The US Army bought two Vegas, both DL-1 aircraft with metal fuselages, built in Detroit. 31-405 was assigned to NACA at Langley and scrapped in 1935. The other one was 31-408, a DL-1B Special, designated Y1C-17. The fastest aircraft in the Army, it was used for an attempt at America's west to east transcontinental speed record, but crashed in Kentucky. Also, one L-5C Vega was impressed during WWII as 42-94148. Photo from: US Air Force

Constructed January 1929 as aVega 1 and owned by Lockheed as NC199E. 19 Jun '31: MacMillan Arctic Exploration Co.Ltd., Los Angeles, CA and remodeled as a Vega Special. 11/33: New owner converted it to Vega 2D. Many owners over the years, including Paul Mantz who registered it N965Y. 5/68: Acquired by Ford Museum.

Donald MacMillan (1874-1970), standing on the float, made over 30 expeditions to the Arctic. In 1931 he used this white and orange Vega on an air survey and photo expedition to Labrador and Greenland, sponsored by Multicolor film. Built as an L-1 Vega in 1929, the plane had first been used by an operator in Montana. After MacMillan it had many owners. In the 1960s it was used for movie work by Paul Mantz and Frank Tallman, and registered N965Y to play Amelia Earhart's Vega NC965Y. It is preserved in the Henry Ford museum in Dearborn. Photo by: Leslie Jones / Boston Public Library

Built in 1934, the last Vega, NC14236 - see other photo of this c/n - was requisitioned, as the sole UC-101, for the US Army Corps of Engineers. It was actually used by the Army's First Motion Picture Unit, flown by the well-known movie stunt pilot, Paul Mantz. It is seen here with the XC-69 Constellation prototype, NX25600. Photo from: Lockheed Martin

The last Vega built. Standard paint scheme, white with green trim. Owned by W P Fuller, paint manufacturers, until 1936, then by Phillips Petroleum. Requisitioned as the sole UC-101, 42-94148, and flown by Paul Mantz - see other photo of this c/n. Sold as N48610 to Boardman Precision Manufacturing Co in 1944. Crashed near El Paso on 9 June 1945.

Crashed into Crook Canyon, Arizona, in bad weather, killing both occupants, on November 5, 1928. Photo from: Los Angeles Public Library

From a 1937 image showing one of the Braniff Airlines fleet at what is probably the site of the current Oklahoma City airport. Although the registration letters are mostly obscured, this is also most certainly Lockheed Vega NC12288 (later N12288). Constructed in March 1933 by ex-employees of the bankrupt Detroit Aircraft who had purchased a majority interest in Lockheed in 1929. The aircraft was originally owned by Morrell Meat Packing Company but was modified for Braniff use. It later passed to other owners and was later wrecked. The remains were recovered and restored to flying condition.

Operated by The Detroit News on wheels, skis and even floats. WWJ was the call sign of the pioneering Detroit News Radiophone, today WWJ Newsradio 950. Photo from: The Henry Ford

The rough, remote airstrip at Harbour Grace saw many successful and unsuccessful transatlantic flight attempts. Pilot Henry Brown and John Mears walked away from the wreck of Mears' Vega. Dog Tailwind ran off and was not found. Photo from: Library and Archives Canada

Photo presumably taken at Roosevelt Field. Pilot Henry Brown, owner John Mears and dog Tailwind took off from Roosevelt Field on 1 August 1930 for their 'goodwill flight round the world' but crashed on take-off from Harbour Grace, Newfoundland two days later - see other photo. Photo from: Nationaal Archief (Netherlands)

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

'Ruth Nichols, society aviatrix, who plans another transatlantic attempt in the near future, made first test flight of her reconstructed plane, the Akita, at Jersey City, NJ, airport, on Aug. 26. She is fairly recovered from spine injuries she suffered June 23 [actually 22] when her plane cracked up at the St. John, NB, airport on her contemplated ocean flight.' Nichols' delays allowed Amelia Earhart to become the first woman to solo across the Atlantic in May 1932. Below the cockpit it reads 'Loaned to Ruth Nichols by Crosley Radio Corp.' Crosley Radio Corp. titles on tailfin. The strange c/n 619 was assigned by the CAA according to Lockheed records. Photo from: Federal Aviation Administration

Earhart in Oakland. Amelia had just become the first person to fly solo from Hawaii to the US mainland. By 1935 this was no longer a major aviation milestone, but it still meant a dangerous 19-hour flight. Photo from: Purdue University Libraries

Amelia Earhart's Vega NR965Y, almost certainly seen at Wheeler Field before her 19-hour flight to Oakland, California. Photo from: Purdue University Libraries

Built in 1931, this Vega was used, as NR965Y, by Amelia Earhart to fly to from Honolulu, Hawaii to Oakland, California on 11 January 1935. She also took it from LA to Mexico City and from Mexico to Newark. The tailfin records a speedy NY to LA flight as well. The name Record Breaker was given by later owner Glover Ruckstell, who bought the plane in 1939 for sightseeing flights, presumably over the Grand Canyon. Photo from: State of Hawaii Department of Transportation

The first Vega NR869E. Jimmie Mattern and Bennett Griffin, whose names are marked in the circle on the fuselage, flew this plane from Floyd Bennett Field to Berlin in July 1932 as part of a round-the-world attempt. They crashed in Belarus as the cabin door came off and struck the tailplane. Smaller parts of the wreck were returned to the USA and used in the refurbishment of Mattern's second Vega, ex NC106N, with the reg NR869E, too, carried over at his request. Both aircraft went by the name Century of Progress, but it is not worn here. Photo by: Rudy Arnold / Smithsonian Institution

Stanavo was the aviation fuel brand of Standard Oil (Esso). This airframe was originally Vega 5 NC7440, c/n 20. It was rebuilt in September-October 1929 and the new c/n 118 was issued. 'Originally painted white, red lettering, then with eagle outline and later with full length eagle paint job, red on white.' When Jimmie Mattern acquired it in 1933 it was presumably in a dismantled state. It was refurbished using only a few parts of his crashed Vega NR869E (c/n 69), but Mattern wished to retain his old reg. He crashed the new NR869E in Siberia in June 1933. Photo from: San Diego Air & Space Museum

The second Vega NR869E. The first (c/n 69) crashed during a round-the-world flight. Salvaged parts were used to prepare this plane, ex NC106N with Standard Oil, for a second attempt. The Stanovo eagle on the fuselage formed the basis for a spectacular red on blue livery. Jimmie Mattern departed solo on 3 June 1933, but found navigation difficult and crashed due to the use of tractor fuel following an unscheduled landing in Siberia. Photo by: Rudy Arnold / Smithsonian Institution