Kipahulu, Maui, Hawaii, August 26 -- Charles A. Linbergh, the first man to fly the Atlantic solo nonstop, died this morning at his simple seaside home here. He was 72 years old.

The cause of death was cancer of the lymphatic system according to Dr. Milton Howell, a longtime friend. With him when he died at 7:15 A.M. local time were his wife, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, the writer, and Land, one of his three sons.

Mr. Lindbergh was buried about three hours later in the cemetery adjoining the tiny Kipahulu church . He was dressed in simple work clothing and his body was placed in a coffin built by cowboys employed at cattle reanches in the nearby town of hana. Dr. Howell said that the aviator had spent the last weeks of his life planning his funeral. In a tribute this evening to Mr. Lindbergh, President Ford said the courage and daring of his Atlantic flight would never be forgotten. He said the selfless, sincere man himself would be remembered as one of America's all-time heroes and a great poineer of the air age that changed the world.

Mr. Lindbergh warrived here eight days ago after a 26-day stay in Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York for treatment of his illness. He was flown to Honolulu on a United Airlines flight on Aug. 17 and then was brought to his island by small plane. The trip has been kept secret at his request.

"When he knew that he would not recover; Mr. Lindbergh requested that he be taken here from Columbia so he could die," Dr. Howell said. "He had made his vacation home here for many years and he wanted to die here."

Mr. Lindbergh, whose New York-to-Paris flight in 1927 in a the monoplane Spirit of St. Louis brough him lasting celebrity, built an A-frame cottage here in 1971. It looked out onthe Pacific, and it was the place where he had hoped to retire after years of restless global wanderings as a consultant for Pan-American World Airways. He had hoped to write a longpostponed book outlining his philosophical and conservationist views.

Mr. Lindbergh slipped into a coma late last night, Dr. Howell said, but until then he had been fully alert and aware of his surroundings. the aviator made no final statement, according to the physician, who said Mr. Lindbergh's "final theme was that he would like for his actions in coming to Maui in having a simple funeral to be- in itself-a constructiove act.

Mr. Lindbergh's whole life centered on aviation, but in recent years he developed an active concern with conservation. this interest brough him into the news after a quartercentury of self-imposed obscurity. One of his last public appearances occurred last summer in Little Falls, Minn where he was born, to dedicate a public park in honor of his father, C.A. Lindbergh Sr., a former United States Representative.

Before Mr. Lindbergh left New York, he talked wiht his two sones, Scott of Paris and on of Seattle. He also saw his daughters, Anne and Reeve. Anne, who also lives in Paris, was visiting her parents at their home in Darien, Conn.

Mr Lindbergh was ill last fall, suffering from what was then diagnosed as shingles. He lost about 20 pounds, but by last spring he had managed to regain about 10 of them. Just before he entered th hospital he came down with what was offically described as influenza. But when his temperature rose to 104 degrees, his physicians admitted him to Columbia-Presbyterian. About three weeks ago his wife said that he had perceptibly improved and that she expected him to be discharged shortly. He took a turn for the worse, however, and his condition was diagnosed as lymphatic cancer.

In addition to his widow and five children, Mr. Lindbergh is survived by 10 grandchildren.

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