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ion.

Lt Selfridge was given leave from his ARmy duties to become a member.The first project was to raise a man into the air with a large kite.Dr. Bell had evolved a form of kite made from multiples of tetrahedral cells. On December 6, 1907 a huge kite of this type, with 3.393 cells and named the "Cygnet" was mounted on a barge-like craft, on Bras d'Or Lake near Dr. Bell's home. Selfridge lay in an opening in the center of the kite. Towed by a steamboat, with the kite's tethering line attached to the fantail of the boat, the kite rose 168 feet,measured by the length of extended line and its angle. When the boat slowed down the kite descended but as it reached the water it was completely wrecked. Selfridge slid out and swam to a nearby boat, none the worse for the experience.

Soon after, the group moved to Hammondsport where they made and experimented with a Chanute-type glider,- a biplane with a rearward boom extending to a stabilizer.Work was started on their first powered airplane, designed by Selfridge, who rated the first project as a reward for his bravery in riding the kite. It was a biplane with control surfaces front and rear,having skid-like runners for take-offs from the ice on Lake Keuka, and powered with an 8-cylinder 40 hp.,Curtiss engine. It was completed on March 8, 1901 and named the "Red Wing" because its liftin-and-control surfaces were covered with red silk from the supply used for Dr. Bell's kites. To his regret,Lt.Selfridge was called away on military duty,so Baldwin was to be the pilot.On March 12th he made a flight of 318 feet, thus becoming the first Canadian to pilot an airplane. Five days later another flight was attempted, but the airplane crashed, with no personal injury to Baldwin. 

Dr. Bell was not present at these trials but when he heard of the unsuccessful flight and the form of structure, with only two axes of control, he urged that a third aces, that of lateral balance, be added. Thus in the design of their next airplane,in addition to the rudder for   steering, and the elevator for  pitch, small hinged surfaces at the wing tips were added  for the longitudinal axes controlling sideways roll. It is not know whether Dr. Bell, at this time, had heard of the Wright brothers'

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