Ronald Reagan

“ Just as the principles of flight that the Wright Brothers harnessed still apply, so too their spirit-invention, exploration, originality, innovation-continues to motivate all those who would expand knowledge for the good of man. ”

“ Today, our world is linked by a global air transportation system that enables us to travel safely and efficiently virtually anywhere in a matter of hours. Aviation technology has built on the foundations of manned airplane flight to provide advances in science, medicine, and many other fields. And mankind has ventured beyond the skies into space. ”

“ We owe the Wright Brothers a debt of gratitude for their invention of engine-powered flight but also for their immortal lesson of independence and determination.
The Congress, by joint resolution of December 17, 1963 (77 Stat. 402; 36 U.S.C. 169) , has designated the seventeenth day of December of each year as Wright Brothers Day 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. ”