Be a Part of Aviation History

Help restore an aviation icon that landed on the White House lawn in 1911.  Your gift helps to display it at Reagan Airport.

From Kitty Hawk to the reassembly of original 1911 Burgess-Wright Flyer. 

Your tax-deductible gift helps save the original model scheduled to be reassembled at Ronald Reagan National Airport.

 

The Discovery of Flight Foundation is proud to be partnered with prominent conservation at  The Wright Experience with full support of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and the Washington Airports Task Force. This restored ORIGINAL aircraft exhibit is intended to be a destination for tourists, passengers, and local school districts.

Please join us as we present our contribution program for the Burgess-Wright Flyer restoration project. 

HAP ARNOLD                                              $35 – $100

• Certificate of appreciation with a photo of the Burgess-Wright Flyer landing on the White House Lawn (suitable for framing)
• Name included on an electronic list of contributors to be displayed in Terminal A, Washington Reagan National Airport.

KATHARINE WRIGHT                                $101 – $500

• Certificate of appreciation with a photo of the Burgess-Wright Flyer landing on the White House Lawn (suitable for framing)
• Burgess-Wright Project cap
• Name included on an electronic list of contributors to be displayed in Terminal A, Washington Reagan National Airport

NORMAN PRINCE                                      $501-$5,000

All the benefits noted above, plus:

• Invitation to Dedication Ceremony upon installation
• Engraved metal name plate placed on the Wall of Donors.

Wright aircraft are outstanding teaching tools.  An innovative STEM exhibit is also planned.

Please help, your gift helps preserve history.  Inspire flight.

 

Help Restore the Burgess-Wright!

Then…

It landed on the White House lawn!

Now…

A patriotic effort preserving aviation history

Save this unique treasure with your tax-deductible gift and inspire the future of flight.

Harry Atwood Lands His Burgess-Wright F-19 on the White House Lawn,     July 14, 1911

On July 14, 1911, Harry Atwood landed a Burgess-Wright Model F (#19) on the South Lawn of the White House. It was the end of the first Boston–Washington Flight. This aircraft is the last surviving Burgess-Wright, a Wright brothers’ design built under license by Starling Burgess, a famous yacht designer. Burgess-Wright aircraft were also flown by several significant aviation pioneers, including: Henry “Hap” Arnold, Commander of US Air Forces in WWII; Thomas Sopwith, famed aircraft designer of WWI; and Norman Prince, founder of the Lafayette Escadrille of WWI. The remains of the White House airplane include the original Wright engine in operating condition. The project will be a full restoration of the aircraft.

The original components of Burgess-Wright Model F-19 awaiting restoration at the Wright Experience, Warrenton, VA.

With the full support of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and the Washington Airports Task Force, the restored aircraft will be hung in the historic terminal at Reagan National Airport. The exhibit is intended to be a destination for tourists, passengers, and local school districts. Wright aircraft are outstanding teaching tools. The STEM-based exhibit will feature the following:

• Interactive displays of the aircraft’s history

• Exploration of the Wright brothers’ use of the scientific method in the invention of the airplane
•  The fundamentals of the aerospace industry as exemplified by the Burgess-Wright and how the industry is vital today
• Ample opportunity for sponsor recognition

Artist’s rendering of the restored Burgess-Wright in the historic terminal of Reagan National Airport, Washington, DC.

Contact us to learn how you can support this project!

Welcome to the Discovery of Flight Foundation!

The Discovery of Flight Foundation is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) charitable organization which seeks to rediscover the Wright Brothers experimentation, discovery, and methodology, provide for the reconstruction of original Wright Brothers aircraft, and create a living classroom for people of all ages.The foundation has contracted with the Wright Experience to achieve this ambitious plan.