How fast could you travel across the country, across an ocean, or around the world? A few hours? 80 days? 

The answer has changed over time as technology has advanced.

Some of the most famous pilots—Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart—rose to fame by setting (or breaking) these records. Find their stories and others you may not know below.

The stories on this page aren’t a complete list of record-breaking flights. You can find more stories on our Records and Firsts topic page—and new achievements are being made every year.

Jump to a Section: Crossing the Country      Crossing the Ocean      Circling the Globe      Other Distance Records      For Young Learners
 

Who were the first people to fly across the country?

Cal Rodgers and "Vin Fiz" at Long Beach, CA

1911

First Transcontinental Flight

The first person to fly across the country was Calbraith Perry Rodgers. He did not fly nonstop—he had to stop many times and crashed many more. His trip took him 49 days.

The Flight      His Plane

Macready and Kelly with the Fokker T-2

1923

First Nonstop Transcontinental Flight

After World War I, the U.S. Army Air Service was testing the limits of flight. Lieutenants John A. Macready and Oakely G. Kelly helped do this by making the first nonstop flight across the United States. The flight took 27 hours, and required significant planning, engineering, and trial and error. 

The Flight
Their Plane
A highlight in a newspaper show photographs of Nick Mamer and Art Walker, white adult men, and their plane under the headline "Sun God Rests Wings After 7,500-Mile Trip Without Any Landings"

1929

First Round-Trip Transcontinental Flight

Nick Mamer and Art Walker were the first people to make a nonstop round-trip transcontinental flight, flying from Spokane, WA to New York, NY. The trip took five days, requiring refueling in air. The refueling alone made history as the first night refueling and the first in-air refueling about 8,000 feet in altitude. At one dangerous point, the plane’s propeller cut the fuel line mid-refuel. Thankfully the spilled fuel did not catch fire. 

Continuing to Make History

The first pilots to fly across country were all white men. Women and pilots of color faced more barriers. They often found it difficult to find flying schools that would train them. They also had additional considerations for their safety on long distance flights, and may not have had the same access to financial support.

However, this didn’t keep them from setting records. When a woman or person of color made one of these long-distance flights, it was often used to advocate for opening the skies to more people. 
 

Amelia Earhart sits inside the cockpit of an aircraft. She is wearing an aviator hat and goggles.

First Woman to Fly Across America Solo

Amelia Earhart
1932

When Earhart made this flight nonstop, she established a women's record of 19 hours and 5 minutes and setting a women's distance record of 2,447 miles. This was one of Earhart's many firsts. 

The Flight

Her Plane
 

James Banning in the Alexander Eaglerock Biplane

First African Americans to Fly Across America

James Banning and Thomas Cox Allen
1932

When Banning and Allen took off, they had $25 and a plan. They’d stop in towns where they knew people for safe lodging, and raise money along the way. Needless to say, things didn’t go according to plan.

The Flight
 

Anderson and Forsythe Study a Map

First Black Pilots to Fly Nonstop Round-Trip Across American

Charles A. Anderson and Albert E. Forsythe 
1933

Forsythe and Anderson beat the record setting flights that came before them by flying from Atlantic City, NJ to Los Angeles, CA and back in 65 hours—almost half the time of the first non-stop round-trip flight. 

About Anderson

Who were the first people to fly across the Atlantic Ocean? 

A black and white photograph of a man in a military uniform staring intensely at the camera. A plane's propellor is visible behind him.

1919

First Flight Across the Atlantic

The first flight to cross the Atlantic Ocean was a long one. The six-person crew made the five-leg flight in 24 days. 

The crew consisted of: Lt. Elmer F. Stone, U.S. Coast Guard, pilot; Chief Machinist’s Mate Eugene S. Rhodes, engineer; Lt. Walter Hinton, copilot; Ensign Herbert C. Rodd, radio officer; Lt. James L. Breese, engineer; and Lt. Cmdr. Albert C. Read, commanding officer and navigator.

