An audacious attempt to fly solo around the globe without refuelling is set to begin from central US on Monday. Global Flyer, an experimental three-hulled aircraft, has been cleared for take-off from Salina Municipal Airport, Kansas, US, between 2100 and 0100 GMT (1400 and 1800 local time). Click on Read More for the full story
The aeroplane will attempt to ride jet stream winds across the Atlantic to the UK before heading southeast towards Egypt and then looping over Pakistan, India, China and Japan. The final stage of the journey will see the plane cross the Pacific Ocean before swooping over mainland US to return to its point of origin.
Constructed from light-weight graphite epoxy and Aramid honeycomb materials, Global Flyer consists of a central cockpit and engine flanked by two giant capsules - called "booms" - on each wing which contain fuel reserves and landing gear.
Sluggish start
To claim the record, the aeroplane must travel a total of 36,787 kilometres (22,858 miles) in less than 80 hours. Pilot Steve Fossett - who already holds several aviation and nautical records - plans to stay awake for the entire trip, mainly to manage the distribution of fuel inside the aircraft to keep it balanced, although an autopilot will allow him to take brief naps.
"The plane will change dramatically from the start, where it will be sluggish at its full weight, to where it becomes very light near the end," Fossett said at a press conference in Kansas on Sunday. "I'll have to make a lot of adjustments throughout the flight."
The trimaran-like construction contains a total of 13 fuel tanks, which will be filled to the brim for the epic voyage, accounting for 83% of the craft's total 9979 kilograms during take-off. The aeroplane has never been flown fully laden with fuel, but computer simulations show it should still take off with its tanks full.
Nervous moment
However, it promises to be a tense moment for both pilot and ground crew. "I'm a bit nervous about take-off," Fossett admitted. "I will be the ultimate test pilot. It's a major endeavour."
The aircraft will slowly ascend to a cruising altitude of 14,000 metres (46,000 feet) and will travel at an average of 463 kilometres per hour (287 miles per hour). A set of single-use drag parachutes will be required to slow the aircraft down for landing.
During the record attempt a small radiation detector will be used to record levels of cosmic radiation. The data will be used to calculate radiation levels that pilots aboard commercial aeroplanes could one day be exposed to if they flew at such high altitudes for long periods.
Global Flyer is sponsored by Virgin Atlantic and was designed and built by US company Scaled Composites, known for making record-breaking and outlandish aircraft. In June 2004, the company launched the first commercial spacecraft, SpaceShipOne, and its carrier plane, White Knight.
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