Around the World Flight

Date

List Grid

Article

| April 24, 2025

Litigation rages on over 2016 circumnavigation claims

Two pilots born in China are scheduled to return to a Florida courtroom on April 30 to argue whether a recent $7.3 million jury verdict delivered with one party absent should be set aside—the latest in a slew of legal battles spanning multiple jurisdictions on two continents, all stemming from a circumnavigation superlative claimed in 2016 that remains very much in dispute, at least among the litigants.

Go To Article

Diamond Aircraft

| June 7, 2024

Fulfilling a mission; fueled by aviation

Steve Russell has had a singular focus throughout his life. Making a difference is a core principle of Russell’s, whether as a decorated officer in the U.S. Army, helping to fight against global terrorism; as a leader in Congress, on the front lines advocating for veterans; as an aspiring aviator; and now in a calling to spread the gospel around the world.

Go To Article

Image Gallery

| December 19, 2022

Not to be outdone

When 19-year-old Zara Rutherford flew solo around the world in a light sport aircraft late last year and early this year, we held our collective breath and cheered her from afar. Then her brother Mack surprised us all by repeating the feat this summer. Now Mack is recognized as the youngest person ever to fly around the world, and Zara the youngest woman to do so, and you have to wonder, who are their parents?

Go To Article

Article

| June 2, 2022

The power to manifest flight

I’d like to share a miraculous story with you. It started back in early 1991 during the Persian Gulf War. I was a young officer in the U.S. Navy, anxious to prove myself in the world.

Go To Article

Article

| January 25, 2022

Zara Rutherford completes solo earthrounding flight

On January 20, Zara Rutherford made history after landing her European ultralight Shark at the Kortrijk-Wevelgem Airport in Belgium.

Go To Article

Article

| October 13, 2021

‘Just go for it’

When Zara Rutherford headed out over the North Atlantic in a Shark, a VFR European ultralight, in August just days after launching on a solo around-the-world mission, it wasn’t the first time she had crossed the frigid ocean.

Go To Article

Article

| July 13, 2021

Teen secures solo circumnavigation record in Skyhawk

British pilot Travis Ludlow, 18, secured a Guinness World Record as the youngest to fly solo around the world after he landed a Continental CD-155 Jet A-powered Cessna 172 at Booker Airfield/Wycombe Air Park in Marlow, England. News photos showed him holding an official record certificate after completing a circle that began at Teuge International Airport in the Netherlands.

Go To Article

Slideshow

| July 1, 2021

Teen makes circumnavigation record attempt in Skyhawk

British pilot Travis Ludlow, 18, was flying over desolate terrain in Russia when he realized the enormity of being alone for six weeks during an attempted circumnavigation in a diesel-powered Cessna 172 Skyhawk.

Go To Article

Article

| June 17, 2021

Maeda completes circumnavigation in Bonanza

“Mission accomplished!” exclaimed one-eyed pilot Shinji Maeda on June 11 after completing a circumnavigation of the Earth in a 1963 Beechcraft Bonanza V-tail during a mission of perseverance that he said seemed more like Mission Impossible after beginning May 1 at Paine Field in Washington.

Go To Article

Article

| June 16, 2021

Around the world in 8 days

From before dawn on June 23, 1931, until sunset on July 1, 1931, Wiley Post and navigator Harold Gatty flew a single-engine Lockheed Vega 5C known as Winnie Mae around the world without navaids, radios, or an autopilot.

Go To Article

Article

| May 20, 2021

'Spectacular' flight across North Pole

Beechcraft Bonanza pilot Adrian Eichhorn deflected personal kudos to favorable weather and his support team after completing an “absolutely spectacular” 3,239-nautical-mile flight from Reykjavik, Iceland, across the North Pole to Fairbanks, Alaska, May 11.

Go To Article

Slideshow

| May 6, 2021

Bonanza V35 pilots take off on ambitious journeys

After last-minute repairs, tutoring, and a one-day weather delay, self-described “one-eyed pilot” Shinji Maeda and earthrounder mentor Adrian Eichhorn took off in formation May 6 from Manassas, Virginia, in nearly identical Beechcraft Bonanza V35 aircraft for separate ambitious aviation adventures.

Go To Article

Pilot Magazine

| December 1, 2020

People: Citizen of the World

An aerial escort accompanied an exuberant Robert DeLaurentis as he guided his 1983 Gulfstream Twin Commander 900 to a landing at San Diego’s Gillespie Field August 12 following a nine-month journey aboard the Citizen of the World, concluding a mission of world peace and understanding that began November 16, 2019, and took him above both the South and North poles (in that order).

Go To Magazine Article

Article

| July 16, 2020

DeLaurentis overflies North Pole

Robert DeLaurentis, the “Zen Pilot,” author, and AOPA Opinion Leaders blogger who has been on a quest to overfly both the South and North poles since last November, completed the task July 10, flying over the North Pole on a flight leg marred by system malfunctions and challenging weather.

