The first airplane was invented by the Wright brothers, Wilbur and Orville Wright. They made the first controlled, sustained flight of an engine-powered, heavier-than-air aircraft with the Wright Flyer on December 17, 1903. This historic flight took place four miles south of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, at a location now known as Kill Devil Hills. Orville piloted the first flight, which lasted 12 seconds and covered 120 feet. The Wright Flyer was the first successful airplane to be controlled by the pilot, marking the beginning of modern aviation.
