GLOBAL FLYER - LONGEST MANNED FLIGHT -  11 February 2006

HOME  BIOLOGY  CREW  GEOGRAPHY   HISTORY   INDEX  MUSIC  THE BOAT  SOLAR CELLS  SPONSORS

 

 

Pilot Steve Fossett has stretched his wings again by completing the longest nonstop flight in aviation history Saturday just before making a dramatic emergency landing at an airport 100 miles outside of London.

 

He almost ran out of runway when taking off in Florida. High over India, turbulence came close to breaking the plane apart. Minutes away from his scheduled landing, a power failure forced an emergency descent. Yet despite these ordeals, aviator Steve Fossett has clocked up another record: the longest ever non-stop flight.

 

 


Fossett touched down on 11 February, a little earlier than expected, in Bournemouth on England's south coast, bursting two tyres and struggling to see through his ice-covered cockpit window. Plans for a landing in nearby Kent had to be abandoned after the generator of the Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer malfunctioned. But Fossett had achieved his record, and his flight of 41,467 kilometres was immediately confirmed by the Guinness Book of World Records.


TAKE OFF

The mission pushed Fossett's plane to its limits. Over 80% of the plane's 10-tonne mass was taken up by fuel, forcing the organizers to launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The 4.5-kilometre runway is one of just a few in the world long enough to allow the craft to gain enough speed to take off, yet Fossett says that he still struggled to get airborne. The craft also hit two birds on take-off, but was not damaged.

Once aloft, the GlobalFlyer was hindered by a weak jet stream across America and the Atlantic and severe turbulence over Asia, which threatened to damage the lightweight craft. The trip was also a physical challenge for Fossett. Temperatures topped 50 °C at times, and he had little sleep during the 76

 

Fighting through sleep deprivation, severe turbulence and a last gasp emergency landing, Steve Fossett broke the record for the longest nonstop flight in aviation history. The 61-year-old adventurer piloted his lightweight experimental plane, Virgin Atlantic Global Flyer, to set a new record of 26,389 miles in about 76 hours despite a complete electronic failure that threatened to turn his glorious return into a nightmare.

Fossett put emergency landing procedures into action when a generator light started to flash upon his descent.  The mechanical crisis forced him to land Saturday at Bournemouth International Airport, in southern England, instead of his planned landing point in nearby Kent, where hundreds of well wishers were gathered to greet him.  “He burst two tires on landing and the poor Global Flyer had to be dragged off the runway,” said Steve Ridgeway, chief executive of Virgin Atlantic, the company sponsoring Fossett's record bid.

 

Ground control confirmed Fossett had broken the distance record of 24,987 miles as his plane flew over Shannon, Ireland, after crossing the Atlantic, his ground team said.

That eclipsed the 1986 record set by the lightweight Voyager aircraft, piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager. It also beats the balloon record of 25,361 miles set in 1999 by the Breitling Orbiter 3.

 

Fossett arrived at Kent International Airport on a private jet alongside the billionaire Virgin Atlantic owner Sir Richard Branson, where he was greeted by his wife, Peggy, and rapturous applause from the assembled crowd.  Stepping onto the tarmac, dressed in his silver flight suit, he spoke of his delight and relief at completing the flight.  He said he realized he was in trouble when he began his descent for Kent and a light came on indicating the plane's generator had failed, prompting him to put emergency procedures in place.

 

“I was really lucky to make it here today, there was a lot going on. The tension of the final part really took it out of me, but I will be fine in the morning,” he told reporters.  The finale was one of several episodes that nearly doomed his 3˝-day voyage.  During takeoff Wednesday from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, his plane lost about 750 pounds of fuel in a leak – and he nearly ran out of runway.  “I had to pull up with all my might” to get the plane in the air before the end of the airstrip.

