AMERICA Museum:
The
AMERICA Museum pays tribute to the four American pioneers of aviation:
Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr., George Otto Noville, Bertrand Blanchard Acosta and
Bernt Balchen.
Aboard
a Fokker VII C2, a large three-engine aircraft specially modified for the
occasion which bears the name AMERICA, the four adventurers took off from
the Roosevelt Field aerodrome (near New York) on the morning of June 29,
1927 to carry out the first crewed air crossing of the North Atlantic and
the first airmail link between the United States of America and France.
Although the weather forecast was assumed to be favorable before
takeoff, the weather took a turn for the worse when our aviators approached
the French coast above Brest on the evening of June 30. Rain, clouds and fog
disrupt navigation. While they think they are close to Le Bourget airfield
in Paris, bad weather and clouds prevent them from finding the landing
strip. The noise of the Fokker's engines is nevertheless heard on the ground
but the plane remains invisible. The fuel level drops dangerously and Byrd
decides to find a clear spot to attempt a soft landing. He gives the order
to head northwest to get closer to the Channel coast.
As they approach the Bay of Seine and night falls, after almost 42 hours of
flight, there is not much fuel left. The crew sees the light beam of a
lighthouse. The aviators head for the beam and will attempt to land near the
lighthouse...
The AMERICA museum presents the history of this flight through
numerous dioramas and also presents relics of the AMERICA plane. The
“Pioneer Room” recalls some attempted crossings of the North Atlantic that
were made during this period.
To enrich the visit, the museum also presents a permanent exhibition
dedicated to French airmail as well as weather forecasts.
Discover a compilation of archive films presenting the AMERICA and
its crew, with the departure from New York, the influx of curious people and
souvenir collectors on the beach of Ver on the morning of July 1 after the
landing of the Fokker in the middle of the night and the triumphant welcome
of the Parisian public at Saint-Lazare station then at Paris city hall.
    
   
 
Click on a picture to see a larger version in a new window.
|