Watch a 1908 Wright Flyer demo with Wilbur and a passenger near Le Mans, France

Watch an amateur fly a 1902 Wright glider at the Kitty Hawk dunes

Billy Vaughan recreates the test flights of the Wright gliders in the exact location the brothers conducted them. He argues an October 1902 glider flight—not the December 1903 one—was the key innovative moment, implementing three-axis control. Host Baratunde rides a glider in perfect windy conditions in this re-creation.

See a timeline of early flights, patent approvals and the birth of the Wright Company

The brothers’ most intense period of creativity and progress came between 1901 and 1910, when their work at Kitty Hawk culminated in the first powered flight. The pair, however, were not the most business-savvy, and they struggled to take financial advantage of their pioneering work in the field.

The Wrights battled inventor Glenn Curtiss for market dominance, ultimately losing

Their 1903 flights were met with skepticism, and the pair were hesitant to conduct public demonstrations. By 1908, Curtiss developed his own airplane, successfully flying a mile in front of judges and winning the nation’s first pilot license. The Wrights sued for patent infringement, sparking a business war.

The public mostly doubted the Wrights’ flight claims for five years

Coverage of the pair’s success often described them as barely educated bike mechanics. They struggled to gain traction with the public. It took interest from French business leaders and the US Signal Corps to bring the pair into separate demonstrations of their planes.

The Wright Flyer was an engineering breakthrough, and modern aircraft still use the same principles of flight.

Some claim the Wrights weren’t first in flight

Their scientific and engineering achievements aside, the Wrights’ claim to be first in flight is debated—and rejected—by some in the industry. Other early pioneers like Gustave Whitehead or Alberto Santos-Damonto are said to deserve the title.

See shots of the Wright Flyer intact at the National Air and Space Museum

Since the museum’s opening in 1976, the wood-and-muslin plane has been available for public viewing with a model of Orville, the younger brother, lying on the plane’s mid-section.

Wilbur published key papers, gave speeches in the burgeoning aviation community

Much of the theoretical work is credited to Wilbur, whose scientific mind observed birds and early pioneers to discover the key problem to solve was control. This 1901 speech surveys the recent work in the field and showcases what the brothers worked on two years before their breakthrough flight.

Explore a timeline of advancements in American aviation

From the Wright brothers' flight of the first powered plane in 1903 near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, to SpaceX's debut of the Falcon 9 rocket in 2010 with reusable boosters, this interactive shows off the technological evolution of flight, from mechanical propulsion to ballistic spaceflight. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

The Wrights’ patent battles delayed the development of aviation technology in the US

By the time World War I began in 1914, the US was lagging behind European powers in aviation. This stemmed primarily from wars over patents between the Wrights and competitor Glenn Curtiss. The pair argued their 1906 patent covered all mechanisms enabling lateral flight.

Before their historic flight, the Wright brothers ran a bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio, where they built the world's first successful powered aircraft.

The 1910 Wright Model B was the brother’s most successful aircraft

The model, built from 1910 to 1914, was the first designed to be constructed in bulk, with four built each month in 1911 and 1912. The two-seater was used in exhibition flights and training for some of the earliest uses of airplanes in military contexts.

The pair began their aviation research by studying the 'mechanics' of birds

Taking inspiration from gliding pioneer Otto Lilienthal—whose gliders resembled the wings of birds—Wilbur took to observing birds to understand how they do it, in order to solve the problem of flight. This opening episode on the brothers explores their lives and accomplishments.

The iconic photo of the Wright brothers' first flight was the photographer’s first

Using a then-state-of-the-art Korona V, rescue member John T. Daniels was tasked with squeezing the device’s rubber bulb the moment the plane left the wooden track on the sand. The camera produced negatives on 5 by 7 sheets of glass.

The Wrights were inspired by a toy helicopter as kids

The pair tinkered with toys and dreamed of building a flying machine at a young age. Founders Podcast host David Senra read David McCullough's 2015 book on the duo and distilled key insights for leaders to take from their work and lives, focusing on their relentless resourcefulness.

How did the Wright brothers invent the airplane?

This article explores the research processes that led Wilbur and Orville Wright to invent the airplane and includes photos and visualizations of their findings and inventions.

What Kitty Hawk looks like today, including a 60-foot memorial to the brothers

This short video surveys the flat, empty expanse near Kill Devil Hills in North Carolina’s barrier islands, highlighting the area’s attractive conditions for early flight. Also shown are the stone monument to the Wright’s and replica wooden shacks like the ones they lived in those fateful years.