 

 

 

 

TURBULENCE PROBLEMS

 

Severe turbulence over India “almost broke the plane apart,” he said, forcing him to strap on a parachute.  After the news conference he was presented with the Guinness World Record for the longest flight in history.  Branson, who was beaming with pride throughout the conference, said Fossett's record was a superhuman effort.  “He's just flown further than man, or woman, has ever flown,” said Branson. “He has had pretty much no sleep since he set off from Kennedy a few days ago, and he has been through an incredible amount.”

 

Fossett already holds the record for flying solo around the globe in a balloon and for being the first person to circle the globe solo in a plane without stopping or refueling. That flight last year lasted 67 hours and was hampered by a fuel leak.  A fuel leak delayed Fossett's scheduled takeoff from Tuesday to Wednesday and the plane's ventilation system malfunctioned midway through the trip, causing temperatures in the cockpit to rise to as much as 130 degrees. Fossett was forced to drink a large part of his water supply earlier than planned because of the heat, his flight team said.

 

While in the air, Fossett took power naps no longer than 10 minutes each and drank a steady diet of milkshakes. His plane was equipped with a parachute pack holding a one-man raft and a satellite rescue beacon. The generator of Fossett's Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer failed just miles from his destination of Kent International Airport, which meant a total electrical breakdown, according to the GlobalFlyer Web site.

 

Fossett, 61, the American millionaire adventurer who made history last year with the first solo nonstop flight around the world, set this record by traveling 26,389.3 miles and was in flight for 76 hours 45 minutes before landing at about 5 p.m. Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

He surpassed his goal of covering 26,160 miles in about 80 hours. The prior record was 25,361 miles, set in 1999 by the Breitling Orbiter balloon. By comparison, Fossett's round-the-world flight in March 2005 covered just less than 23,000 miles.

 

The specially designed ultralight GlobalFlye - with a wingspan as wide as an 11-story building is tall - lifted off Wednesday morning from the 15,000-foot space shuttle landing runway at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.  Fossett flew a full trip eastward around the world before crossing the Atlantic a second time on the last leg. He took the plane to an altitude of about 45,000 feet to take advantage of the high-speed jetstream flowing west to east over the Northern Hemisphere.

 

The veteran aviator was forced to make an emergency Mayday call through to Bournemouth International Airport and was given a short landing window.  "If we didn't get him down in fifteen minutes, he would have had to have ditched the plane," Virgin Atlantic Chief Executive Steve Ridgeway said, according the Global Flyer site.

 

 

 

 

GENERATOR FAILURE

 

The generator failure occurred just after his billionaire friend and sponsor Richard Branson had called Fossett to congratulate him on his record, which he broke when be flew over Shannon, Ireland, the site said.  "On landing, Steve burst two tires, and his windscreen was iced up so much that he couldn't see even meters in front of him," according to the site. "Not only all that, but he had only 200 pounds of fuel left, which, if he had continued, may well have turned into another emergency!"  "We told him he had to land alive," said Branson, who flew behind Fossett in a chase plane on the final leg. "He actually had to land alive, because if he didn't land alive he wouldn't get the record."

 

In addition to the generator problem, GlobalFlyer's ventilation system malfunctioned midway through the trip, causing temperatures in the 7-foot cockpit to rise as much as 130 degrees. He also contended with severe turbulence over India. After a medical check-up, Fossett flew from Bournemouth to Kent, arriving at about 6:30 p.m. GMT in his private jet with Branson. After nearly four days existing on nothing but milkshakes, Fossett toasted his achievement with champagne. Asked what he would do next, he said simply: "Catch up on some sleep."

 

 

MANSTON, ENGLAND

 

Steve completed the longest non-stop flight in aviation history with an emergency landing, flying 42,468 km in about 76 hours but stopping early because of mechanical problems.

Ground control said Fossett, 61, broke the airplane distance record of 40,210 km while his lightweight experimental plane was flying over Shannon, Ireland. He was then forced to land the Virgin Atlantic Global Flyer at Bournemouth International Airport, in southern England, instead of at a military air strip in nearby Kent because of generator problems.  "He burst two tires on landing and the poor Global Flyer had to be dragged off the runway," said Steve Ridgeway, chief executive of Virgin Atlantic, the company sponsoring Fossett's record bid.

