For The Record

Flying around the world in a jet-powered plane, non-stop, without refuelling is a mammoth undertaking. In order to break the world record, the GlobalFlyer had to follow a strict set of rules laid down by the Federation Aeronautique Internationale, the governing body of aviation record attempts. These included travelling a specified distance of around 23,000 miles (36,787.559 kilometres to be precise) and the plane had to take-off and land at the same airfield.

Pilot Steve Fossett couldn’t afford to fall asleep at the controls during the gruelling 67 hour flight. He was able to grab a few minutes sleep with the help of a five-minute countdown timer, but as he had stayed awake for over 70 hours in the past while ballooning and sailing, he wasn’t daunted by the idea of sleep deprivation. Steve says that when you’re involved in something as intense as piloting the GlobalFlyer the body’s need for sleep drops.

Steve had to stay alert to monitor the fuel so that he could redistribute it and keep the aircraft stable and balanced. He was in constant contact with Mission Control via radio, email and satellite phone. The meteorologists on the ground studied data that would determine the plane’s course and altitude. This was vital because as GlobalFlyer is so light, it could not withstand strong air turbulence as a larger, heavier aircraft would. Violent winds would spell disaster, but the plane needed winds that were strong enough to help it along otherwise the fuel reserves would not last.

Steve’s diet wasn’t too appetising; he survived on special chocolate milkshakes, which gave him the nutrition he needed without making him feel the urge to stop for a mid-air toilet break!

The record-breaking attempt wasn’t completely smooth. During the first few hours of the flight the navigation system failed, which could have been disastrous, but luckily it came back online before Steve flew out over the Atlantic. Then, on the second day, there was an unexplained fuel loss and for a while it looked as if the plane would have to land in Hawaii. Thankfully, the fuel situation and the wind improved after Steve flew over Japan and he was able land as planned in Kansas.

Steve Fossett has made aviation history and stands proudly alongside some of his heroes. In 1919, British flyers John W. Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown became the first aviators to cross the Atlantic, making the 1,960 mile (3154km) journey from Canada to Ireland in just over 16 hours. The first person to fly solo across the Atlantic was aviation legend Charles Lindbergh, taking 33½ hours to fly the 3,610 miles (5810km) from New York to Paris in The Spirit of St. Louis in 1927. GlobalFlyer’s designer Burt Rutan is not the only record breaking member of his family. In 1986 his plane, the Voyager, became the first aircraft to fly non-stop, non-refuelled around the world, piloted by Jeana Yeager and Burt’s brother, Dick.