May 21, 1927: Lucky Lindy Flies His Way Into the Celebrity Ranks

Lindbergh was a mail pilot in the Midwest when he got wind of the Orteig prize, a $25,000 purse being offered by a New York hotelier to the first pilot to make a nonstop flight between New York and Paris. He persuaded a group of St. Louis businessmen to finance the construction of a plane, which he christened Spirit of St. Louis.

He was not the only pilot to make the attempt and, in fact, was a relative unknown in a field that included former World War I aces and noted barnstormers. Several pilots were killed or injured before Lindbergh went aloft.

He tested his aircraft on May 10 and 11, flying from San Diego to New York with an overnight stop in St. Louis. That flight took 20 hours and 21 minutes.