Around the World in 70 Days, Weeks 6 & 7: Asia By Mary Grady "We've been gone over 50 days now, and had just one weather-related delay," says Thierry Pouille, organizer of Air Journey's unique round- the-world GA tour, now in Asia. "It's just chance, really!," he admits, noting that several times weather would have been a factor if they had planned to fly just a day before or after. "We've been lucky." Part of the group's luck stems from Pouille's work ethic. Back in Florida now, he is staying up nights and sleeping during the day, to manage the needs of his group of five world-spanning aircraft.
Around the World in 70 Days, Weeks 4 & 5: The Middle East By Mary Grady In the last two weeks, Air Journey's group of general-aviation pilots flew up the Nile to Luxor, visited Dubai and Oman, and now prepares to launch for Asia.
Around the World in 70 Days, Week 3: The Mediterranean By Mary Grady The RTW pilots left Paris behind them and took off for Marrakech, in Morrocco, on the northwestern coast of Africa. The distance of about 1,100 nm meant only the PC-12 and the Cessna Conquest could fly nonstop. The TBM 700 and Cessna Mustang crews planned a stop in Gibraltar, near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula.
Around the World in 70 Days, Week 2: On To Paris By Mary Grady Last week, we left our intrepid band of GA pilots in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, where they all had landed safely in VFR conditions, after a few changes of flight plans to accommodate the weather. The group spent the night there and by 5:30 the next morning they were up checking the weather in hopes of launching for Reykjavik, Iceland.
Around the World in 70 Days, Week 1: Pilots Complete First Leg Of Round-the-World Journey By Mary Grady A half-dozen GA aircraft took off from Quebec City last week for the first leg of a 10-week round-the world adventure. The pilots, who are flying on an escorted trip organized by Air Journey, will visit 22 countries on five continents, logging more than 24,000 nautical miles. "This is a dream come true!" said Thierry Pouille, president of Air Journey. "Flying completely around the world has been a lifelong dream for many pilots, myself included, and now it's finally happening!" Pouille has been planning the trip, the first of its kind, for about a year. "We have a very capable group of pilots and aircraft on this first trip around the world," Pouille said. The group includes a TBM 700, a Cessna Mustang VLJ, a Pilatus PC-12, a Beechcraft Duke refitted with PT6 propjet engines, and a similarly modified Cessna Conquest 441. AVweb will be following the pilots with weekly updates and pictures from the road. Click through for more about the first leg of the trip, from Canada to Greenland.
A Pilot's History: Chap. 8 -- Call To Duty By Carl Moesly After a few years with startup airlines, Carl Moesly gets a callback from Uncle Sam. This time he helps paratroopers jump and cargo planes find their way in Greenland.
A Pilot's History: Chap. 7 -- Air Races By Carl Moesly Aviation got a big boost from ex-military pilots and aircraft after WWII, especially in air races, as Carl Moesly recounts in this history.
A Pilot's History: Chap. 6 -- Peace and Civil Aviation By Carl Moesly Post-WWII America seemed like a great place and time to be an ex-military pilot: Just join one of dozens of new startup airlines. When that one goes bankrupt, join another ... and another ...
A Pilot's History: Chap. 5 -- The Hump By Carl Moesly The war is over, but Carl Moesly's work with the Army isn't done. He has to fly over the Himalayas into China ... and there are still Japanese soldiers there.