The first flight on Mars carried a piece of the Wright plane with it

In April 2021, the solar-powered helicopter Ingenuity—attached to NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover—flew in what became the first controlled flight on a planet other than Earth. Carried with it was a piece of fabric from the famous 1903 Wright Flyer, a symbol of Ingenuity’s continuation of the Wright tradition.

The Flyer sat in a shed for 13 years behind the brothers’ Dayton bike shop

While the wood is the same used in the 1903 flight, the muslin has been replaced twice. After laying forgotten in sheds, the vehicle eventually took on national importance. However, the Smithsonian Institution did not recognize it until the 1940s, after it spent time at the Science Museum in London.

Orville and Wilbur argued over everything, likely accelerating their progress

The two never married, and focused solely on their goal of achieving flight. While both were socially reserved, they were passionate about their project, regularly debating—even shouting—over the details of propellers, engines, wings and more. This video explores how their culture of open argument likely fueled their discoveries.

See nine airplane models that transformed aviation

This visual guide jumps over the dawn of modern air travel and begins with the open-cockpit biplane flown by the first scheduled airline, the St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

Famed historian David McCullough on five things to know about the Wrights

The bestselling author of popular, beloved histories on US presidents, engineering feats and disasters published a study of the Wrights in 2015. Here. he highlights five key facts to know about the brothers, including that their efforts were bootstrapped—meaning they paid for their work themselves with no outside investors.

Kitty Hawk’s wide space, isolation and winds were ideal for flight experiments

North Carolina’s Outer Banks at the turn of the 20th century were not the summer resort destinations they are today. The brothers sought privacy as they toyed with their aviation designs, camping in Kill Devil Hills and using its sand dunes as launch points for early glider designs.

Their 1901 Wind Tunnel system revolutionized the study of aeronautics

Only the second to be built in the US, the wind tunnel allowed the brothers to study how air moves around more than 200 different wing shapes. This data helped them refine a key math equation, long held as the standard, that had been based only on one wing shape.

The 'maiden of maiden voyages' who taught the world how to fly

In 1939, Clara Adams set the world record for the fastest person to circle the globe via commercial airliner, though she was a passenger and not a pilot. This article explores the impact of Adams' journey on the commercial flight industry. During...

The Wright brothers' sister hyped their work, and was the only one to attend college

Katharine Wright became the de facto household caretaker after their mother, Susan, died, when Katharine was 15. After graduating from Oberlin, Katharine took over household duties so her father and brothers could work. She promoted their work in the US and abroad.

Using wind tunnels, the brothers corrected a centuries-old error used to measure lift

When their early gliders failed, the Wright brothers scrutinized inherited data analysis. Smeaton’s coefficient had been used to calculate the density of air (0.005) for centuries. The Wright’s data validation through the use of small, laboratory wind tunnels showed the correct number was 0.0033.

How a Harlem Renaissance poet teamed up with a Wright brother

Paul Laurence Dunbar is one of the most influential poets from the Harlem Renaissance, a loose collection of Black artists who redefined American literature in the early 20th century. He was also an entrepreneur. He founded a short-lived newspaper, the Dayton Tattler, alongside Orville Wright, one of the famous Wright Brothers who pioneered aviation. This article explores how their friendship defied the societal norms of the time and led to a pioneering publication.

One of Henry Ford's early vehicle prototypes broke an all-time speed record and got him the money to start Ford Motor Company

In 1904, Henry Ford raced the "999" across a frozen lake and reached an average speed of more than 90 miles per hour, beating the then-record for fastest land speed. Ford's success attracted the eyes of the earliest investors in the Henry Ford Company, Ford's company before he started Ford Motor Company.

Meet Icarus the Second, the first English pig to fly

"When pigs fly" is an ironic phrase meant to express disbelief or impossibility, though it isn't as true today as it may once have been. This article details how a piglet dubbed "Icarus the Second" took flight in November 1909. Stashed in a basket...

In 1898, Nikola Tesla wowed a crowd by controlling a boat with no visible connection

Some onlookers thought it was a trick, such a a monkey being inside the boat, rather than mind control or some other metaphysical phenomenon. In reality, Tesla was pioneering radio waves, proving wireless control was possible.

View the 18 vehicles that broke the land speed record

The battery-powered "La Jamais Contente" was the first car to exceed 100 kilometers (62.1 miles) per hour, achieving the feat in 1899. By 1997, advancements in aerodynamic understanding and engineering led to the Thrust Supersonic Car, a jet-powered vehicle that reached a speed of 1,223.6 kilometers (760.3 miles) per hour.

