ForewordThe Truth
In 2006, a hang glider pilot from New Zealand, Graeme Henderson, was inspired to research the story of hang gliding. As his research progressed, he made contact with interested people from around the world. They worked as a team. After 20 years of research, they explain:
- What kites the Rogallos invented, built, patented, and sold.
- How flexible kites and wings existed long before the Rogallos.
- How the Rogallos recognised in 1955 that William M. Allison’s “Flexible Kite” patent preceded their own patent, making Allison – as far as the law is concerned – “the original and true first inventor” of the flexible kite concept.
- How for the rest of their lives they hid that fact, and falsely claimed that they were the inventors of the concept.
- How NASA started its short-lived Paraglider Development Program. How research was conducted and by whom, which wings were built and with what success.
- What was Francis Rogallo’s actual role at NACA and NASA, what patents and reports he produced, what little impact they had.
- How, in 1964, Rogallo received from John Dickenson plan and instructions of the modern hang glider. How he hid them from everybody, including NASA. How the Dickenson Glider took over the world. How, in 1975, in a NASA movie, Rogallo lied and boldly claimed that it was his invention.
- How the Rogallo name became deceivingly attached to the Dickenson Glider. How the Rogallo myth developed.
- How Rogallo claimed to be the inventor of the modern ram-air multi-cell paraglider and kite wings, when Domina Jalbert, who didn’t work for NASA or Rogallo, is its true and only inventor.
- Hence, why the Rogallos names should have never appeared in the histories of hang gliding and paragliding.
In order to tell the true story of modern hang gliding and paragliding, we must first remove the imposters who have claimed and received credit for the work of the many real heroes. This book deals with deceptions and lies, and provides evidence, so the charlatans will not contaminate our history any longer.
Chapter 7 (Deconstructing The Rogallo Myth) sums up the previous ones.