The Wright brothers did not even finish the 1903 plane at Kitty Hawk, NC. Flyer 1 never flew as can be seen in the following 1904 article:
The Wilmington Messenger, Wilmington, North Carolina, May 26, 1904, col. 1, p. 6.
Elizabeth City Economist: A gentleman visiting this city whose home is in Kitty Hawk, is responsible for the assertion that the Wright brothers, of airship fame, will return to Kitty Hawk in the near future and resume work on their aerial monster. According to this gentleman the airship has never been removed from Kitty Hawk and nearly all the interviews published in the papers of Norfolk have been erroneous in this respect. This gentleman has assisted the Wrights in all their work and has a general supervision of their property during their absence. He says that they have not completed the ship and that they will return some time within the next month and resume their work. A story is current that they will complete the ship and make the trip from here to St. Louis sometime this fall.
The text says that, according to a man that worked for the Wrights and took care of their things left behind at Kitty Hawk, the two inventors hadn't finished Flyer I as of May 26, 1904. In conclusion, this machine did not fly on December 17, 1903!
The true date of the above picture is May 1908 not December 17, 1903.
The fact that the photo was taken in May 1908 is also supported by the 1951 declaration of Alpheus W. Drinkwater, a man who knew the Wright brothers.
"Wilbur and Orville Wright are credited with making their first powered flight in a heavier-than-air machine on Dec. 17, 1903. But Alpheus W. Drinkwater, 76 years old, who sent the telegraph message ushering in the air age, said the brothers only “glided” off Kill Devil Hill that day.
Their first real flight came on May 6, 1908, he said." Source: New York Times, Dec. 17, 1951.
As a note: The Wrights left Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, in December 1903 and only came back in April 1908.
