Editing AEA June Bug

{{Short description|American biplane}}
{{DISPLAYTITLE:AEA ''June Bug''}}
<!-- This article is a part of [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Aircraft]]. Please see [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Aircraft/page content]] for recommended layout. -->
{{Infobox aircraft
 |name=AEA ''June Bug''
 |image=Curtiss june bug.jpg
 |caption=
 |type=[[Aviation in the pioneer era|Pioneer era]] aircraft
 |manufacturer=[[Aerial Experiment Association]]
 |designer=[[Glenn Curtiss]]
 |first_flight= June 21, 1908
 |introduction=
 |retired=
 |status=Crashed January 2, 1909
 |primary_user=Aerial Experiment Association
 |more_users=
 |produced=1908
 |number_built=1
 |unit cost=
 |variants=
}}
The '''''June Bug''''' was an American [[Aviation in the pioneer era|"pioneer era"]] [[biplane]] built by the [[Aerial Experiment Association]] (A.E.A) in 1908 and flown by [[Glenn Curtiss|Glenn Hammond Curtiss]]. The [[aircraft]] was the first American airplane to fly at least 1&nbsp;km in front of a crowd.

==Design and development==
A ''[[Scientific American]]'' competition in 1907 offered a solid silver sculpted trophy, and $25,000 in cash, to be awarded to whoever made the first public flight of over 1 kilometer (3,280&nbsp;ft) in an American aircraft. In 1907, Glenn Curtiss and the Aerial Experiment Association began building the ''June Bug'' with hopes of winning the Scientific American Cup.

The ''June Bug,'' also referred to as ''Aerodrome #3'' (the third powered airplane built by the A.E.A), included the previously used [[aileron]] steering system, but a shoulder [[Yoke (aeronautics)|yoke]] made it possible for the pilot to steer by leaning from side to side. The aircraft featured a [[Canard (aeronautics)|canard]], horizontal surfaces, and a [[Rudder|rear rudder]]. The original [[varnish]] sealing the wing fabric cracked in the heat, so a mixture of turpentine, paraffin, and gasoline was used on the aircraft instead. The ''June Bug'' had yellow wings due to the [[yellow ochre]]  added to the wing mixture in order to make the aircraft show up better in the [[Orthochromasia#Orthochromatic photography|orthochromic]]-form [[monochrome]] photographs of the time.

The aircraft was named by [[Alexander Graham Bell]] after the common ''[[Phyllophaga]]'',<ref>{{Cite web |title=AEA June Bug {{!}} airplane {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/AEA-June-Bug |access-date=2023-03-19 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> a beetle known colloquially in North America as the "June bug". This was because June bugs were observed to fly similarly to aircraft: they have large stiff outer wings for gliding, and more delicate smaller propeller-like wings that do the actual propulsion.

The ''June Bug'' was tested by G.H. Curtiss in [[Hammondsport, New York]], at Stony Brook Farm, on June 21, 1908. Three of the four test flights were successful, with distances of {{convert|456|ft|m|abbr=on}}, {{convert|417|ft|m|abbr=on}}, and {{convert|1266|ft|m|abbr=on}}, at an average speed of {{convert|34.5|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}. On June 25, performances of {{convert|2175|ft|m|abbr=on}} and {{convert|3420|ft|m|abbr=on}} were considered encouraging, and the A.E.A. contacted the [[Aero Club of America]] to sign up for the [[Scientific American]] Cup.

==Operational history==

===Cup attempt===
[[File:Glenn Curtiss in His Bi-Plane, July 4, 1908.jpg|thumb|right|Curtiss in the ''June Bug'', July 4, 1908.]]
The Aero Club contacted the [[Wright brothers]], offering them the chance to make an attempt first. Orville wrote to decline the opportunity on June 30, as the Wrights were busy completing their deal with the [[Federal government of the United States|United States government]]. Orville's message was received by July 1, and G.H. Curtiss took to the air as requested on July 4 ([[Independence Day (United States)|Independence Day]]).

