, OH, the birthplace and home of the Wright Brothers, it seemed pre-determined that Tom Crouch would be a curator of history and education of flight and aviation. Beginning in 1998, Crouch has served as the Senior Curator of the Division of Aeronautics...

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