Human-Powered Ornithopter Becomes First Ever to Achieve Sustained Flight

flapping its wings ..The quot;Snowbirdquot; performed its record-breaking flight on August 2 at the Great Lakes Gliding Club in Tottenham, Ont., the wing-flapping device sustained both altitude and airspeed for 19.3 seconds, and covered a distance of 145 metres at an average speed of 25.6 kilometres per hour.The Snowbird weighs just 94 lbs. and has a wing span of 32 metres (105 feet). Although its wingspan is comparable to that of a Boeing 737, the Snowbird weighs less than all of the pillows on board. Pilot Reichert lost 18 lbs. of body weight this past summer to facilitate flying the aircraft.