May 20, 1927

1927: Charles A. Lindbergh, a Captain in the Missouri National Guard’s 110th Observation Squadron, lands his Ryan Monoplane, the “Spirit of St. Louis,” in Paris on 21 May after the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic. He flies 3,609 miles in his 33-hour 39-minute flight. For this feat, President Calvin Coolidge presents Lindbergh with a special Medal of Honor (not the “Congressional” Medal of Honor).