Charles Lindbergh's flying hat, worn during the first New York-Paris flight, to go under the hammer

PARIS.- It is a high-flying sale that Drouot Estimations will offer at the beginning of next term. An historical piece will be presented at auction: Captain Charles Lindbergh’s (1902-1974) flying hat, worn during the first New York – Paris flight in May 20th and 21st, 1927. (60 000 / 80 000 €).

Flight log

Year 1927
Captain Charles Lindbergh, an American air and sea pilot, begins the Atlantic crossing of the West-East alone. Thanks to the help of Saint Louis inhabitants, he acquires a small Ryan monoplane, especially revised and equipped, which he christens The Spirit Of Saint Louis.  New York, morning of May 20th, 1927 The morning of 20th May 1927, Lindbergh takes off along Long Island not far from New York. After that follows a 30 hours flight above the Atlantic sea.

Le Bourget, May 21st, 1927
Charles Lindbergh, known as the lone eagle, lands in Le Bourget airport in May 21st. Welcomed by a giant crowd, he loses his flying hat, purloined by a former mechanic, who will restitute it the same evening to the United States ambassador.

Paris, May 27th
Within the following days, Lindbergh, who got his flying hat back, is authorized to fly over Paris.

The morning of May 27th, he goes back to Le Bourget where he is being given a Nieuport fighter plane. He then takes off for a journey over the Parisian sky, followed by the test pilot Michel Détrovat.

When they get back, the two pilots practice an air combat over which Lindbergh loses his cherished hat.  Le Bourget, May 28th The next day, a resident of Le Bourget finds the hat in her garden and decides to keep it with devotion.

France, 1927 - 1969
 The hat reappears in 1969 and is authenticated during a famous TV show, Les dossiers de l’écran, dedicated that night to Lindbergh. Charles Lindbergh’s flying hat had then been kept by the same family since 1927.

A hat for History
It is a soft brown leather sheepskin lined helmet realized in two parts. It is closed by a large girth with a press stud. The sheepskin inside holds a label written “V.L. & A. CHICAGO Sporting Goods exclusived” (Von Lengerke & Antoine) (60 000 / 80 000 €).