The 1909 Wright Military Flyer was the World's first military airplane. In 1908, the U.S. Army Signal Corps ordered a two-seat observation aircraft-- one that was relatively simple to operate, could reach a speed of at least 40 miles (64 kilometers) per hour in still air, and could remain in the air for at least one hour without landing. The Army also required that the aircraft be easy to assemble and disassemble and be able to land safely and take off quickly. In the fall of 1909, Orville Wright successfully met the Signal Corps's specifications with this airplane, and the military gained its wings. The War Department presented this Wright Military Flyer to the Smithsonian Institution in 1911