 

 

 


 

 

 

LINKS :

 

 

 

Record-breaking aviator survives emergency landing
Nature.com (subscription), UK - 13 Feb 2006
He almost ran out of runway when taking off in Florida. High over India, turbulence came close to breaking the plane apart. Minutes ...

Fossett forced into feat finale farce
Register, UK - 13 Feb 2006
Steve Fossett has broken the world record for the longest uninterrupted flight – but a last minute electrical failure meant he had to make an emergency ...

Fossett flies into the record books
People's Daily Online, China - 13 Feb 2006
MANSTON, England: Adventurer Steve Fossett completed the longest non-stop flight in aviation history with an emergency landing, flying 42,467 kilometres in ...

'I was really lucky to make it here today'
Independent Online, South Africa - 12 Feb 2006
By Darek Kravitz. London - Adventurer Steve Fossett completed the longest non-stop flight in aviation history with an emergency landing ...

Fossett breaks flight record
CNET News.com, CA - 12 Feb 2006
update Pilot Steve Fossett has stretched his wings again by completing the longest nonstop flight in aviation history Saturday just before making a dramatic ...

Emergency landing ends record flight
International Herald Tribune, France - 12 Feb 2006
MANSTON, England Steve Fossett finished the longest nonstop flight in aviation history with an emergency landing after flying 26,389 miles in about 76 hours ...

Adventurer smashes world flight record
Telegraph.co.uk, United Kingdom - 12 Feb 2006
Steve Fossett is catching up on three days of lost sleep after smashing the record for flying further in a single flight than anyone in history. ...

Another record falls to frequent flyer
Sydney Morning Herald, Australia - 12 Feb 2006
By Guy Gugliotta. AS IF dodging three days of near-catastrophe were not enough, the millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett had a total ...

Fossett sets new air record
Independent Online, South Africa - 12 Feb 2006
By Peter Graff. London - Millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett broke the record for long-distance flight without refuelling on Saturday ...

Despite mechanical crisis, Fossett sets flight record
Chicago Tribune, United States - 12 Feb 2006
MANSTON, England -- Fighting through sleep deprivation, severe turbulence and a last-gasp emergency landing, Steve Fossett broke the record for the longest non ...

Fossett logs longest nonstop flight ever
Chicago Sun-Times, United States - 12 Feb 2006
BY DEREK KRAVITZ. MANSTON, England -- Adventurer Steve Fossett completed the longest nonstop flight in aviation history with an emergency ...

Adventurer smashes flight record
Scotsman, United Kingdom - 12 Feb 2006
Adventurer Steve Fossett is catching up on three days of lost sleep after smashing the record for flying further than anyone in history. ...

Fossett Breaks Flight Distance Record
Los Angeles Times, CA - 12 Feb 2006
BY DEREK KRAVITZ, Associated Press Writer. MANSTON, England -- Adventurer Steve Fossett completed the longest nonstop flight in aviation ...

Fossett Breaks Flight Distance Record
Outside Online, CA - 13 Feb 2006
By Devon Pendleton. February 13, 2006 In an ending that played out like a dramatic finale to an action thriller, millionaire adventurer ...

I met a world record breaker!
CBBC newsround (audio), UK - 13 Feb 2006
"Because I'm an air cadet I was even more excited to hear that Steve Fossett would be completing his around the world flight at the airport right next to where ...

GlobalFlyer wins record, despite electrical fault and diversion
Flight International - 13 Feb 2006
Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer pilot Steve Fossett succeeded in his bid to break the endurance record for powered flight, despite landing 45min earlier than ...

Steve Fossett breaks long-distance flight record
Geek.com - 13 Feb 2006
The long-distance flight record was held by a hot-air balloon until Saturday when 61-year-old millionaire Steve Fossett increased the flight distance in the ...

