AMERICA Museum:

 The AMERICA Museum pays tribute to the four American pioneers of aviation: Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr., George Otto Noville, Bertrand Blanchard Acosta and Bernt Balchen.

  Aboard a Fokker VII C2, a large three-engine aircraft specially modified for the occasion which bears the name AMERICA, the four adventurers took off from the Roosevelt Field aerodrome (near New York) on the morning of June 29, 1927 to carry out the first crewed air crossing of the North Atlantic and the first airmail link between the United States of America and France.

 Although the weather forecast was assumed to be favorable before takeoff, the weather took a turn for the worse when our aviators approached the French coast above Brest on the evening of June 30. Rain, clouds and fog disrupt navigation. While they think they are close to Le Bourget airfield in Paris, bad weather and clouds prevent them from finding the landing strip. The noise of the Fokker's engines is nevertheless heard on the ground but the plane remains invisible. The fuel level drops dangerously and Byrd decides to find a clear spot to attempt a soft landing. He gives the order to head northwest to get closer to the Channel coast. 

As they approach the Bay of Seine and night falls, after almost 42 hours of flight, there is not much fuel left. The crew sees the light beam of a lighthouse. The aviators head for the beam and will attempt to land near the lighthouse...

 The AMERICA museum presents the history of this flight through numerous dioramas and also presents relics of the AMERICA plane. The “Pioneer Room” recalls some attempted crossings of the North Atlantic that were made during this period.

 To enrich the visit, the museum also presents a permanent exhibition dedicated to French airmail as well as weather forecasts.

 Discover a compilation of archive films presenting the AMERICA and its crew, with the departure from New York, the influx of curious people and souvenir collectors on the beach of Ver on the morning of July 1 after the landing of the Fokker in the middle of the night and the triumphant welcome of the Parisian public at Saint-Lazare station then at Paris city hall.

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