Go To Article

Article

| April 14, 2020

'Zen Pilot' offers coronavirus coping tips

Earthrounder Robert DeLaurentis has been in Spain since March 3 awaiting a weather window to fly over the North Pole during a quest to fly over the South and North Poles. The sociable Californian and AOPA Opinion Leaders blogger witnessed the coronavirus pandemic spread from Europe to the United States, and offered advice to help fellow pilots do “everything you can to mitigate” the contagion while maintaining a semblance of normalcy.

Go To Article

Article

| March 24, 2020

Coronavirus restrictions delay Seattle pilot's circumnavigation

Inspirational speaker and pilot Shinji Maeda, who lost his sight in one eye after a motor vehicle crash, delayed his global circumnavigation scheduled to begin May 1 due to coronavirus travel restrictions.

Go To Article

Article

| December 19, 2019

Zen Pilot crosses South Pole

Robert DeLaurentis flew a modified Gulfstream Turbo Commander 900 from Ushuaia, Argentina, to the South Pole—and back—December 16 during a “very challenging” 18-hour flight that included navigation loss, extreme weather, and pilot fatigue.

Go To Article

Article

| December 16, 2019

Harrelson posts unofficial world speed record

Westbound world speed record-seeker Bill Harrelson safely landed his modified Lancair IV at California’s Ontario International Airport December 15 at 9:21 p.m. Pacific time after completing a grueling earthrounding flight to unofficially shatter Max Conrad’s 58-year-old weight-class aviation record with 19 hours, 28 minutes to spare.

Go To Article

Article

| December 9, 2019

World speed record attempt back on track

Two oceans down, one to go.

Go To Article

Article

| December 6, 2019

Around-the-world speed record attempt forced to turn back

Bill Harrelson’s around-the-world speed record attempt got underway December 5, but the pilot turned back over the Pacific after a slew of unwelcome, last-minute surprises.

Go To Article

Pilot Turbine Magazine

| September 1, 2019

Flight of a lifetime

Robert DeLaurentis is a man on a mission. Actually, several missions. At this writing he’s in the end stages of planning a daunting polar circumnavigation of the world, intending to pass over both the south and north poles as part of a larger network of routes that will extend as far west as Anchorage, Alaska, and as far east as Madagascar.

Go To Magazine Article

Article

| August 12, 2019

Around the world in a gyro

“Serial adventurer” James Ketchell has rowed across the Atlantic Ocean, summited Mount Everest, and cycled 18,000 miles around the world. In 2019, he is checking the aviation adventure box by launching on an earthrounding mission in a Magni gyrocopter.

Go To Article

Article

| July 29, 2019

Harrelson to pursue Conrad circumnavigation record

Bill Harrelson is taking aim at one of general aviation’s longest standing endurance records: Max Conrad’s 1961 solo westbound flight around the globe.

Go To Article

Article

| May 8, 2019

Never too late to circle the globe

A Wyoming pilot is planning to circle the globe in his Embraer Phenom 300 light jet just as the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer prepares to celebrate 50 years of bringing pilots’ dreams to life.

Go To Article

Article

| November 29, 2018

Zen Pilot to spread message of unity from pole to pole

Some of the worst weather in the world, extreme distances, freezing temperatures, single-pilot fatigue, and few places to land would hinder most pilots from even thinking about flying in the remote icy terrain of the Arctic and Antarctic. Nonetheless, adventurer Robert DeLaurentis plans to depart on a trip on in mid-January to set the world record for speed and distance over the poles in his highly modified turboprop twin while simultaneously spreading the message of unity.

Go To Article

Article

| July 2, 2018

‘Zen Pilot’ DeLaurentis joins AOPA Opinion Leaders

What pilot wouldn’t dream of flying a personal aircraft to the ends of the earth for worthy causes, while reporting back to fellow aviators on the adventures and challenges that crop up along the way?

Go To Article

Pilot Turbine Magazine

| November 1, 2017

Handling Hits And Misses

Turbine pilots tend to fly longer distances and take on more business missions, some to international destinations.

Go To Magazine Article

Aircraft

| October 27, 2017

Genesys created content A little help for a friend…

What do you do when you are on your solo around-the-world flight and the autopilot in your Bonanza quits working in Hawaii? You do what globetrotting pilot Adrian Eichhorn did – you call S-TEC’s Product Support Group in Mineral Wells, Texas for help.

Go To Article

Article

| July 18, 2017

Three journeys round

Two British helicopter pilots, Peter Wilson and Matthew Gallagher, stopped at AOPA headquarters in Frederick, Maryland, in July as they entered the final quarter of a world-spanning flight in a Robinson R66.

Go To Article

Around the World Flight

Sponsored Content How Diamond’s DA50 RG sets the new single-engine standard

Genesys created content A little help for a friend…