Steve Fossett breaks non-stop flight record
999 Today, UK - 13 Feb 2006
Adventurer Steve Fossett has flown straight into the history books, breaking the record for the longest non-stop flight in aviation history. ...

Pilot Steve Fossett breaks world flight distance record
WBIR-TV, TN - 12 Feb 2006
Steve Fossett has completed the longest nonstop flight in aviation history after flying around the globe -- and then some -- in about 80 hours. ...

New flight record set
Cay Compass, Cayman Islands - 12 Feb 2006
MANSTON, England (AP) – Adventurer Steve Fossett completed the longest non–stop flight in aviation history with an emergency landing, flying 26,389 miles ...

Longest non-stop flight record pushed to 26,389.3 miles in 76 ...
Gizmag, Australia - 12 Feb 2006
February 13, 2006 In 2005, Steve Fossett smashed a number of world records by being the first, and fastest, to fly solo round the world, nonstop, without ...

Emergency landing doesn't stop adventurer from breaking flight ...
The South African Star (subscription), South Africa - 12 Feb 2006
Manston, England - American adventurer Steve Fossett has completed the longest nonstop flight in aviation history, with an emergency landing after flying 42 ...

New Flight Record
WIBW, KS - 12 Feb 2006
That's what Steve Fossett says about the end of his record flight yesterday. He completed the longest nonstop flight in aviation ...

The Ultimate Flight, By The Numbers
Aero-News Network, FL - 12 Feb 2006
TOTAL MILES FLOWN: 26,389.3, breaking the record of 24,987 miles set in 1986 by Rutan's Voyager aircraft. The distance is also just ...

Fossett Makes Record Breaking Flight
WFMZ-TV Online, PA - 12 Feb 2006
A world record was set yesterday, but this one was not part of the Olympic games in Italy. Millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett ...

Fossett lands safely after last-minute drama, sets flight record
Earthtimes.org - 12 Feb 2006
MANSTON, England - Steve Fossett has completed the longest non-stop flight as he circled the globe in just about 80 hours before landing at Bournemouth ...

Adventurer breaks record for long-distance flight
SABC News, South Africa - 12 Feb 2006
Steve Fossett, a millionaire adventurer, broke the record for long-distance flight without refuelling yesterday, making a hazardous emergency landing in ...

Fossett breaks record for flight
DailyIndia.com, NY - 12 Feb 2006
LONDON, Feb. 11 (UPI) -- Steve Fossett's round-the-world flight ended with a new record for a solo pilot and a dicey emergency landing in southern England. ...

World's Flight Distance Record Broken
ShortNews.com, Germany - 12 Feb 2006
American adventurer Steve Fossett has broken the world's flight distance record. Fosset flew 76-hours and 45-minutes and travelled ...

Solo pilot breaks nonstop record in scary finish
Buffalo News,  United States - 12 Feb 2006
By DEREK KRAVITZ. MANSTON, England - Fighting through sleep deprivation, severe turbulence and an emergency landing, Steve Fossett ...

 

 

 


 

Steve Fossett began his world navigation attempt Monday 1 March 2005

 

 

 

 

PLEASE USE THE LINKS ABOVE TO FOLLOW STEVE FOSSETT'S  WORLD RECORD ATTEMPT

 


 

 

 

GLOBAL FLYER LINKS :

 

 

Global Flyer Home  Latest News  About the Attempt  About the Aircraft  Steve Fossett 

 

 

 

 


 

 

Solar Cola are proud to sponsor this website. 

 

 

Don't forget to order your Solar Cola from March 06.

 

 

 

This website is Copyright © 1999 & 2006  NJK.   The bird logo and name Solar Navigator are trademarks. All rights reserved.  All other trademarks are hereby acknowledged.       Max Energy Limited is an environmental educational charity.

BLUEBIRD ELECTRIC    CAR MANUFACTURERS    ELECTRIC CARS    ELECTRIC CYCLES   SOLAR CARS