Post by "BIGTYME" on Mar 3, 2005 16:07:35 GMT -5
SALINA, Kan. (March 3) - Millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett on Thursday became the first person to fly around the world solo without stopping or refueling, safely touching down in his custom-built plane 67 hours after taking off.
A fuel system problem had raised doubt Wednesday whether Fossett could complete the 23,000-mile journey. But he and his flight crew agreed to keep the GlobalFlyer in the air rather than abandon the attempt.
Fossett, 60, already holds the record for flying solo around the globe in a balloon. He failed five times before successfully completing that flight, but needed just one try to make the trip in a plane. This latest adventure gives Fossett yet another aviation record, adding to the many he holds as a balloonist, pilot and sailor.
Fossett's GlobalFlyer, designed by the same engineer who came up with the Voyager aircraft that first completed the around-the-world trip in 1986 with two pilots aboard, touched down in Salina at 1:48 p.m. Thursday.
Fossett chose Salina because he needed a long runway for the takeoff and landing. The runway in Salina - once used to train WWII bomber crews - is about 12,000 feet long.
There was some doubt if Fossett would make it back to Salina. Fuel sensors in the custom-built plane's 13 tanks differed from readings of how quickly its single jet engine was burning fuel, forcing Fossett's crew to assume that 2,600 of the original 18,100 pounds of fuel ''disappeared.''
It was not clear whether there was an actual leak or just a problem with the sensors, Fossett's team said.
Facing a decision near Hawaii about whether to land or press ahead over the vast Pacific Ocean for the U.S. mainland, Fossett told his team, ''Let's go for it.'' Hours later, pushed by strong tail winds that left him with enough in the tanks to finish the global trek, he safely crossed over Los Angeles and turned northeast for Salina and the finish line.
Fossett, 60, set his ballooning record in 2002, taking off and landing in Australia. The millionaire from Chicago has also swam the English Channel, run the Iditarod dog sled race and driven in the 24 Hours of Le Mans car race.
Aviation pioneer Wiley Post made the first solo around-the-world trip in 1933, taking more than seven days and stopping numerous times. The first nonstop global flight without refueling was made in 1986 by Jeana Yeager and thingy Rutan, brother of GlobalFlyer designer Burt Rutan.
The project was financed by Virgin Atlantic founder Sir Richard Branson, a longtime friend and fellow adventurer.
AP-NY-03-03-05 15:09 EST
A fuel system problem had raised doubt Wednesday whether Fossett could complete the 23,000-mile journey. But he and his flight crew agreed to keep the GlobalFlyer in the air rather than abandon the attempt.
Fossett, 60, already holds the record for flying solo around the globe in a balloon. He failed five times before successfully completing that flight, but needed just one try to make the trip in a plane. This latest adventure gives Fossett yet another aviation record, adding to the many he holds as a balloonist, pilot and sailor.
Fossett's GlobalFlyer, designed by the same engineer who came up with the Voyager aircraft that first completed the around-the-world trip in 1986 with two pilots aboard, touched down in Salina at 1:48 p.m. Thursday.
Fossett chose Salina because he needed a long runway for the takeoff and landing. The runway in Salina - once used to train WWII bomber crews - is about 12,000 feet long.
There was some doubt if Fossett would make it back to Salina. Fuel sensors in the custom-built plane's 13 tanks differed from readings of how quickly its single jet engine was burning fuel, forcing Fossett's crew to assume that 2,600 of the original 18,100 pounds of fuel ''disappeared.''
It was not clear whether there was an actual leak or just a problem with the sensors, Fossett's team said.
Facing a decision near Hawaii about whether to land or press ahead over the vast Pacific Ocean for the U.S. mainland, Fossett told his team, ''Let's go for it.'' Hours later, pushed by strong tail winds that left him with enough in the tanks to finish the global trek, he safely crossed over Los Angeles and turned northeast for Salina and the finish line.
Fossett, 60, set his ballooning record in 2002, taking off and landing in Australia. The millionaire from Chicago has also swam the English Channel, run the Iditarod dog sled race and driven in the 24 Hours of Le Mans car race.
Aviation pioneer Wiley Post made the first solo around-the-world trip in 1933, taking more than seven days and stopping numerous times. The first nonstop global flight without refueling was made in 1986 by Jeana Yeager and thingy Rutan, brother of GlobalFlyer designer Burt Rutan.
The project was financed by Virgin Atlantic founder Sir Richard Branson, a longtime friend and fellow adventurer.
AP-NY-03-03-05 15:09 EST
