The First Flight Society is one of the world’s oldest organizations of aviation enthusiasts. It celebrates December 17 each year to memorialize the first powered flight. Pilots, military men and women and other fans gather around the Wright Brothers National Memorial to commemorate that historic moment in aviation. The event is sponsored by the First Flight Society and the National Park Service.
The December 17 ceremony produces a large number of fans every year. The society presents a fantastic feature of new age aircraft and spectacular aerobatics are performed at exactly 10.35 a.m., the magical moment when the Wright brothers flew for the first time.
In 1926, the site of the Wright brothers’ first flight was bought by a group of business executives who decided to preserve the place. A huge stone monument was erected as a lasting memorial to the two great pioneers whose invention literally revolutionized transportation. In 1932 the land was taken over by the U.S Parks Service. In 1966, what then was called the Kill Devil Hills Memorial Association was reorganized as the First Flight Society. A keystone of the Society’s work today is the close support it offers the Park Service at the Wright Brothers National Memorial.
The society also created the Paul E. Garber Memorial Shrine, named for the first curator of the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum, to honor other great accomplishments in the world of aviation annually.
For information: http://www.firstflight.org
