About
On December 17, 1903, Orville Wright flew for 12 seconds and 36 meters at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina — the first powered, controlled, sustained airplane flight. Within 70 years, humans had walked on the Moon; within 100, over 4 billion passengers a year were flying commercially.
Aviation collapsed geographic distance, enabled global trade, created tourism industries, and became militarily decisive in both World Wars. The jet age, inaugurated by the Boeing 707 in 1958, made intercontinental travel routine. Today, about 10,000 commercial aircraft are in the air at any given moment.
# Top 10 Airplane facts
- 1The Wright Brothers' first flight lasted 12 seconds and covered 36 meters
- 266 years after the first airplane flight, humans landed on the Moon
- 3About 10,000 commercial aircraft are airborne at any given moment
Fascinating Facts
- ◆The Wright Brothers' first flight lasted 12 seconds and covered 36 meters
- ◆66 years after the first airplane flight, humans landed on the Moon
- ◆About 10,000 commercial aircraft are airborne at any given moment
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