WING PIECE of WRIGHT BROTHERS PLANe Smithsonian

Relic print and an authentic piece of wing fabric from a Wright Brothers biplane - The Wright Vin Fiz. The "Vin Fiz" is famous as the first aircraft to fly coast-to-coast in 1911 with 70 landings and 12 crashes en route from NY to California. (Landings were made in a dozen states…New York, Pennsylvania , Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.) It was the media event of 1911 when flying coast-to-coast was an impossible dream. The pilot completed the flight at Long Beach with his leg in a cast and crutches strapped to the side of his fragile Wright biplane. The sponsor of the flight was the Vin Fiz Company, a Chicago-based grape soda company. A 4 square inch swatch of the original wing fabric is attached to this aviation relic print (15" x 20"). The fabric was preserved when the Smithsonian restored the aircraft. Included is a certificate of authenticity and detailed information about the plane and its historic flight from the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum.The ultimate reward for an aviation enthusiast. A postal card flown on the Vin Fiz was recently on sale at Siegal Auction Galleries for $50,000. In excellent condition.