They began on May 8, 1919, at the naval air station at Rockaway Beach, New York. It followed a route to Nova Scotia; Newfoundland; the Azores in the middle of the Atlantic; Lisbon, Portugal; and Portsmouth, England. 

The U.S. Navy organized the flight to prove the capability of the airplane. Two other flying boats, the NC-1 and NC-3 also attempted the flight. Only the NC-4 completed the transatlantic journey.

His Plane
A black and white photograph of an airplane in flight.

1919

First Nonstop Flight Across the Atlantic

Less than a month after the U.S. Navy completed the first transatlantic flight in 24 days, two men completed it non-stop in 16 hours. John William Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown flew from St. John’s, Newfoundland and crash landed in a bog near Galway, Ireland.

Aircraft against a black background.

1927

First Nonstop Solo Flight Across the Atlantic

Charles Lindbergh crossed the Atlantic solo in May 1927. After 33 hours, 30 minutes, and 3,610 miles later he landed his plane, the Spirit of St. Louis, safely near Paris, where he was greeted by a wildly enthusiastic crowd of 100,000.

About Lindbergh      His Plane

1932

First Woman to Fly Nonstop and Solo Across the Atlantic

In May 1932, Amelia Earhart became the first woman—and the second person after Charles Lindbergh—to fly nonstop and solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She left Harbor Grace, Newfoundland, Canada, and landed about 15 hours later near Londonderry, Northern Ireland. The feat made Earhart an instant worldwide sensation. 

About Earhart   The Flight   Her Plane

Man in glasses accepts ticket from other man (plane model in foreground)

1939

First Passenger Flight Across the Atlantic

Pan American’s Dixie Clipper was the first passenger plane to fly across the Atlantic, travelling from New York to France.

A Passenger's Experience

Who were the first people to fly around the world? 

The Douglas World Cruiser World Flight Crews

1924

First Flight Around the World

After World War I, the U.S. Army Air Service was testing the limits of flight and announced it would make the first around the world flight. Four planes took off, two would make the 175 day journey. Crews prevailed against an endless series of forced landings, repairs, and bad weather. A monumental logistical accomplishment, it was an important step toward world-wide air transport.

The Flight      Their Planes

Wiley Post stands on the side of his Winnie Mae aircraft, under its left wing.

1933

First Person to Fly Solo Around the World

In July 1933, Wiley Post made history as the first person to fly solo around the world. 

Two years earlier, Post and his navigator Harold Gatty made the flight around the world in record time. Their 14-stop route took only 8 days, 15 hours, and 51 minutes. 

Flying solo, Post followed his former route but only made 11 stops. His 15,596-mile journey took only 7 days, 18 hours, and 49 minutes.

His Plane
Pan Am Boeing 314

1942

First Passenger Flight Around the World (Arguably)

In January 1942 a B-314 flying boat operated by Pan American World Airways landed in New York after making arguably the first around the world flight by a commercial airliner. But when they set out from San Francisco in 1941, they never intended to hold that record.

Transcript

Continuing to Make History

The first pilots to around the globe were all white men. As mentioned above, many white men had opportunities that women and people of color did not. For instance, a woman could not have flown for the U.S. Army Air Service in the 1920s. 

This didn't stop women and people of colors for making these history making long distance flight, however, they did make them later. 

Wall Slide

First Woman to Fly Around the World

Jerrie Mock 
1964

Almost three decades after Amelia Earhart famously disappeared while attempting to fly around the world, Jerrie Mock made the trip. 

The Flight

Her Plane

Barrington Irving

First Black Man to Fly Solo Around the World

Barrington Irving Jr. 
2007

Irving, originally from Jamacia, was a college student in Florida when he circumnavigated the globe. At the time, he was the youngest person to fly around the Earth. 

Hear from Irving

A black-and-white photo of Amelia Earhart, smiling for the camera, wearing a flight jacket. Her hair is cut short and tousled.

Most Famous Failed Attempt

Amelia Earhart 
1937

Amelia Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan disappeared while attempting to fly around the world. 

