Charles Lindbergh
In 1927, at the age of 25, Charles Lindbergh was the first pilot to fly solo, nonstop from New York to Paris across the Atlantic, a distance of 3,610 miles. For achieving this feat, Lindbergh won the $25,000 Orteig Prize and a lifetime of fame. Lindbergh’s custom built airplane, the Spirit of St. Louis, is now on display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
In 1929, Charles Lindbergh received the Congressional Medal of Honor. During World War II, he flew combat missions in the Pacific while in an advisory role for the USMC and US Army Air Corps.
There are a number of honors and tributes to this remarkable man. Included among these are the Lindbergh Terminal of Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, Lindbergh Field in Sandiego, Winslow-Lindbergh Regional Airport, Lindbergh High School in St Louis CountyCharles Lindbergh Elementary in Little Falls (his hometown) and the Charles A. Lindbergh Historic Site, which was the original home of the Lindberghs.