4. Read the text. Write down all the new words and learn 5 of them by heart. Be ready to answer the teacher’s questions.

1. Homebuilt aircraft

Small aircraft can be designed and constructed by amateurs as homebuilts. Other aviators with less knowledge make their aircraft using premanufactured kits, assembling the parts into a complete aircraft. Also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, homebuilt aircraft are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity. Although the aircraft is constructed by an amateur, the finished product is often of good quality; the safety record of homebuilt aircraft is generally comparable to that of certified aircraft, once out of the testing phase that is required after construction is complete.

The history of amateur-built aircraft can be traced to the beginning of aviation itself. Even if the Wright brothers, Cletment Ader, and their successors had commercial objectives in mind, the first aircraft were amateur-built, constructed by passionate enthusiasts whose goal was to fly. In 1928 Henri Mignet published plans for the HM-8 aircraft as did Pietenpol for his Air Camper. Bernie Pietenpol later constructed a factory, and in 1933 began creating and selling partially-constructed aircraft kits.

Homebuilt aircraft are generally thought of as small one- to four-seat sportsplanes which employ simple methods of construction. Fabric-covered wood or metal frames and plywood, fiberglass, carbon fiber or Kevlar and other composites as well as full aluminum construction techniques are being used. Borrowing from improving technology in the manufacturing side of aviation, homebuilders show great creativity in introducing innovations. Standardized components such as autopilots and more advanced navigation instruments are being used.

Homebuilt aircraft gained in popularity in the USA in the 1950s with the formation of the Experimental Aircraft Association. In 2003, the number of homebuilt aircraft produced in the USA exceeded the number produced by any single certified manufacturer. A small number of jet kitplanes have been built since 1970s.

2. Howard hughes

Howard Hughes was an aviator, engineer, industrialist, film producer. He is famous for setting multiple, world air-speed records, building the Hughes H-l Racer and H-4 Hercules airplanes, producing the movies Hell's Angels and The Outlaw. Showing great aptitude in engineering and a liking for flying at an early age, he was a lifelong aircraft enthusiast.

Hughes was a self-taught aircraft engineer. He set world records and designed and built several aircraft while heading Hughes Aircraft. The most technologically important aircraft he designed was the Hughes H-l Racer. In 1937 he set a transcontinental airspeed record by flying it non-stop from Los Angeles to New York City. His average speed was 518 km/h. The H-l Racer featured a number of design innovations: it had retractable landing gear and all rivets and joints set flush into the body of the plane to reduce drag.

His most famous aircraft project was the H-4 Hercules, nicknamed the "Spruce Goose". The plane was contracted by the U.S. government for use in World War II, as a flying boat to transport troops and equipment across the Atlantic. Due to wartime restrictions on the availability of metals, the H-4 was built almost entirety of birch (not spruce as its nickname suggests). It is the largest wingspan and height of any aircraft in history. It made its first and only flight in 1947. It survives, in good condition, at the Evergreen Aviation museum.

In 1938 Hughes set a record by completing a flight around the world in just 91 hours. He did not fly a plane of his own design but a Lockheed Super Electra fitted with all of the latest radio and navigational equipment. Hughes wanted the flight to be a triumph of technology, illustrating that safe, long-distance air travel was possible. Hughes received many awards as an aviator, including a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "...in recognition of the achievements in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world."