Is Flying Around The World Possible？

If you have a pilot certificate， you can surely fly a leased private jet for your trip， which could save you a large amount of service fee. Of course， it would be even better if you could buy your own jet. Flying around the world is the ultimate of all flights， although it is extremely difficult to fly solo for such a long journey. How to plan a round-the-world flight？ What challenges will you face？ And how should you address them？

Mapping a Optimum Route

First you need to decide whether you will fly east or west. Fly east， which most pilots would do， you will be flying with a tail wind. Fly west， you will have more daytime.

Beginners could start with a simple route， such as from England， through Iceland， Alaska， Canada， Bering Strait， to Russia， where each leg， including cross ocean legs， is short. But if you fly not a jet， but a light aircraft burning aviation petroleum， you would better cut the Bering Strait to Russia leg， because neither China nor Russia offer the petroleum， instead you can opt for Pacific routes. With a full fuel tank， you can fly from China for 2，200 miles to a northern island of Australia， refuel， fly to Hawaii， and then to the Americas.

The round-the-world trail flew by Amelia Earhart in 1937 has become a classic route for many pilots. Female pilots Anne Pellegrino， Linda Finch， and Amelia Rose Earhart have completed flight on the same route respectively in 1967， 1997 and 2011.

It was reported that Linda Finch experienced all kinds of hardship during the 73-day flight. “She caught a fish on the Christmas Island， caught a cold in Calcutta， collected shells on the beach of Tarawa， suffered mosquito bite in Surabaya， saw the Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut in Egypt， and visited the Martin Luther King Girls School in Dakar， Senegal. And on the small island of Kanton， she slept on straw mat， and attended a banquet hosted by 50 aboriginals - only she had to bring her own spoon.”

Choosing the right aircraft

What kind of aircraft is suitable for round-the-world flight？ Preferably aircraft with a long range and a speed of over 140 miles/hour. A round-the-would trip will involve transatlantic or transpacific flights， but there won't be a stopover point in the middle of the ocean. You can fly short haul light aircraft if you like， but then you will need a ship to sail along to serve as a parking space -- not an easy option for many.

There are many aircraft types that can meet the requirement of round-the-world flights. You can select a new aircraft based on your budget and number of passengers， or you could buy a used aircraft， all you need is to run a thorough check and equip it with the latest equipment.

In 2011， Jim Frost and Betsy Frost completed a round-the-world flight with a Phenom 100. The aircraft， which the couple describes as well-sized and beautiful， has a lavatory for the convenience of the lady. They had also considered Beechcraft Bonanza and King Air， but finally decided on Phenom 100.

Accumulating enough experience

It is advisable for pilots to fly at least 1，000 hours before embarking on a round-the-world flight， but there are exceptions. The first female pilot who completed a round-the-world flight， Jerrie Mock， had only 750 hours on record before she started the feat. More important than flight hours is the skills and ability to address different situations， but that requires special training.

A veteran U.S. aviator once said： “You should start by flying all over the country， increasing the length of flight， before you make an attempt at international flights， and then intercontinental flights. European pilots could start by crossing the Mediterranean， followed by a flight in summer from Scotland， cross the Atlantic， via Iceland， to Greenland， and back. U.S. pilots could start by flying to Canada or Mexico before crossing the Atlantic to Europe.”

Chen Wei， the first Chinese to complete round-the-world flight， had flown only 200 hours before planning his trip. He prepared and trained for another 2 years and purchased a new plane. 60 days before the flight， he attended a 7-day intensive training in SIMCOM Training Center， Orlando， Florida on how to address emergencies such as engine failure， cabin fire， and landing gear fault， followed by several more long haul flights， and a cross-U.S. flight.

Unfortunately， there are still many challenges for long haul flight training in China， aerospace application being one of them.

Preflight health check and aircraft check

Before the flight， get a thorough health check， and required vaccines if you are to visit certain countries. Good health is a precondition for quality flight.

You aircraft， in particular the engine system， should be fully checked. You may replace the igniter and filter to improve fuel efficiency and ensure a smooth flight.

The aircraft should also be equipped at least one VOR， ADF， and DME in compliance with IFR.

GPS， which provides more possibilities for round-the-world flight， and divides the history of flying into two periods， is an indispensable part of flight. Compared with decades ago， GPS today is much easier to use.

To deal with possible emergencies， you aircraft should also be equipped with life jackets and a life raft.