20 May 1927: Charles Lindbergh Begins First Solo Nonstop Transatlantic Flight

On May 20, 1927, a young airmail pilot named Charles Lindbergh took off from Roosevelt Field on Long Island, New York, in a single-engine monoplane called the Spirit of St. Louis. His destination was Paris, France, 3,600 miles across the Atlantic Ocean, on what would become the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight.

Lindbergh was not the first to fly across the Atlantic; that honor belonged to British aviators John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown, who had made the crossing in 1919. However, their flight had been between Newfoundland and Ireland, a much shorter distance. The Orteig Prize of 25,000 dollars awaited the first aviator to fly nonstop between New York and Paris, and six men had already died attempting to claim it.

Lindbergh’s approach was radically different from his competitors. Rather than using a large multi-engine aircraft with a crew, he chose a custom-built single-engine plane that sacrificed almost everything for range. He flew without a radio, parachute, or even a front windshield to save weight. His only instruments were basic, and he navigated primarily by dead reckoning.

The flight lasted 33 and a half hours, during which Lindbergh battled exhaustion, ice, and the constant temptation to fall asleep. He flew through fog so thick he could not see his wingtips and at times descended to just ten feet above the ocean waves to check his drift.

Lindbergh landed at Le Bourget Field near Paris on the evening of May 21, where a crowd estimated at 150,000 people had gathered to witness his arrival. The shy 25-year-old pilot became an instant international celebrity, feted by royalty, awarded the Medal of Honor, and celebrated with ticker-tape parades.

The Spirit of St. Louis is now displayed at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., where millions of visitors each year view the small aircraft that carried Lindbergh into history. His flight demonstrated that the Atlantic was no longer an insurmountable barrier, opening the door to the era of international air travel.