The Wright Brothers' First Flight

Wilbur and Orville Wright had a bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio. They fixed and sold bicycles, but they had a bigger dream: to build a flying machine. For several years, they studied birds, built gliders, and tested them on the windy sand hills near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

In 1903, they built a new machine with an engine and two propellers. It was heavier than their gliders and much more dangerous. By December, it was ready. But who was going to fly it first? The brothers didn't argue. They tossed a coin.

Wilbur won. On December 14, he lay down on the machine, and it moved forward along a wooden track. It went up too fast, lost speed, and fell into the sand after about three seconds. Wilbur was fine, but the machine was a little damaged and needed repairs.

The morning of December 17 was cold, and a strong wind was blowing. Now it was Orville's turn. At about 10:35, the machine moved along the track. Wilbur ran next to it and held one wing. Then, slowly, it rose into the air.

Orville flew about 36 meters and landed safely in the sand. A man from a nearby life-saving station took a photo of the moment. That day, the brothers flew four times, and each flight went farther than the one before. Wilbur's last flight lasted 59 seconds.

Today, many people call it the first real airplane flight in history. But the first flight of that day was very short. It lasted only twelve seconds. That is probably less time than you needed to read this paragraph.