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December 15, 1902: Orville and Wilbur commence plans for a new flying
machine to be equipped with motor and propellers by conducting propeller
experiments and beginning construction of a four-cylinder engine.
Early 1903: The Wrights build a second wind tunnel to ensure greater
accuracy in measurements than those obtained in the tests made by
their 1901 wind tunnel.
February 12-13, 1903: The Wright brothers and their mechanic, Charles
Taylor, complete and begin to test the 1903 motor. The motor's body
and frame crack during the tests and it is determined that a new aluminum
casting is needed.
October 9, 1903: Orville and Wilbur start to assemble their 1903
machine at Kill Devil Hill.
December 14, 1903: Wilbur makes the first and unsuccessful attempt
to fly with the power machine from the slope of Kill Devil Hill.
December 17, 1903: The Wrights make the world's first free, controlled
and sustained flights in a power-driven, heavier than air machine.
The first of the four flights made this day lasted 12 seconds and
covered 120 feet. The longest flight lasted 59 seconds and flew 852
feet . After the fourth flight of the day, the 1903 Flyer was destroyed
when a large gust of wind rolled the machine over.
April-May, 1904: The Wright brothers construct an entirely new, heavier
and stronger machine at Huffman Prairie Flying Field, eight miles
outside of Dayton, Ohio.
September 15, 1904: Wilbur makes the first half-circle turn in air
at Huffman Prairie Flying Field.
September 20, 1904: Orville makes the first complete circle in the
air at Huffman Prairie Flying Field.
May 22, 1906: U.S. Patent Office grants basic Wright patent, No.821,393,
for their 1903 flying machine.
February 8, 1908: The Wrights' bid to furnish a flying machine to
the U.S. War Department for $25,000 is accepted.
May 14, 1908: The Wrights carry a passenger on their plane for the
first time, Charles W. Furnas of Dayton. The event took place at Kill
Devil Hill.
August 8, 1908: The Wrights make their first public exhibition flight
and their first European flight at the Hunaudiéres Race Course
at Le Mans, France.
September 17, 1908: The first airplane fatality occurs when a propeller
blade breaks on a Wright machine at Fort Myer, VA. Orville Wright
was seriously injured and Lt. Thomas E. Selfridge died during the
accident. This incident terminated the Wright Army Trials for the
year.
November 22, 1909: The Wright Company is incorporated, with Wilbur
Wright as president and Orville Wright and Andrew Freedman serving
as vice-presidents.
May 5, 1910: The Wright Company starts a flight school at the Huffman
Prairie Flying Field in Dayton, Ohio with Orville in charge of instruction.
The school was in operation from 1910 to 1916. The Wrights' first
school was located in Montgomery, Alabama.
May 25, 1910: Orville and Wilbur make their first and only flight
together at Huffman Prairie Flying Field.
May 30, 1912: Wilbur dies at the age of 45 after a month-long bout
with typhoid fever.
January 13, 1913: Orville begins tests of the airplane automatic
stabilizer, the last aviation innovation that he and Wilbur worked
on together. The device was patented on October 14, 1913.
October 15, 1915: The Wright company is sold to a syndicate, allowing
Orville to devote himself fully to research. Orville continues to
serve the company as a consulting engineer, however, until August
11, 1916.
June-November, 1916: Orville moves from the bicycle shop at 1127
W. Third Street into his newly designed aeronautical laboratory, located
at 15 N. Broadway. This site will serve as his headquarters for the
rest of his life.
May 13, 1918: Orville makes his final flight as a pilot, flying an
early 1912 model biplane.
January 30, 1948: Orville Wright dies at the age of 77 due to a heart
attack.
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