what is it?
The Wright Model L was a prototype high-speed reconnaissance aircraft built by the Wright Company in 1916 to meet a specification by the U.S. military. It bore no resemblance to previous Wright designs. Already obsolete compared to European military aircraft of the time, it attracted no orders, and only the single prototype was built.
How to recognise it: 1 piston engine with propeller · 8.8 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 110 years ago, in 1916.
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1916
- number built
- —
- role
- military reconnaissance aircraft
- origin
- 🇺🇸 United States
- makers
- Wright
- engines
- 1× Wright 6-60
- crew
- 1
- length
- 7.4 m
- wingspan
- 8.8 m
- height
- 3.2 m
- max take-off weight
- 929 kg
- top speed
- 101 km/h
- range
- —
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q4021058, Wikipedia: Wright Model L (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.