Dayton: where humans learned to fly

Birthplace of the Wright brothers, Dayton preserves the bicycle shop where the two inventors designed the first powered, controlled-flight aircraft.

The centre is explored on foot; the aviation museum requires a car.

The National Museum of the United States Air Force, among the world's largest aviation museums, displays hundreds of historical aircraft including World War II bombers.

A few minutes away, the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park preserves the original workshop of the Wright brothers, where they built bicycles before turning to aviation.

Continuing on, you visit Huffman Prairie, the field where the Wright brothers perfected their airplane after the first flight at Kitty Hawk.

In the evening, the Oregon District, with its restored Victorian homes, enlivens restaurants and venues in the historic center of the city.

Contrary to common belief, the Wright brothers' first flight at Kitty Hawk was only the beginning: it was back in Dayton, in the months following on Huffman Prairie, that they truly perfected an aircraft capable of banking and staying aloft for extended periods.

The National Museum of the United States Air Force, with free admission, displays among other aircraft the presidential plane that carried President John F. Kennedy's remains after his assassination in 1963.