First Flight: The Wright Experience Flight Simulator

The simulation game was originally developed as a training tool for the Wright Experience Centennial test pilots.

The Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur, made aviation history in 1903 when they built and piloted the first powered aircraft. By definition, this was merely the "First Flight" in technical terms. Before they made their first powered flight, the brothers had built and piloted gliders.

A 1903 Wright Flyer replica had been constructed using original documentation, plans, and the actual "Flyer" that was parked at the Smithsonian Institution. On December 17, 2003, one of the candidates from the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) flew the replica.

The pilot candidates have been training hard in replica gliders, towed behind cars, and with a flight simulator.

Bihrle Applied Research, Inc. provided development support for the flight simulator. High-fidelity flight simulators for the military aviation sector are one of Bihrle's best-known innovations. Their "First Flight" simulator was developed using test data from the 1903 Flyer replica's wind tunnel testing at NACA's Langley facility.

In the game, you have 4 different flights: the Glider at Jockey’s Ridge in 1902; the Flyer, the first powered flight at Kill Devil Hill, Kitty Hawk, NC, in 1903; the Model B, the Wright Brothers first military demo flight at Fort Meyers, VA, in 1911; and the other Model B, the Wright Brothers first training base at College Park, MD, in the same year.

Bihrle offers a flight simulation that is sold commercially to aficionados of PC flight simulators. The simulator comes with one CD and a quick start guide, all packaged in a DVD casing.