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Otto Lilienthal Glider

Pioneer and Early Aviation Aircraft

The Otto Lilienthal Glider refers to the series of hang gliders designed and flown by the German aviation pioneer Otto Lilienthal through the 1890s. Built with a bowed wing structure inspired by bird wings and controlled entirely by the pilot shifting his body weight, they were among the first aircraft to demonstrate that a person could achieve controlled, repeated heavier than air flight, work that directly influenced the Wright brothers and other early aviation pioneers.

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