Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly across the Atlantic solo in May 1932. She took off in Harbour Grace and intended to reach Paris but ran into a storm and had to put her 'Little Red Bus' down in a pasture near Londonderry. Photo from: Derry Central Library

A gem that belonged to famed aviatrix Amelia Earhart, this Vega is on display in the Barron Hilton Pioneers of Flight Gallery exhibition at the National Air and Space Museum. Calling it her "Little Red Bus", Earhart flew this aircraft non-stop across the Atlantic solo in 1932, becoming the first female pilot and second after Charles Lindbergh to accomplish the feat. In the same year, she set another record in this Vega by flying non-stop alone across the USA.

Lockheed Vega built in 1932 and flown solo over the Atlantic that year by Amelia Earhart, thus becoming the first woman to achieve that solo flight.

Amelia Earhart flew solo across the Atlantic in this aircraft, and also solo coast-to-coast from Los Angeles, Ca to Newark, NJ. Both flights took place in 1932.