Comic of the two Wright Brothers with plane flying overhead

Illustrations by Berat Pekmezci; Shutterstock.com (background)

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The Wright Brothers

They turned the dream of human flight into reality.

January 8, 2024
By Alicia Green

As You Read, Think About: What might life be like without planes?

A cold wind whipped across a beach in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. It was December 17, 1903. Orville Wright took off in a small airplane called the Wright Flyer. He had built it with his older brother Wilbur.  

Orville’s flight lasted only 12 seconds, but it was historic. For the first time, a pilot had flown an engine-powered plane.

“No one had ever done anything like that,” says Beth Hudick of the Wright Brothers National Memorial. “It was absolutely a moment that changed history.”

The Wright brothers had set a course for aviation that few could have imagined.

History Takes Flight
Watch a video to soar through the history of flight!

Curious Minds

Underwood & Underwood/Corbis via Getty Images

Orville (left) and Wilbur Wright

Wilbur was born in 1867, four years before Orville. Growing up in Dayton, Ohio, they enjoyed playing with a small helicopter-like toy. Fascinated, they tried to make their own.

That curiosity grew as they became adults. At the time, people had flown mainly in hot-air balloons and gliders. In 1899, Orville and Wilbur set out to build a piloted aircraft powered by an engine. 

The brothers spent countless hours experimenting with different aircraft designs. They had several problems to solve. The pair had to figure out how to power the aircraft and lift it off the ground. They also had to determine how to control the plane once it was in the air.  

SSPL via Getty Images

The brothers often practiced in a glider without an engine.

First to Fly

In 1903, the brothers finished the Wright Flyer. It had wooden propellers and two long wings covered in fabric. It also had a small gasoline-powered engine.  

After their first successful flights over Kitty Hawk, the Wrights worked to improve their design. In 1905, Wilbur flew 24 miles in 39 minutes in a new plane. 

Despite the brothers’ successes, many people refused to believe that humans could fly. But over time, the Wrights showed the world their skills. People then began to give the brothers the credit they deserved. 

“They proved everybody wrong,” Hudick explains. “This is a story about people who didn’t accept that something was impossible.”

Up, Up, and Away

Wilbur died in 1912. Orville lived another 36 years. It was long enough for him to see how his inventions had inspired others to build bigger and better aircraft.

Today, it’s hard to imagine a world without planes. Thanks to these pioneers, we don’t have to.

“They achieved the dream of flight,” Hudick says. “They inspired a lot of other people to dream.”

First Flight

December 17, 1903: Kitty Hawk, North Carolina


Orville climbs onto the lower wing of the Flyer and grasps the controls.


The engine rumbles to life . . .

The propellers begin to spin . . .

Success! Wilbur watches from the ground as the Flyer rises into the air for its first wobbly flight.


  1. What details does the author give to show that the Wright brothers were curious as kids? 
  2. What does Beth Hudick mean when she says, “This is a story about people who didn’t accept that something was impossible”? Use text evidence to support your response. 
  3. Look at the illustrations in the sidebar, “Taking Flight.” How do they add to your understanding of the Wright brothers’ accomplishment?
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