Clarence Chamberlin
Clarence Duncan Chamberlin (November 11, 1893 – October 30, 1976) was the second man to solo fly across the Atlantic Ocean, and he was the first to carry a passenger.
With Charles A. Levine as his passenger, Chamberlin made a record nonstop flight, in his monoplane Columbia, from Roosevelt Field, Long Island to Eisleben, Germany, a distance of 3,911 miles, in 42 hours and 31 minutes. The flight was from June 4, 1927 through June 6, 1927. He used a Bellanca monoplane, designed by Giuseppe Mario Bellanca.
Time (magazine) wrote on June 27, 1927:
Pilot Clarence Duncan Chamberlin and passenger Charles A. Levine were last week enjoying the hospitality of Germans, resting in the watering place known as Baden-Baden, inspecting huge multi-motored airships at the Dornier and Zeppelin plants. Some of their doings: Fraulein Thea Rasche, Germany's only licensed woman pilot, was taken for a ride over Berlin by Pilot Chamberlin. Skillful, she also took passenger Levine for a ride. Correspondents heralded the trips as strengthening to U.S. - German relations. Flyers Chamberlin and Levine hustled to Bremen to meet their respective wives, who arrived from the U.S. Said Mrs. Chamberlin on seeing her husband: "Why, your knickers are awful. Didn't you even have them cleaned?" Then the two couples flew to Berlin in three hops. The two wives were reported to be feeling ill after the first hop. "The Columbia is not on the market," said Mr. Levine when Grover Cleveland Bergdoll, rich U.S. slacker now living in Germany, offered to buy the monoplane. Mr. Bergdoll let it be known that he desires to fly to the U.S. to show that he is no coward, that conscientious objection was his only reason for refusing to fight in the World War.
External links
- Clarence Chamberlin bibliography
- Early Aviators: Clarence Chamberlin
- Des Moine Register: Clarence Chamberlin
Reference
- Time (magazine); June 27, 1927; Chamberlin & Levine