Before the Wright brothers, no one in aviation did anything fundamentally right. Since the Wright brothers, no one has done anything fundamentally different.—Darrel Collins, Kitty Hawk National Historical Park.

Wilbur wright was Born on April 16, 1867 and Orville four years later on August 19, both in Dayton, Ohio. Any bright schoolchild asked what was special about the Wright brothers would probably reply, Oh, they were the first to fly a heavier-thanair powered plane. Not quite. The first heavier-than-air fixed wing aircraft—a glider designed by Sir George Cayley— was flown half a century earlier in Britain with Sir George’s coachman persuaded, against his better judgement, to be sole occupant. Neither was the addition of an engine to their glider the defining accomplishment of the Wrights. The Wright brothers were, in fact, the first to invent the aircraft controls that make sustained flight possible, and demonstrate their invention. Every aircraft flown since then has used their principles of aerodynamic control in some form or the other.

The world’s first powered, controlled and sustained heavier-than-air flight took place on December 17, 1903. The Kitty Hawk Flyer, with Orville at the controls, lifted off at 10.35 am. The flight was over rather quickly—in 120 seconds—and covered a distance of just 120 ft (36 m). The speed, as can be imagined, was fairly slow at 6.8 mph (10.9 km/h) and the average height, 10 ft (3 m). The Flyer had a wingspan of 40 ft (12 m), weighed 625 lbs (283 kg), and was powered by a 12 hp (9 kW) engine. After the initial success, Wilbur and Orville took it in turns to get airborne again and prove that the first flight was no flash in the pan.