FIRST ATLANTIC FLIGHT

Taupo Times, Volume II, Issue 99, 11 December 1953, Page 3

FIRST ATLANTIC FLIGHT

Sir, — In the "Times of last week was an item which stated that Col. Charles Lindbergh was the first man to fiy the Atlantic. This is not quite correct. He was the first man to fly solo. The first fiights were made by British airmen in British machines. In June 1919 Capt. J. Alcock and Lieut. S. WhittenBrown niade the first crossing in a Vickers-Vimy powered by RollsRoyce engines, and in July of the same year the first double crossing was made by the airship R34. I am, etc., * G. A. WESTON. [Note. — Mr Weston is correct in his statement of the position. Our slip was due to an error in typing from a preliminary note, the word "solo" being typed after the word "epic" instead of after the word "Atlantic." The oringinal note stated that Col. Lindbergh was "the first man to fiy the Atlantic solo, which he did in an epic flight in May 1927." Lindbergh's flight was the first non-stop aeroplane flight between the continents of America and Europe. It was also the first nonstop aeroplane flight from New York to Paris, and was made for the Orteig prize of 25,000 dollars for the first man to make that flight. The plane "Spirit of St. Louis," was built especially for the flight in sixty days by a small company, Ryan Airlines, in San Diego, and was powered with a 223 h.p. Wright WhiriwindJ