Chapter 2: The Lone Eagle Spreads His Wings

Even after graduating from high school, his yearning to become a pilot had not faded.  In 1920, Charles enrolled at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, choosing to major in mechanical engineering.  He found out early on he may not have been cut out for academia as he was struggling to perform well in most of his classes, including math and chemistry; as a result, he was placed on academic probation by his class advisor.  Having come to the realization that he was unlikely to endure through college, he made the decision to leave in order to focus his attention on achieving his dream.  He would head to Nebraska to enroll in flying school at the Nebraska Aircraft Corporation.  

            At flying school, Lindbergh learned how “to wing-walk, to parachute-jump, and eventually to pilot an airplane.” (Lindbergh, 63) Clearly Lindbergh was more of a daredevil than the average person, as being a pilot was a dangerous business in the early days of aviation.  Most pilots at the time (as Lindbergh would beginning in June 1922) made their living barnstorming, a practice in which pilots would travel across the country performing in air shows showcasing their flying abilities as well as performing stunts for crowds; they are many documented stories of pilots dying during these events, with crowds having to witness them fall to their deaths.  Charles was highly likely to be aware of the dangers being a pilot entailed, however his passion for aviation outweighed any perceived risks; he had also expressed his willingness to die doing something he enjoyed than working a dull behind-a-desk job (what he believed his college degree would have gotten him).

            Charles barnstormed for two years, then decided to enlist in the U.S. Army to train as a pilot with the Army Air Service; he was sent to Brooks Field in San Antonio, Texas for training.  He was excited about the prospect of flying more high-tech planes, “…types of airplanes no barnstormer could afford to buy and operate.  Such opportunities were more desirable than money.” (Lindbergh, 64) Charles graduated from flying school in March 1925, however he was not chosen for the rank of second Lieutenant, so he needed to begin his job search.  Charles made his home near Lambert Field in St. Louis, Missouri where he began barnstorming again, providing instruction to pilots in training, and subsequently joining the Missouri National Guard.  Even though the military had no need for his service during peace time, Lindbergh still found a way to pursue his passion by moving himself somewhere he had never lived before and working to make a name for himself in aviation.  In October 1925, Lindbergh was hired by the Robertson Aircraft Corporation as their chief pilot.  Robertson Aircraft Corporation would win a federal government contract to deliver mail, so part of his role as chief pilot was to supervise the operations of mail delivery in the Midwest.

              Raymond Orteig, a French hotelier, became fascinated in the future of aviation after hearing a speech from renowned American pilot Eddie Rickenbacker, who expressed his desire to see the United States and France connected via flight.  Orteig decided to offer a $25,000 prize (approx. $454,000 in July 2024 money) to anyone living in a country allied with the Triple Entente (short description: the countries allied against Germany and Serbia during WWI) who could successfully fly across the Atlantic Ocean from New York to Paris or vice versa.  With money being the likely motivating factor, many “pilots” (amateurs) decided to take on this risky endeavor, with all of them failing and some of which losing their lives in the process.  Lindbergh was aware of the existence of the prize, however as he describes in Autobiography of Values, his motivation for competing was greater than any material reward: “The problems of establishing aviation as a common means of transport ran through my mind during solitary hours of mail flying.” (Lindbergh, 70)