Back in 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt decided to honor Orville Wright’s birthday (August 19) and encouraged the public to engage in activities that showed their appreciation for aviation.
Orville was the first person to ever successfully fly an airplane. His first flight took place on December 17, 1903 in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
In honor of National Aviation Day, here are ten fun facts to celebrate with!
1. According to NASA, “every U.S. commercial aircraft and every U.S. air traffic control tower has NASA-developed technology on board.” These include the plane’s winglets, chevrons, and the glass cockpit. (Source)
2. The SR-71 Blackbird had a special fuel and set of fuel tank requirements. The aircraft has six main fuel tanks holding up to 80,000 lbs. of gas capable of heating up to 400°F and required fuel with a high flash point in order to reduce explosion or fire risks.
3. The world’s largest passenger plane is the double-decker Airbus A380. It has almost double the amount of floor space than the next largest passenger plane and seats 532 in a standard three class configuration.
4. On a three-hour flight, a human can lose up to 1.5 quarts of water. (Source)
5. Back in the 1980’s, Robert Crandall, head of American Airlines at the time, calculated that if one olive was removed from every salad served to passengers on-board, the airline would save $100,000 a year. (Source)
6. The world’s largest paper airplane was built by students from Braunschweige Institute of Technology in Germany in 2013. The plane had a wing span of almost 60 feet and weighed over 50 pounds. (Source)
7. English is the de facto international language of aviation. (Source)
8. The windows in an airport control tower must be set at fifteen degrees angles from the vertical to minimize reflections from inside and outside the control tower. (Source)
9. On average, a 747 has approximately 150 to 175 miles of wiring in it. (Source)
10. According to a 2000 study, once every 11 days in the U.S. an emergency evacuation takes place, requiring the use of the airplane slide. (Source)
Enjoy National Aviation Day. NASA provides some exciting ideas for celebrating.
