Commemorative Lindbergh "Spirit of St. Louis" Card

The $25,000 Orteig Prize was offered in 1919 by New York hotelier Raymond Orteig, a Frenchman, for the first non-stop flight from New York City to Paris, either eastbound or westbound, within five years from the date the prize was announced. But aircraft technology was not advanced enough to make winning this huge prize possible no there were no takers. Orteig renewed his offer in 1924, by which time aircraft design had improved enough to encourage pilots to attempt the dangerous trip. The first to attempt the flight were French war heroes Captain Charles Nungesser and his navigator Raymond Coli, on 8 May 1927 on a westbound flight in a Levasseur PL 8 named L'Oiseau Blanc; they were lost over the coast of Ireland. Other challengers included World War I fighter ace René Fonck, Clarence Chamberlin and Admiral Richard E. Byrd. Noel Davis, Stanton H. Wooster, Charles N. Clavier and Jacob Islaroff were all killed in crashes while making the attempt. Detroit native Charles Lindbergh gained great international acclaim as the first pilot to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, when he flew from Roosevelt Airfield in Garden City, New York, to Paris (Le Bourget Airport) on 20 May - 21 May 1927 in 33.5 hours in his single-engine aircraft, The Spirit of St. Louis. Lindbergh had begun his flying career with lessons at a Lincoln, Nebraska flight school in 1922. He then purchased a war surplus Jenny trainer in 1923, made his first solo flight and became a barnstormer. In 1924 Lindbergh entered a United States Army training school as an Army Air Service Reserve pilot; in 1925, he graduated first in his class. He became the pilot to fly the mail between St. Louis and Chicago for the Robertson Aircraft Corporation of St. Louis; his reputation was that of a cautious and capable pilot. He persuaded nine St. Louis businessmen to help him finance the cost of a plane for the contest, to be designed with his input and built by the Ryan Aeronautical Company of San Diego. Once Lindbergh accomplished his and prize winning historic flight, the President of France bestowed on him the French Legion of Honor and, on his arrival back in the United States, a fleet of warships and aircraft escorted him to Washington, D.C. where President Calvin Coolidge awarded him the Distinguished Flying Cross. And the public went wild for Lindbergh and his aircraft. Merchandisers cashed in on Lindy's popularity and produced thousands of Lindbergh souvenirs, such as this Spirit of St. Louis card holder.