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Triumph!
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On December 14, three
months after arriving at Kitty Hawk, the Wrights were finally
ready to give their creation a try. They tossed a coin to
determine which brother would make the first attempt. Wilbur
won and climbed into the pilot’s position. Forty feet
down the rail, the Flyer lurched up, stalled, and smashed
into the sand, slightly damaging the forward elevator.
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The Flyer was airborne for only 3 1/2 seconds, but the power
of the engine and the responsiveness of the controls bolstered
Wilbur’s confidence. He wrote home, “There is
now no question of final success.”
With damage repaired, the Flyer was again
ready for flight on December 17. The Wrights arose that morning
to freezing temperatures and a 27-mile-per-hour wind. At 10:35
a.m., the Flyer lifted off the launching rail with Orville
at the controls. The overly sensitive elevator control caused
the Flyer to dart up and down as it sailed slowly over the
sand, coming to rest with a thud 120 feet from where it had
taken off. The flight was short—only 12 seconds—but
it was a true flight nevertheless. A human had flown.
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“After a
while they shook hands, and we couldn’t help notice
how they held on to each other’s hand, sort o’like
they hated to let go; like two folks parting who weren’t
sure they’d ever see each other again.”
John T. Daniels, Kitty Hawk lifesaving crewman,
recalling the moments before the first flight
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