in 1919, New York City Hotel owner-Raymond Orteig offered a prize of $25,000 to the first aviator to fly nonstop between New York and Paris. Before 1927 , no one had won the prize. Lindbergh found the challenge irresistible. He helped design a special plane, which hw named the Spirit of st. Louis, after the city whose businesspeople had raised funds for the flight. On the morning of May 20, 1927, Lindbergh left Roosevelt Field, near New York City, at 7:52. Thirty-three and 3,600 miles later, he landed at Le Bourget Field, near Paris. Shy and boyish in loohs, the 25-years-old pilot became a worldwind hero for his daring feat.