Question 1

True or false: The first non-stop transatlantic flight took off from New York City.

Accepted Answer

False. The first non-stop transatlantic flight was by Alcock and Brown, who departed from St. John's, Newfoundland, in 1919.

Question 2

True or false: Charles Lindbergh was the first person to fly solo nonstop across the Atlantic.

Accepted Answer

True. Lindbergh did it in 1927, but it's often assumed he was the first overall. Two British aviators made the first nonstop crossing in 1919—with a crew.

Question 3

True or false: The first non-stop transatlantic flight was completed by John Alcock and Arthur Brown in 1919.

Accepted Answer

True. They flew a modified Vickers Vimy from Newfoundland to Ireland in June 1919, winning a £10,000 Daily Mail prize. The flight lasted about 16 hours.

Question 4

True or false: The first nonstop transatlantic flight was completed by a single pilot.

Accepted Answer

False. John Alcock and Arthur Brown flew a Vickers Vimy from Newfoundland to Ireland in 1919. It was a two-man crew, not a solo pilot.

Question 5

True or false: The first non-stop transatlantic flight carried mail but no passengers.

Accepted Answer

True. Alcock and Brown's 1919 non-stop flight carried a sack of 196 letters and a parcel, but no passengers besides the two pilots, making it the first airmail crossing.

Question 6

True or false: Lindbergh's plane, the Spirit of St. Louis, had no front windshield.

Accepted Answer

True. To save weight and improve aerodynamics, Lindbergh used a periscope instead of a windshield. He had to look out side windows to see forward.

Question 7

True or false: A dirigible flew across the Atlantic before any airplane did.

Accepted Answer

False. The first nonstop transatlantic flight was by airplane: Alcock and Brown flew from Newfoundland to Ireland on June 14–15, 1919. The British airship R34 crossed in July 1919, so the airplane crossed first.

Question 8

True or false: The first nonstop transatlantic flight ended with the plane crashing into the ocean.

Accepted Answer

False. Alcock and Brown crash-landed in a bog in Ireland, but they survived. No one died on that first nonstop crossing.

The First Transatlantic Flight Trivia Questions