It’s taken more than a century, but news that the Fairfield flight of an aviation pioneer has won new recognition as the first-ever manned flight has a small but growing group of town residents flying high.
 
“What?” and “No way!” were common reactions by Fairfielders surveyed informally this week when told that
 Jane’s All the World’s Aircraft, an internationally respected authority on aviation history, is recognizing a 1901 flight by Gustave Whitehead as the first by man and not the fabled 1903 flight by the Wright brothers in North Carolina.
 
The Jane’s recognition of Whitehead, a German immigrant who lived in both Fairfield and Bridgeport, is sweet vindication for those who for many years advocated that his aviation achievements get the credit they deserve.
 
The n

ews also has prompted local Whitehead admirers to suggest ways that Fairfield can capitalize on its new “First in Flight” crown.
 
The Alvin Street home in Fairfield, where Whitehead lived at one time, could be converted into a museum paying tribute to the aviator’s local exploits, according to Andrew Kosch, of Fairfield, a teacher at Platt Technical High School in Milford, who has researched Whitehead’s history and for many years contended that he has failed to receive the credit he is due.
 
“It’s the third
 house down from the corner,” Kosch said of the small Alvin Street dwelling. “It’s empty and it’s sitting there rotting away. I think the town should jump on this. … And make a little museum. Every kid in Fairfield should study this.”
 
First Selectman Michael Tetreau isn’t ready to commit to a museum project yet, but said Wednesday that he was both surprised and excited to learn of the town’s key place in aviation history.
 

Fairfield CT, First in Flight? From museum to pancakes, Whitehead tributes soar