[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 214 (Thursday, December 17, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H7243]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          THE WRIGHT BROTHERS

  (Mr. LaMALFA asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LaMALFA. Madam Speaker, on this day in 1903, near Kitty Hawk, 
North Carolina, Orville and Wilbur Wright made the first successful 
aircraft flight in history.
  In the years leading up to their first flight, they built and tested 
air gliders in their bicycle shop in their hometown of Dayton, Ohio. 
After making hundreds of successful flights in their glider, they 
designed a 12-horsepower engine to fit into the frame.
  In the fall of 1903, the Wright brothers transported these pieces 
down to Kitty Hawk, assembled it, and made their first attempt at 
powered flight. Unfortunately, the engine stalled during takeoff and 
the engine was damaged. After making a few repairs, on December 17, 
Orville ran the aircraft down a track and into the air, flying 120 feet 
for 12 seconds.
  Madam Speaker, of course, in the 117 years since, we have seen 
amazing leaps in aircraft ability and technology. Forty-four years 
after, Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier, and now we have people 
landing on the Moon and satellite equipment going beyond the stretches 
of our solar system.
  The Wright brothers' story is one of our most well-told tales of 
success in American modern innovation. Their drive and spirit is 
something that can inspire us all.

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