Wright Brothers Day, 2020

Proclamation 10127 of December 16, 2020

Wright Brothers Day, 2020

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

On this day 117 years ago, for a few short seconds over
120 feet of wind-swept beach in North Carolina, Orville
Wright became the first person to achieve sustained,
controlled, powered, and manned flight, forever
altering the course of human history. The flying
machine Orville piloted, which he and his brother
Wilbur designed and constructed following years of
research and testing, propelled mankind off the ground
and into the skies. Today, we honor these tenacious and
intrepid pioneers who paved the way for American
leadership in aviation.

The story of the Wright Brothers reflects the
quintessential American values of perseverance,
courage, and sheer grit. Neither Wilbur nor Orville
graduated high school. Both brothers, however,
possessed a fascination with new technology and
mechanics. They taught themselves engineering through
their work in their bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio. Using
a homemade wind tunnel, they collected data and
developed new designs for propellers and wings, oversaw
the creation of a new, specially made engine, and
invented an innovative system for steering manned
aircraft, solving problems that had plagued previous
attempts at powered flight. Through trial and error and
hundreds of test flights in gliders and prototypes, the
Wright Brothers, in true American fashion, pushed
beyond the boundaries of human discovery and
exploration. Their tireless dedication and unyielding
determination testify to the power of human ingenuity
and produced a revolution in transportation, national
defense, and global economic development.

The Wright Brothers' pursuits also established
America's role as the world's foremost aviation leader
and set the stage for future generations of American
flight heroes. Just 24 years after the Wright Brothers'
first flight, Charles Lindbergh became the first person
to fly solo nonstop across the Atlantic Ocean, and 5
years later Amelia Earhart became the first woman to
accomplish that same feat. Just a few weeks ago, our
Nation mourned the loss of another aviation legend,
Brigadier General Chuck Yeager. In a rocket plane named
``Glamorous Glennis'' after his beloved wife, Yeager
flew at speeds in excess of 700 miles per hour,
breaking the sound barrier for the first time in human
history. This incredible feat occurred a mere 44 years
after the Wright Brothers' first flight achieved a top
airspeed of just 34 miles per hour. In 1969, 22 years
after Yeager's flight, Neil Armstrong, an Ohioan like
the Wright Brothers, became the first person to ever
set foot on the lunar surface, thrusting American
leadership in flight beyond the Earth's atmosphere.
And, earlier this year, the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA) launched a commercially
built and operated spacecraft to the International
Space Station from American soil for the first time.
With the same spirit that took the Wright Brothers into
the sky, our brave astronauts are once again redefining
the limits of human knowledge and discovery.

December 17th is forever enshrined as the day the
Wright Brothers launched a new era of American
greatness. Today, as we reflect on the immeasurable
influence the Wright Brothers had upon our society and
the world, we resolve to continue breaking barriers,
setting new horizons, and building

a better and brighter future for all. In the years to
come, Americans must continue to press further on the
boundaries of sky and space and forge new frontiers for
American success, just as Orville and Wilbur Wright
courageously did more than a century ago.

The Congress, by a joint resolution approved December
17, 1963, as amended (77 Stat. 402; 36 U.S.C. 143), has
designated December 17 of each year as ``Wright
Brothers Day'' and has authorized and requested the
President to issue annually a proclamation inviting the
people of the United States to observe that day with
appropriate ceremonies and activities.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the
United States of America, do hereby proclaim December
17, 2020, as Wright Brothers Day.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
sixteenth day of December, in the year of our Lord two
thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.