Amelia Earhart began the first solo flight by a woman across the Atlantic

At the age of 34, on the morning of May 20, 1932, Earhart set off from Harbour Grace,Newfoundland with a copy of the Telegraph-Journal, given to her by journalist Stuart Trueman, intended to confirm the date of the flight.

 She intended to fly to Paris in her single engine Lockheed Vega 5B to emulate Charles Lindbergh's solo flight.

Her technical advisor for the flight was famed Norwegian American aviator Bernt Balchen who helped prepare her aircraft. He also played the role of "decoy" for the press as he was ostensibly preparing Earhart's Vega for his own Arctic flight.

 After a flight lasting 14 hours, 56 minutes during which she contended with strong northerly winds, icy conditions and mechanical problems, Earhart landed in a pasture at Culmore, north of Derry, Northern Ireland.

The landing was witnessed by Cecil King and T. Sawyer. When a farm hand asked,

"Have you flown far?"

Earhart replied,

"From America."

The site now is the home of a small museum, the Amelia Earhart Centre