Lindbergh Honored

(LoC) - On June 11, 1927, Charles Lindbergh received the first Distinguished Flying Cross ever awarded. Since 1927, aviators honored with this medal have included World War II pilots President George Bush, Senator George McGovern, and astronaut Virgil "Gus" Grissom who flew one hundred missions during the Korean War.
Lindbergh's nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic on May 20-21, 1927, made aeronautical history. The stunt-flyer-turned-airmail-pilot's flight was underwritten by a group of St. Louis businessmen. Flying his monoplane, Spirit of St. Louis, Lindbergh captured the $25,000 prize offered for the first flight between New York and Paris. Continued

Photo: Charles Lindbergh on podium on Washington Monument grounds during his Wash., D.C. reception; Army band in foreground: Lindbergh speaking (LoC)