In 1931, he was placed in the reserves with the rank of first lieutenant and returned to civilian life to work with his father-in-law who operated a flying school in Kohler, Wisconsin.

A few months after the Lituanica tragedy, some prominent members of the Chicago Lithuanian community discussed the possibility of financing another transatlantic flight.

When the pilot originally chosen for the flight unexpectedly resigned in the spring, the Lithuanian organizers turned to Feliksas Vaitkus, and he accepted the challenge to fly to Lithuania.

The original flight date was postponed to 1935 because modifications were needed to strengthen the aircraft's structure due to the installation of extra fuel tanks and a more powerful engine.

One thousand letters were onboard too to be delivered to Lithuania, and ribbons from Lithuanian-Americans of Chicago for the graves of Steponas Darius and Stasys Girėnas.

Unfortunately, Vaitkus had to fight the worst possible weather conditions, flying through rain, fog, and icing, so that most of his navigation had to be by his new radio compass.