The flight was made a public event, and spectators were allowed to watch. The event was overseen by a delegation of 22 members of the [[Aero Club of America|Aero Club]], headed by [[Alan Ramsay Hawley|Alan R. Hawley]]. The [[Kalem Company]]'s film crew covered the event, making the ''June Bug'' the first airplane in the United States to perform in a movie. The nearby [[Pleasant Valley Wine Company]] opened its doors and offered free samples to the spectators at the event. [[Charles M. Manly]], who had unsuccessfully tested the [[Langley Aerodrome]] in 1903, measured out the 1&nbsp;km and {{convert|20|ft|m|abbr=on}} distance with volunteer help. The ''June Bug'' took one false start, going {{convert|40|ft|m}} high, but not far enough. On the second try, the airplane successfully flew 5,085&nbsp;ft (1550 m) in 1 minute 42 seconds, winning the trophy and a US$25,000 cash prize.

Amidst the publicity following the flight, the Wrights sent a warning to Curtiss that they had not given permission for the use of "their" aircraft control system to be used "for exhibitions or in a commercial way". In fact, none of the A.E.A.'s aircraft used a wing-warping system like the Wrights' for control, relying instead on triangular ailerons designed by [[Alexander Graham Bell]], which he successfully patented in December 1911. However, in 1913 a court ruled that this technique was an infringement of the Wright's 1906 patent.

Three years previous to the ''June Bug''{{'}}s flight, the Wrights had made flights of up to 24 miles (38&nbsp;km) without official witnesses. However, the Wrights would have been required to install wheels and dispense with a catapult launch to compete for the 1908 prize.

==Later use==
[[File:Curtiss Museum AEA June Bug replica.jpg|thumb|Modern operational replica of the ''June Bug'' in the [[Glenn H. Curtiss Museum]] in Hammondsport, New York]]
From October to November, the ''June Bug'' was modified by adding floats to it in an attempt to create a seaplane. Renamed '''''Loon''''', attempts to fly it began on [[Keuka Lake]] on November 28. Although the aircraft could achieve speeds of up to {{convert|29|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} on the water, it could not take off, and on January 2, 1909, one of the floats filled with water, causing the ''Loon'' to sink. It was recovered, but rotted in a nearby boathouse.

A replica of the ''June Bug'' was built and flown in 1976 by [[Mercury Aircraft]] of Hammondsport.<ref>{{cite book|title=Hell-Rider to King of the Air: Glenn Curtiss's Life of Innovation|author=Kirk W. House|page=84}}</ref>

== Specifications ==
[[File:Curtiss_June_Bug_3-view_Aero_Digest_December_1928.jpg|thumb|Curtiss June Bug 3-view drawing from Aero Digest December 1928]]
{{Aircraft specs
|ref=<ref name="AerofileAb">Eckland, K.O. [http://aerofiles.com/_ab.html "Aircraft Ab - Ak".] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121205051134/http://aerofiles.com/_ab.html |date=2012-12-05 }} ''aerofiles.com,'' 2 May 2009. Retrieved: 26 January 2012.</ref><!-- reference -->
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        Powerplant
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|eng1 number=1
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|eng1 type=V-8 air-cooled piston engine
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        Armament
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|armament=<!-- add bulletted list here or if you want to use the following 
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==See also==
{{aircontent
|related=
* [[Curtiss Golden Flyer]]
}}

==References==
;Notes
{{reflist}}
;Bibliography
{{Refbegin}}
* Squier, George Owen. [https://books.google.com/books?id=gtQWAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA135 "The Present Status of Military Aeronautics. II. Aviation. Representative Aeroplanes Of Various Types. The June Bug."] ''Annual Report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution, 1908,'' pp.&nbsp;135–136 (Also Plate 23, Fig. 2).
*Crouch, Tom D.. "AEA June Bug". Encyclopedia Britannica, 18 Mar. 2008, https://www.britannica.com/topic/AEA-June-Bug. Accessed 19 March 2023.
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20121205051134/http://aerofiles.com/_ab.html Aircraft Ab - Ak]

{{AEA aircraft}}
{{Curtiss aircraft}}

[[Category:Aerial Experiment Association aircraft|June Bug]]
[[Category:Curtiss aircraft]]
[[Category:1900s United States experimental aircraft]]
[[Category:Single-engined pusher aircraft]]
[[Category:Alexander Graham Bell]]
[[Category:Canard aircraft]]
[[Category:Aircraft first flown in 1908]]
[[Category:Aircraft with fixed tricycle landing gear]]
[[Category:Single-engined piston aircraft]]