This December 15, 2012 photo shows the original 1903 Wright Flyer, centerpiece of \'The Wright Brothers & The Invention of the Aerial Age\' exhibition at the Smithsonian\'s National Air and Space Museum\'s flagship building in Washington, DC. On December 17, 1903, at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, the 1903 Wright Flyer became the first powered, heavier-than-air machine to achieve controlled, sustained flight with a pilot aboard. It flew forward without losing speed and landed at a point as high as that from which it started. With Orville Wright as pilot, the airplane took off from a launching rail and flew for 12 seconds and a distance of 37 meters (120 feet). (credit:Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images)
1903 Wright Flyer(02 of10)
Open Image Modal
A mannequin of Orville Wright illustrates how the original Wright Flyer was flown at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum June 9, 2003 in Washington, DC. (credit:Stefan Zaklin/Getty Images)
1903 Wright Flyer(03 of10)
Open Image Modal
(credit:Brandon Wetherbee)
1903 Wright Flyer(04 of10)
Open Image Modal
(credit:Brandon Wetherbee)
1903 Wright Flyer(05 of10)
Open Image Modal
(credit:Brandon Wetherbee)
1903 Wright Flyer(06 of10)
Open Image Modal
(credit:Brandon Wetherbee)
1903 Wright Flyer(07 of10)
Open Image Modal
(credit:jimgs via Instagram)
The Wright Brothers Exhibit(08 of10)
Open Image Modal
(credit:Brandon Wetherbee)
The Wright Brothers Exhibit(09 of10)
Open Image Modal
(credit:Brandon Wetherbee)
1903 Wright Flyer(10 of10)
Open Image Modal
Without the Flyer, it\'s difficult to image the planes just outside the Wright exhibit. (credit:Brandon Wetherbee)