The Wright brothers are widely believed to have invented the airplane. However, there are several competing claims that make it difficult to determine whether or not they were actually the first to accomplish heavier-than-air powered flight. Regardless of those competing claims, the Wright Flyer was the first patented aircraft. Orville and Wilbur Wright made further experiments during the first decade of the 20th century, which would prove indispensable to the development of the airplane. Quite simply, while we may never know if anyone flew before the Wrights, there is no doubt that they contributed significantly to the history of aviation.
On September 24, 1959, President Dwight D. Eisenhower declared the anniversary of the Wright Flyer’s maiden flight in 1903 to be a codified holiday (it is a commemorative day on government calendars, but is not technically a government holiday). It has been observed annually ever since then, both in honor of the pioneering experiments of the Wrights as well as to focus on the history of aviation technologies.
Wilbur and Orville Wright were American inventors and pioneers of aviation. In 1903 the Wright brothers achieved the first powered, sustained and controlled airplane flight; they surpassed their own milestone two years later when they built and flew the first fully practical airplane.
