Beschreibung:

LINDBERGH, Charles Augustus (1902-1974). Typed letter signed (“Charles”), Scotts Cove, Darien, Connecticut, 27 February 1951, to Earl Findley. 1 page, 4to. fine.
LINDBERGH, Charles Augustus (1902-1974). Typed letter signed (“Charles”), Scotts Cove, Darien, Connecticut, 27 February 1951, to Earl Findley. 1 page, 4to. fine. Lindbergh dispels the myth that the Spirit of St. Louis was nearly out of fuel when he landed near Paris in 1927. A fine content letter from Lindbergh, taking aim at one his favorite targets, sensational stories in the press—in this case the oft-told tale that his plane was close to running out of fuel at the end of his historic non-stop flight from New York to Paris: “The ‘Spirit of St. Louis’ contained 451 gallons of gasoline when the engine was started before take-off on May 20th. The tanks contained 80 gallons when I landed at Le Bourget—enough for about a thousand more miles of flight under the conditions that prevailed at the time. The press reported that I had 20 gallons when I landed at Paris. This came about because a mechanic, without authorization from me, and I suspect with considerable encouragement by others, drained one of the tanks before I returned to the field. He obtained 20 gallons from this tank and, not knowing that there were four others, concluded that I had no more fuel remaining aboard.” Citing a recent false report that he was planning to make a speech, which he found “even more inaccurate than the mechanic's estimate,” he blamed them both on the “simple and irresponsible purpose of printing something that will fill space and bring readers.” Lindbergh concludes by thanking Findley for his comments on 1927 book, “ We” , written shortly after his historic flight, recalling that he “wrote practically all of the manuscript in three weeks at Harry Guggenheim's estate ojn [sic] Long Island, and don’t feel too proud of the result. However, I still think it was a lot better than the ghost-written manuscript which was submitted for my approval, and turned down.