A Dream Comes True: The Wright Brothers and Their Predecessors

Abstract

In the wind-swept sand dunes of Kill Devil Hills, about four miles south of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on the Atlantic coast, an old dream of man became a reality. By the toss of a coin on December 14, 1903, Wilbur Wright (1867–1912) won the first turn at piloting the powered airplane he had built with his brother Orville (1871–1948). The weather was beautiful, but the wind seemed insufficient for the Wright Flyer I to start from the 9° slope of the dune. The two skids of the aircraft—no undercarriage with wheels existed at the time—were set on a yoke running on a single track. Five men from the local lifesaving station helped with this work. The engine was warmed up while the flying machine was restrained. When all was ready, the men holding it let go, and, after a short run of 35 to 40 feet on the track, the airplane lifted off the yoke into the air. Despite this initial success, the Flyer’s nose turned up too quickly, leading to a stall. A rough landing in the sand broke one of the skids and damaged a control surface, ending further attempts at flight for the day.

It is not extravagant to say that the 17th of December 1903, when the Wright brothers made the first free flight through the air in a power-driven machine, marks the beginning of a new era in the history of the world.

Sir Walter Raleigh (1861–1922)