I would also suggest the low power of engines at that point required a lot of lift per pound, which needs mostly wing to fuselage and cargo ration.

Ironic timing on your question. Waco Aircraft, a builder of modern biplanes, suddenly ceased operations this week. The planes they produced are beautiful.

Juan Browne provides a good summation.

More surface area and the low speeds they can only attain at the time. God Bless

Some took "the more, the merrier" approach to wing count to extremes. For example, the Caproni Ca. 60:

My dad began his flight training on a Stearman PT-17 biplane during World War Eleven. I understand that the biplane, at least the Stearman, was "more forgiving"and I think that was one of the reasons it was chosen for the first phase of flight training.


I have photo of he and his flight class in front of the Stearman, but I don't have it scanned. Some of you, like V-Tail, would probably know this better than me, but this looks like the same model:

quote:

Originally posted by TigerDore:
during World War Eleven

That's a few too many for me... two's my limit.

quote:

Originally posted by TigerDore:
My dad began his flight training on a Stearman PT-17 biplane during World War Eleven.
<snip>

World War Eleven? That’s Justice Ketanji Jackson’s line.

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:

quote:

Originally posted by TigerDore:
My dad began his flight training on a Stearman PT-17 biplane during World War Eleven.
<snip>

World War Eleven? That’s Justice Ketanji Jackson’s line.

You credited the wrong dummy, it was Omar with that bit of stupidity.

^^^^^^^
Ah, so. Thanks for the correction.

quote:

Originally posted by joel9507:
That's a few too many for me... two's my limit.

I just didn't want to seem disrespectful, islamophobic, xenophobic or incestophobic by correcting omar's assertion of II World Wars.


.

IIRC, that plane got maybe a couple of feet off the water and crashed. Mostly correct.

quote:

Originally posted by joel9507:
Some took "the more, the merrier" approach to wing count to extremes. For example, the Caproni Ca. 60:

Raise you the Horatio Phillips Multiplanes.

quote:

Originally posted by egregore:

Raise you the Horatio Phillips Multiplanes.

Ever the enterprising man; when his plane failed, Horatio invented window blinds and became a multi-millionaire.



.

Some of these idiotic designs (I use the term loosely) help make it clear that the Wright brothers were excellent engineers. The Wright airplane was the result of careful study and many diligent experiments by two very intelligent men.

quote:

Originally posted by TigerDore:

Ever the enterprising man; when his plane failed, Horatio invented window blinds and became a multi-millionaire.

LOL

Phillips believed that multiple stacked wing planes (or "sustainers" as he called them), in "Venetian blind" configuration, offered advantages.

His 1893 Flying Machine had 50 lifting surfaces and used his patented "double-surface airfoils" in such a way as to produce an aspect ratio of 1:152, providing great lift at the sacrifice of stability. As a test vehicle, it was not designed to be manned but was used to test lifting capability. Its maximum load was found to be 400 lb (180 kg).

His 1904 Multiplane was a development of the 1893 test vehicle in a configuration that could be flown by a person. It had 21 wings and had a tail for stability but was unable to achieve sustained flight. Its best performance was 50 ft (15 m). A specially made replica of the 1904 machine appears in the opening sequences of the 1965 film Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines.

His 1907 Multiplane, which had 200 individual airfoils and was powered by a 22 hp (16 kW) engine driving a 7 ft (2.1 m) propeller achieved a 500 ft (150 m) flight on 6 April 1907. This was the first flight of its kind in England, although it was preceded by the Wright brothers by several years.

Though successful, the 1907 model showed poor performance compared to more conventional contemporary types. This caused Phillips to end his attempts at manned flight.

However, he made a more lasting contribution to aeronautics in his work on aerofoil design. - Wikipedia

quote:

My dad began his flight training on a Stearman PT-17 biplane during World War Eleven. I understand that the biplane, at least the Stearman, was "more forgiving"and I think that was one of the reasons it was chosen for the first phase of flight training.

My father trained new pilots in early WWII. This is a photo of him with a training bi-plane

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
Some of these idiotic designs (I use the term loosely) help make it clear that the Wright brothers were excellent engineers. The Wright airplane was the result of careful study and many diligent experiments by two very intelligent men.

I always wonder if Otto Lillenthal had not died in 1896 if he would have achieved heavier than air POWERED flight, he had almost 2000 glider flights (some of which were bi-planes). He was already contemplating it before he died. It was his death that motivated the brothers to make improvements on the control of their glider.

Also they didn't have enough HP to generate enough lift through speed, so needed the second wing for more lift.

I was gonna say if one fell off, but after hearing all the aviation knowledge on file, I'm retracting it.

I am going with, the air was much thinner back then, requiring additional lift provided by the additional wing.