Celebrating 120 Years of Aviation

In the 120 years since the Wright brothers’ first flight, there have been many milestones in aviation.

Meg Godlewski

Monday, December 11, 2023 at 06:21 PM ET

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Wilbur Wright in flight in 1909. [Library of Congress]

Key Takeaways:

The article traces aviation's rapid evolution from the Wright brothers' first powered flight in 1903 to its early military adoption and the subsequent era of barnstorming and record-breaking long-distance flights by the 1930s.
Significant advancements, driven largely by global conflicts, led to the development of dedicated aircraft carriers, aluminum-bodied planes, the introduction of commercial jet airliners, and the breaking of the sound barrier by the mid-20th century.
Later decades brought milestones such as the pursuit of supersonic commercial transport, the integration of women pilots into major airlines, the space shuttle program, and modern innovations like glass cockpits, enhanced safety systems, and major airline mergers.

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It is said that “necessity is the mother of invention,” and in aviation the needs are practicality, speed, distance, and safety. In the 120 years since the Wright brothers’ first flight, there have been many milestones—too many to list here, in fact. So we’re just going to mention a few that stood out from the rest in the following timeline:

1903

On December 17, Wilbur and Orville Wright achieve powered flight. They make a total of four flights that day in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Orville is at the controls for the first flight that lasts 12 seconds and marks the beginning of powered, heavier-than-air flight.