100 years of passenger air travel: a visual guide

This interactive timeline covers the first 100 years of passenger air travel, which was created in 1925 when the U.S. Post Office allowed private airlines to start delivering mail.

The 'Miracle on the Hudson' showed heroism in the air and changed social media forever

On Jan. 15, 2009, US Airways Flight 1549 lost both engines after hitting birds and was safely landed in the Hudson River. The event was a turning point for Twitter, as a photo and a tweet quickly spread—marking Twitter's rise as a real-time news source.

Explore a gallery of electric vehicles from before 1920

In 1884, Thomas Parker invented the first practical electric car in London. By the turn of the century, early EVs were seen on the streets of Washington, DC. Automaker promotional materials included photographs of cars on mountain roads and other terrains.

An architect explores da Vinci's quest to fly

This article follows Leonardo da Vinci's quest for human air flight, which he pursued in the late 1400s. Written by an architect, this piece details da Vinci's venture into the field of aviation, starting with his attempt to understand the flight...

The Wrights descended from English-born migrants to Boston in the 1630s

Samuel Wright was a Puritan who arrived in Massachusetts just two decades after the Pilgrims. His great-great-grandson Daniel Wright, born in Connecticut in 1757, fought in the Continental Army during the American Revolution, seeing action at the Battle of Saratoga.

Eleanor Roosevelt's 1941 flight with a Black pilot helped legitimize the Tuskegee Airmen program

During a 1941 visit to the Tuskegee Institute, Roosevelt ignored protests from her Secret Service detail and flew for an hour over Alabama with chief instructor Charles Alfred Anderson. Photos of the flight were shared nationwide and helped advance the case for Black pilots in combat.

Watch a drone flight through a fireworks display

This video explores the history, construction, and preparation of modern fireworks displays, including creating gunpowder from scratch. Experimentation with fireworks underwater is also featured, but they require special materials to prevent water from infiltrating the fireworks shell.

British royal history from a literal bird's-eye view

Learn the history of British monarchs going back centuries with this unusual, 50-minute documentary filmed entirely from the air, revealing key landmarks in beautiful footage alongside engaging commentary.

Explore hundreds of the brother’s personal photographs of flights, family and dogs

Their estate offered 300 negatives to the Library of Congress in 1948 after Orville’s death, most of which were taken by the brothers between 1897 and 1928. The collection serves as a visual timeline of their adult lives.

Watch the hypersonic flight of a reusable aircraft

Stratolaunch completed a second hypersonic flight of its Talon-A2 autonomous vehicle, showcasing reusable hypersonic aircraft capabilities. The aircraft carried payloads and Department of Defense experiments while achieving Mach 5 speeds.

Experience the Apollo 11 mission in VR

Take one small step today and experience the historic moon-landing through VR. This video showcases how VR is allowing the public to travel through space through the eyes of those who lived through it.

Georges Méliès directed what many consider the first science fiction film

The French director was behind 1897's "Gugusse and the Automaton," a silent film that scholars believe features the first appearance of a robot in cinema and one of the earliest films to feature scientific experimentation.

Thomas Edison captured the only known footage of Mark Twain

The inventor was a pioneer in the early film industry and made his own motion pictures. In 1909, he shot a short film featuring Twain at Stormfield, his property in Connecticut. In it, Twain wears his iconic white suit and drinks tea with his daughters.

The cars were originally produced by European manufacturers like Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, and Maserati

Other than the four wheels and open top, the early Formula 1 cars have little in common with today’s machines. But the era has a rich history. Using historic video and photos, this hour-long documentary details the iconic drivers of the 1950s, the evolution of the premier teams, and how the era left its mark on the sport that’s still being felt today.

Roosevelt left a White House dinner to fly over Washington with Amelia Earhart

In April 1933, Eleanor Roosevelt and Amelia Earhart flew on a round trip from Washington to Baltimore in their evening gowns. Roosevelt, who had a long-standing interest in flying, had recently earned her student pilot's license.

Watch the first appearance of 'Looney Tunes' characters Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner.

The attack at Pearl Harbor led to the world's first around-the-world commercial flight.

North Carolina adopted 'First in Flight' license plates in 1982—to snarky reviews

Many locals surfaced the irony of enshrining the accomplishments of two men from Ohio on the license plates of North Carolinans. Nonetheless, the style endures to this day, alongside Ohio’s “Birthplace of Aviation.”