11. Wilbur won a coin toss to earn the chance to be the first human to fly but stalled the aircraft in his attempt, leading to Orville achieving that historic milestone three days later
Assembling their make-shift runway at Big Kill Devil Hill, near Kitty Hawk, on December 14, 1903, the brothers tossed a coin to determine who would have the privilege of attempting the first run. Wilbur won the toss, but in his attempt he mistakenly pulled up too sharply and stalled the plane. Only achieving an abortive 3 and a half seconds in the air, and causing minor damage to the craft, this effort, described by Wilbur as “only partial success”, is not considered the first flight but rather the first test.
Returning on December 17, at 10:35 am Orville achieved 12 seconds of flight across a distance of 120 feet: a speed of 6.8 miles per hour. Continuing throughout the day to take turns, the Wright brothers made a total of four flights. Each was in a straight line, with no turns attempted and ending with an unintended bumpy landing. Achieving distances of 120, 175, and 200 feet, the last effort, piloted by Wilbur, lasted for 59 seconds and traveled 852 feet. Wilbur’s assessment after his initial failure was proven correct, determining that “the power is ample, and but for a trifling error due to lack of experience with this machine and this method of starting, the machine would undoubtedly have flown beautifully”.