Wright Brothers & the Invention of the Aerial Age
Opening in 2022

“Aviation has gone beyond my dreams."  — Orville Wright

The invention of the airplane by Wilbur and Orville Wright is one of the great stories in American history. The Wright brothers’ invention not only solved a long-studied technical problem, but helped create an entirely new world. The "Wright Brothers & the Invention of the Aerial Age" explores who Wilbur and Orville Wright were, what they achieved and how they did it, and how the world first reacted to their revolutionary invention. At the center of the story and the heart of the gallery is the 1903 Wright Flyer, one of the most iconic artifacts in the Smithsonian’s collection.

Learn about all the ways we're transforming the Museum. 

Visitors read wall panels about the Wright Brothers and pose with bronze statues of the brothers.

Large exhibition panels featuring images and information about the Wright brothers and the Wright brothers family orient visitors to the content of the gallery before they step beyond the panels for the “reveal” of the Wright Flyer at the center of the space.

Sponsors

“Wright Brothers & The Invention of the Aerial Age” is made possible through the generous support of:

David M. Rubenstein
Frederick and Barbara Clark Telling

Gallery
    Overhead view of the new Wright Brothers Gallery

    Artist's overhead rendering of the new gallery

    1903 Wright Flyer

    The original 1903 Wright Flyer on display as the centerpiece of The Wright Brothers & The Invention of the Aerial Age exhibition at the National Air and Space Museum on the National Mall in Washington, DC.

    1903 Wright Flyer on Launching Rail

    Because of its size and weight, the Flyer could not be hand launched like the Wright gliders. The brothers built a 60-foot launching rail from four 15-foot two-by-fours laid end to end. To take off, the airplane rode down this track on a small, wheeled dolly or “truck,” as the Wrights called it. The brothers referred to their launching track as the “Grand Junction Railroad.”

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"Wright Brothers and the Invention of the Aerial Age" Gallery

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