Kites Trivia Quiz

Answer: American Kitefliers Association

American Kitefliers Association is a non-profit organization for people of all ages who are interested in not only kite flying, but kite building and photographing kites. American Kitefliers Association was set up to introduce people to the origins of the kite and the technology that goes into building some intricate kites.

Answer: 1964

The American Kitefliers Association was founded in 1964 by Robert Ingraham. With the establishment of the AKA, Robert has over three thousand members in over twenty-five different countries. The AKA conventions are held on different coasts each year. The association publishes a magazine each quarter called "Kiting".

Answer: France

The year 2002 introduced the first World Sport Kite Championship which was held on the beach at Berk sur Mer, France. Kite fliers are tested on precision and ballet. Judges stand close to the competitors to get a good view of their flying skills. Precision and ballet are judged separately and then the scores are added together. Sometimes the judges are former kite champions.

Answer: China

Some believe that the kite was invented in China while others believe it was in another southeastern country. Kites were believed to be used for fishing. A Chinese gentleman named Mo-Tse tied a wooden bird to a string and that was debated as whether it was considered a kite or not.

The earliest account of a flying kite was in 200 BC when a Chinese general named Han Hsin flew a kite over city walls to check how far his men would have to tunnel to get into enemy territory.

Answer: Ben Franklin

Ben Franklin tied a key to a kite during a thunderstorm in early June of 1752. Together with his son William, Ben used a kite made from a silk handkerchief, a key, two different types of string, a Leyden jar to hold an electrical charge, and a piece of wire. With the wire hooked to the kite as a lightning rod, Ben flew the kite in a field during the thunderstorm while he stood in a shed holding the silk string which was tied to the hemp string. The key was tied to the hemp string. When Ben saw strands from the hemp string standing erect, he reached out for the key and felt a spark. Ben used the Leyden jar to hold onto the electrical charge.

In an October 1752 issue of the "The Philadelphia Gazette", Ben wrote of how he conducted his experiment. His next experiment would be creating the lightning rod.

Answer: Box

Samuel Franklin Cody created a box shaped kite known as the Cody kite. In 1903, Mr. Cody used a train of Cody kites tied to a fourteen foot canoe to get him across the English Channel. He started in Calais, France and ended in Dover, England. With the help of the Cody kite, it took Mr. Cody four hours to cross the English Channel.

Answer: Wright

Wilbur Wright's biplane kite consisted of two six foot long silk sheets with four cords connecting them a foot and half apart. Wilbur controlled the kite with strings tied to two sticks. He wanted to see if moving the wings would steer the kite in either direction.

The biplane kite's first flight took place in July of 1899. The term for twisting the wings to make the kite fly in a certain direction was known as wing-warping. Wilbur later hung the kite up in the workshop he shared with his brother.

Answer: Bell

Alexander Bell was twenty-nine when he invented the telephone. Soon after Bell became bored with his invention and moved on to kites that could one day hold a person. Alexander Bell created a team he named Aerial Experiment Association and began to work on a red silk kite made in a tetrahedron pattern. A tetrahedron is a triangular pyramid with four faces, six edges, and four vertices.

Alexander Bell wanted to show people that kites created in any shape could fly if built correctly. A pyramid shaped kite would fly just as well as any other kite, but wouldn't be as sturdy. Since Alexander was putting people on his tetrahedronical kites, he used water as a take off and landing strip to make it safer. In 1906, Alexander and the Aerial Experiment Association launched three tetrahedron kites named Cygnet I, II, and III.

Answer: True

Britain, France, Germany, Italy, and Russia used kites to signal soldiers in other areas and to observe enemy lines. The Navy used kites during World War II for different reasons.

Saul Barrage's kite was used for anti-aircraft. The kite was flown from a merchant ship. The wire tied to the kite was invisible in the air and could shear off a plane's wing in seconds. Using a kite as anti-aircraft was less money than putting a balloon in the air. It was also faster to assemble.

Gibson Girl box kite was a German idea that was taken over by the British. A transmitter was attached to a Gibson Girl box kite and launched into the air. When the kite reached two hundred feet in the air, it would open up and the transmitter attached would relay an 'SOS' signal.

Designs for Paul Garber's target kites were noticed by the Navy and he was asked to Washington to discuss them. Along with his partner Stanley, Paul designed several large kites easily maneuvered. Over three hundred thousand of Paul Garber's kites were ordered and used on ships. The kites were controlled by a human wearing a harness around his waist.

Answer: Chasing after a kite that's been cut down

Kite fighting is when two or more kites try to cut down a kite. Whoever picks up the downed kite gets to keep it no matter how expensive or large the kite is. In order to help a kite cut down another kite, the strings are dusted with powdered glass. Kite running is seen more often in the Middle East.