Kill Devil Hills

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18 10, 2021

Make Plans to Celebrate Wright Brothers Day 2021.

Save the date! December 17th, 2021 is the 118th anniversary of powered flight. The First Flight Society will be honoring Sally Ride as the 2021 Paul E Garber Shrine inductee. The Shrine is located in the Museum and Visitors Center at the Wright Brothers National Memorial, Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, USA.

This honor is selected annually by a high-level panel appointed by the First Flight Society, from among numerous nominations submitted from around the world as well as compiled lists of qualified candidates. The induction ceremony will be held on Wright Brothers Day, December 17, 2021, with a celebration luncheon also held that day in Kitty Hawk. A portrait of Sally Ride will be unveiled and presented at the ceremony on December 17th.

Dr Ride was a Mission Specialist on STS-7 in 1983 and STS-41-G in 1984. On June 18, 1983, Sally Ride became the first American woman to fly in […]

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11 12, 2020

Wright Brothers National Memorial hosts virtual-only celebration event

On Thursday, December 17, 2020, Wright Brothers National Memorial, in partnership with First Flight Society, Outer Banks Forever, Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park, and National Aviation Heritage Area, will honor the accomplishments of Wilbur and Orville Wright at an online, joint celebration of the first heavier-than-air, controlled, powered flight.
The 117th anniversary of the Wright brother’s first flight celebration online event will be shown on Wright Brothers National Memorial’s Facebook page beginning at 8:30 a.m. As part of this year’s celebration, the First Flight Society will induct Frank Caldwell into the Paul E. Garber First Flight Shrine. Caldwell’s groundbreaking advances in propeller technology in the 1930s ushered in a new era of modern aviation.
To limit the potential spread of COVID-19, this year’s in-park celebration will not occur. The park is open daily, and visitors should continue to […]

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9 12, 2020

First Flight Society Announces 2020 Class of Honorary Members

The First Flight Society announces 5 new Honorary Members: Colonel Gail Halvorsen, Brigadier General Charles McGee, Lieutenant Colonel Richard “Dick” Rutan, Sean D. Tucker, and Patty Wagstaff.

Colonel Halvorsen, General McGee and Colonel Dick Rutan have all been previously inducted into the
Paul E Garber Shrine. Halvorsen was nicknamed “the Candy Bomber” for air dropping candy to German
children during the Berlin Airlift. McGee was one of the famed Tuskegee Airmen who flew fighter
escort for Allied bombers. Rutan is a fighter pilot, test pilot, and record-breaking aviator who in
1986 piloted the Voyager aircraft on the first non-stop around-the-world flight with co-pilot Jeana
Yeager. Halvorsen turned 100 in October and McGee celebrated 101 on December 7th.

Sean Tucker and Patty Wagstaff are celebrated Aerobatic pilots, who still perform. Tucker has won
numerous air show championship competitions throughout his career and was inducted into the
National Aviation Hall of Fame in 2008. Wagstaff […]

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19 10, 2020

Make Plans to Celebrate the 117th Anniversary of Powered Flight.

Save the date! December 17th, 2020 is the 117th anniversary of powered flight. The First Flight Society will be honoring Frank Caldwell as the 2020 Paul E Garber Shrine inductee.

Like every other event held this year, this will be different than previous years. There will be a large Virtual element to this years celebration. More details will be coming soon.

The Paul E Garber honoree is selected annually by a high-level panel appointed by the First Flight Society, from among numerous nominations submitted from around the world as well as compiled lists of qualified candidates. A portrait of Frank Caldwell will be unveiled and presented at the ceremony on December 17th, 2020, celebrating the 117th Anniversary of the Wright Brothers First Flight.

Mr. Caldwell’s many contributions to aviation in propeller technology highlighted by his winning with Hamilton Standard the 1933 Collier Trophy for design of the controllable-pitch propeller. His design innovations led […]

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28 04, 2020

Check Out Our New YouTube Channel!

Exciting news! We just created our own channel on YouTube. Our first major online event was an interview with Wilbur Wright for his birthday Celebration on April 16th. The interview streamed Live on Facebook and YouTube and is now available to view on our YouTube channel. We are slowly, but surely, adding new videos like the one below. This features a slideshow of some of the many paintings of our Paul E Garber Shrine Honorees.

 

 

To see our other videos, please go to First Flight Society YouTube Channel.

 

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9 02, 2020

Our Calendar of Events for 2020

Here is the First Flight Society Calendar of Events for 2020:

 

April 16, 2020                   Wilbur Wright Birthday Celebration

May 16, 2020                     First Flight/Girls Golf Golf Tournament 

August 19, 2020                National Aviation Day/Orville Wright Birthday                                                             Celebration

December 16-17, 2020   117th Anniversary of Powered Flight

More details to follow as the events get closer.

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11 12, 2019

December 17th Celebration Itinerary

WELCOME TO THE

116TH ANNIVERSARY OF POWERED FLIGHT

Celebrating

The Legacy of Orville and Wilbur Wright

Honoring

The 70th Anniversary of the World War II Berlin Airlift

June 1948 – September 1949

December 17, 2019

Wright Brothers National Memorial Park

Kitty Hawk, North Carolina

TODAY’S PROGRAM

9:00 a.m.                                                       Park Gates Open to Visitors

                                                                            PRELUDE BAND CONCERT

                                                                            First Flight High School Band, Bob Ebert, Director

 

9:30 a.m.                                                                                   ANNIVERSARY PROGRAM

WELCOME & GUEST RECOGNITION       Arthur Lamothe, President, First Flight Society, Inc.

PRESENTATION OF COLORS                      Camden High School ROTC

NATIONAL ANTHEM                                     Walter Swan, Director – ECSU Choir

FLYOVER TRIBUTE TO                                 U.S. Navy C-40, U.S. Air Force […]

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16 10, 2018

Grand Reopening of the Wright Brothers National Memorial Visitor Center this Saturday.

Join the First Flight Society this Saturday, October 20th at the Wright Brothers National Memorial Park. We will have a table set up and we encourage all current and future members to stop by and say Hi. Anyone who joins the FFS during the grand reopening event will receive a complimentary copy of The Wright Brothers by David Mccullough.

Here is more information from the National Park Service about the Grand Reopening:

 

On Saturday, October 20, Wright Brothers National Memorial will hold a grand reopening ceremony for its National Historic Landmark visitor center. The park will be open from 9:00 am until 5:00 pm. Entrance fees will be waived on this very special day.

The Wright Brothers National Memorial Visitor Center was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 2001.

Starting at 9:30 am, the grand reopening ceremony will feature speeches by National Park Service Southeast Regional Director Robert Vogel and National Parks of Eastern North Carolina Superintendent David […]

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