The Flight

Model of Her Plane

The firsts represented on this page are not the only people to set records with long distance flying. As technology evolves and people’s imagination and ambition continues to look to the sky, new records are continually being set. Here's just a small sample. 

Rutan Voyager in flight with a chase plane

First Nonstop Non-refueled Flight Around the World

Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager
1986 

The pilots, the designer, and the crew chief earned aviation's most prestigious award, the Collier Trophy.

The Flight

Their Plane

Robinson R44 Astro G-MURY

First Woman to Fly a Helicopter Around the World

Jennifer Murray
1997

Jennifer Murray has flown around the world twice. In 1997, she flew with her instructor, Quentin Smith, becoming the first woman to fly a helicopter around the world. Three years later in 2000, Murray made her second around-the-world flight, becoming the first woman to do so solo in a helicopter.

Her Helicopter

Breitling Orbiter 3 Balloon

First Nonstop Flight Around the World in a Free Balloon

Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones
1999

Piccard and Jones piloted their balloon to altitudes of over 30,000 feet, where jet stream winds would drive it across the Pacific at over 100 miles per hour.

Their Balloon

Other Record-Setting Long Distance Flights

Many other pilots made headlines with long-distance flights that weren't crossing or circling a distance, or who weren’t the first to do so. 

Chauncey E. Spencer and Dale L. White

1939

In the 1930s, advocates for Black pilots used the news generated by long-distance flights made by African American aviators to advocate for more opportunities.

Chauncey Spencer and Dale White made a “Goodwill Flight” across America, including a stop in Washington D.C. to meet with lawmakers including then Senator Harry S. Truman. 

The Flight

Timeline

This page was organized by the type of record-setting long distance flight, but you might be wondering: how do all these dates line up? The timeline puts all the dates in chronological order. 

1911: First Transcontinental (Cross-Country) Flight by Calbraith Perry Rodgers

1919: First Flight Across the Atlantic for the U.S. Navy

1919: First Nonstop Flight Across the Atlantic by John Alcock and Arthur Brown

1923:  First Nonstop Transcontinental Flight by Lts. Oakley Kelly and John Macready for the U.S. Army Air Service

1924: First Flight Around the World by the crews of two Douglas World Cruiser’s for the U.S. Army Air Service

1927: First Nonstop Solo Flight Across the Atlantic by Charles Lindbergh

1928: First Woman to Fly Across the Atlantic as a Passenger by Amelia Earhart

1932: First Woman to Fly Nonstop and Solo Across the Atlantic by Amelia Earhart

1932: First Woman to Fly Nonstop and Solo Cross-Country by Amelia Earhart

1932: First African Americans to Fly Cross Country by James Banning and Thomas Cox Allen

1933: First African Americans to Fly Round-Trip, Nonstop Cross-Country by Charles A. Anderson and Albert E. Forsythe

1933: First Person to Fly Solo Around the World by Wiley Post

1937: Amelia Earhart Disappears Attempting to Fly Around the World

1939: First Passenger Flight Across the Atlantic by Pan Am’s Dixie Clipper

1942: Arguably the First Passenger Flight Around the World By Pan Am’s B-314 Flying Boat

1964: First Woman to Fly Around the World by Jerrie Mock

1986: First Nonstop Non-Refueled Flight Around the World by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager

1997: First Woman to Fly a Helicopter Around the World by Jennifer Murray

1999: First Nonstop Free Balloon Flight Around the World by Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones

2007: Barrington Irving Jr. First Black Man to Fly Solo Around the World

Resources for Young Learners

An illustration of two animals flying a plane around the globe.

Pilot Pals Story Time Video

For early childhood learners

In this short (less than 2 minute) animated video, learn the history of the first flight around the world. 

Graphic with aviation and space related drawings and the STEM in 30 logo in the middle of it.

STEM in 30

For middle schoolers

In this 30 minute episode, look at aerospace records and investigate how other world records are achieved.

A young child with joy on his face holds up an airplane at Soar Together.

Soar Together

Activities for families with kids age 4 through 12

Explore what it takes to set an aerospace record with videos and activities for families. 

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