CHARLES A. LINDBERGH - TYPED LETTER SIGNED 07/11/1930 - HFSID 285256

CHARLES LINDBERGH
After testing a new electrically heated flight suit in 1930, Lindbergh reports to the inventor that it "functioned perfectly" but tore too easily.
Typed Letter signed: "C. A. Lindbergh", 1 page, 8½x11. New York City, 1930 July 11. On personal letterhead to Dr. Burton R. Charles, Radium Products Laboratories, Los Angeles. In full: "I am sorry I have been unable to answer your letter sooner. Up to the present time the electrically heated flying suits have functioned perfectly. The rubberized material we decided to use for the outside tears very easily and in constructing any more suits the only suggestion I have to make is that a more rugged material be used." Normal mailing folds. Right edge stained 1" full length. Vertical fold passes through "A" of signature. Otherwise, fine condition. Accompanied by: a tapestry (19" x 20") showing Lindbergh standing in front of the Spirit of St. Louis. In the lower margin is woven "Lindbergh." On the verso is woven "Made in France" and "Registered." Charles A. Lindbergh (1902-1974), previously an unknown US Air Mail pilot, achieved lasting fame by flying solo, non-stop from Long Island to Paris in his monoplane, the Spirit of St Louis, a distance of 3,600 miles. The US Army reservist was awarded the Medal of Honor, and earned the nicknames "Lucky Lindy" and "The Lone Eagle." Electrically heated flight suits were first introduced in World War I, used by both sides in high-altitude bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. They would be essential for World War II bomber crews, who went to very high altitudes without pressurized cabins. However, there were many problems with the suits, including bulkiness, and the need for a special electric generator to power them. (There were even injuries resulting from short circuits. So improved suits were badly needed. Radium Products Laboratories has left no obvious mark on history. Did it merge with another company or simply close? Burton R. Charles, however, was granted 72 patents. Although Lindbergh sent this letter on his personal stationery, he was at this time serving as a consultant to Pan American Airlines and Transcontinental Air Transport, flying their aircraft and advising them on both routes and equipment, so his interest in improved flight suits is obvious. (He had worn an unheated suit on his historic trans-Atlantic flight.) Two items.