Spirit of St. Louis

aviation history · record-breaking · 1920s

A plane built for one. The Spirit of St. Louis was designed specifically for Charles Lindbergh with just one seat, one engine, and extra fuel tanks everywhere. It was built extra light so it could carry enough gas to cross the Atlantic Ocean without stopping.

An impossible journey. On May 20 and 21, 1927, Lindbergh flew this plane nonstop from New York to Paris, France, crossing over 3,600 miles of ocean. Nobody had ever done a solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic before, and many people thought it was impossible.

A prize and a dream. Lindbergh won the Orteig Prize, which was $25,000 for being the first to make this flight. But more importantly, he became world famous and proved that long-distance air travel might actually be the future.

Custom-built for danger. Engineers designed every part of this plane to help it survive the grueling flight, including special fuel tanks and a simple, lightweight design. The plane had to be so fuel-heavy that there was barely room for instruments or comfort.

Changed the world. This flight showed that airplanes could cross oceans, which changed how people thought about travel and brought countries closer together.