Editing Percy Pilcher (section)

==Aviation career==
[[Image:Hawk hangglider Pilcher.jpg|thumb|left|200px|The hang glider ''Hawk'', 1897. Shown might be Miss Dorothy Pilcher, Percy's cousin who was towed in a flight.]] In 1891 Pilcher began work as assistant lecturer at [[Glasgow University]] and took a growing interest in aviation. He built a [[History of hang gliding|hang glider]] called ''The Bat'' which he flew for the first time in 1895;<ref name="geo"/> 
Later that year Pilcher met [[Otto Lilienthal]], who was the leading expert in gliding in Germany. These discussions led to Pilcher building two more gliders, ''The Beetle'' and ''The Gull''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spartacus-educational.com/SCIpilcher.htm|title=Percy Pilcher|publisher=Spartacus|access-date=29 March 2009}}</ref> Based on the work of his mentor Otto Lilienthal, in 1895–1896 Pilcher built a glider called ''Hawk'' with which he broke the world distance record when he flew 250&nbsp;m (820&nbsp;ft) in 1897 on the grounds of Stanford Hall, Leicestershire.<ref>{{cite web | title=Percy Pilcher | last= Bibby|first=Miriam|website=Historic UK |url=https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/Percy-Pilcher/| access-date=November 21, 2023 |quote= In 1897 a world record breaking distance of 250 metres (over 800 feet) was achieved by Pilcher in his Hawk glider in the grounds of Stanford Hall, Leicestershire. }}</ref> His sister [[Ella Pilcher]] was involved with his work, stitching the fabric wings of his planes and assisting with his experiments and test flights. She appears in photos taken at the time of Pilcher's public flights.<ref>{{cite web |title=Percy Pilcher |url=https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/brompton-cemetery/explore-brompton-cemetery/percy-pilcher |publisher=The Royal Parks |access-date=25 May 2019 |archive-date=25 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190525054034/https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/brompton-cemetery/explore-brompton-cemetery/percy-pilcher |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="PP Hawk">{{cite web | title=Percy Pilcher's Hawk glider | website=National Museums Scotland | date=5 November 2020 | url=https://www.nms.ac.uk/explore-our-collections/stories/science-and-technology/made-in-scotland-changing-the-world/scottish-science-innovations/percy-pilchers-hawk-glider/ | access-date=10 May 2021}}</ref>

Pilcher set his sights on making powered flights. He developed a [[triplane]] that was to include a 4 [[Horsepower|hp]] (3&nbsp;kW) engine. In order to develop a suitable [[internal combustion engine]] to power the aircraft, Pilcher teamed up with the motor engineer [[Walter Gordon Wilson]], and created a company called [[Wilson-Pilcher]]. Wilson was later to become credited by the 1919 [[Royal Commission on Awards to Inventors]] as the co-inventor of the [[tank]], along with [[Sir William Tritton]]. However, construction of the triplane put him heavily into debt, and Pilcher needed sponsorship to complete his work.<ref name="GGPSP"/><ref name="RASPP">{{cite web |title=Biography Percy Sinclair Pilcher 1866-1899 |url=https://aerosocietyheritage.com/biographies/percy-sinclair-pilcher |publisher=Royal Aeronautical Society |access-date=11 May 2021}}</ref>