Around the world flight. Around the Earth without refueling: top world air travel records. How to find the cheapest ticket

Around the world non-stop flights

The world's first non-stop flight around the world took place in 1949.

The plane returned to the same airfield on March 2, covering a distance of 37,742 km in 94 hours and 1 minute. The average speed was 401 km/h. During the flight, the bomber's fuel reserves were replenished four times with the help of tanker aircraft.

First non-stop flight around globe without refueling, was flown December 14–23, 1986 by Dick Rutan and Gina Eager in a Rutan Model 76 Voyager.

The aircraft, powered by two piston engines, was built by aircraft designer Burt Rutan specifically to set the record. The flight lasted 216 hours, 3 minutes and 44 seconds. In total, the aircraft covered 42,432 km with an average speed of 186.11 km/h.

On March 1–3, 2005, entrepreneur and aviator Steve Faussett set a world record for the fastest non-stop manned flight around the world without refueling on a Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer.

The turbojet-powered single-seat aircraft, built by Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites company, circumnavigated the Earth in 67 hours, 1 minute and 46 seconds. The average flight speed was 590.7 km/h, the plane covered a distance of 36,912 km.

Flight duration records

On July 12–14, 1937, the crew of Mikhail Gromov, Andrei Yumashev and Sergei Danilin on the ANT-25 improved the achievements of their colleagues by completing a non-stop flight over a distance of 11,500 km in 62 hours and 17 minutes along the route Moscow - San Jacinto (California, USA).

The record for the duration of piloting an aircraft with refueling was set in 1959 in the USA.

Robert Timm and John Cook took off from McCarran Airport (Las Vegas, Nevada) on December 4, 1958 in a specially prepared Cessna 172 light aircraft. The aircraft circled the airfield non-stop for 64 days 22 hours 19 minutes 5 seconds and made a soft landing on February 5, 1959. The aircraft was refueled in the air twice a day using a fuel tanker moving around the airfield.

The record for the longest piloting of an aircraft without refueling was set in 2015 during Andre Borschberg's round-the-world flight on the Solar Impulse 2 electric aircraft.

In the period from June 28 to July 3, on the Nagoya (Japan) - Hawaii (USA) section, Borschberg covered a distance of 7,212 km in 117 hours and 52 minutes. At the same time, he set a record for distance non-stop flight for electric aircraft. The round-the-world flight itself was interrupted due to problems with the aircraft's batteries.

The record for the longest flight of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was set by the QinetiQ Zephyr 7 at the US Army's Yuma Proving Ground (Arizona). The UAV stayed in the air for two weeks - 336 hours 22 minutes and 8 seconds.

Longest non-stop scheduled flights

Solar Impulse 2 aircraft with engines powered by solar panels, completed trip around the world.

On Sunday he flew from Cairo towards Abu Dhabi. This 48-hour route was the home stretch of the round-the-world trip, which began on March 9, 2015. In total, the plane covered 35 thousand km, moving at a speed of 60-120 km/h. Over the course of 16 months, the plane landed in 15 cities around the world. And last summer he set a record for the longest non-stop stay in the air, flying continuously for more than 120 hours.

What kind of winged machine is this, which once again clearly proved: science and technology are driving humanity forward ever faster? The most surprising thing is that Solar Impulse 2 is just a single-seat aircraft, the cabin of which resembles the inside of a small car. But that's where the usual comparisons end.

So, the plane is built from hydrocarbon fiber and has huge wings: the span is 72 m. This is slightly less than the largest in the world passenger plane Airbus 380 (79.75 m) and larger than the Boeing 747 (68.5 m). At the same time, the “solar sunflower” weighs only 2.3 tons. Let us remind you: the empty weight of the Airbus 380 is 280 tons, and the Boeing 747 is 214.5 tons!

The planes of the giant wings and the upper part of the aircraft fuselage are covered with solar cells - this is over 17 thousand cells of monocrystalline silicon solar batteries. The thickness of each is only 135 microns. They are powered by four electric motors with a power of 17.5 horsepower. The plane can reach speeds of up to 140 km/h.

By the way, this is not the first solar-powered aircraft. But, as experts emphasize, of all similar designs, Solar Impulse 2 is the most effective. Indeed, five days in the sky without landing is, of course, cool. We may recall that the legendary first non-stop flight from Moscow to the USA via North Pole crew of Valery Chkalov in 1937 lasted 63 hours 16 minutes. And until recently, pilots spent 19 hours on the world’s longest non-stop flight from New York to Singapore... It is clear that comparing Chkalov’s ANT-25, passenger Airbus A340-500 and Solar Impulse 2, to put it mildly, are not correct. But the fact remains a fact.

Infographics RG/Anton Peterletchikov/Natalia Yachmennikova

How could pilots survive five days in the tiny cabin of Solar Impulse 2? Firstly, we trained - spent 72 hours in special simulators, studied yoga, breathing and self-hypnosis techniques. Secondly, the pilot's seat functions simultaneously as a reclining bunk, as a sports trainer, and as a toilet. The pilot slept in 20-minute segments - at these moments he put the plane on autopilot. Parachute, life raft and survival kit are also packed in the seat back

At night, the “solar plane” flew on energy-intensive batteries charged during the day. Ammonia-alkaline electrolyte for batteries has made it possible to obtain higher energy density, experts explain.

This miracle machine can only support the weight of one person. Therefore, two pilots - Swiss psychiatrist Bertrand Picard and entrepreneur Andre Borschberg - flew in turns.

Bertrand Piccard made the first non-stop flight around the Earth in 1999. hot-air balloon. He belongs to the well-known Picard family. His father, Jacques Piccard, was the first to reach the bottom of the Mariinsky Trench in a submersible in 1960. And his grandfather Auguste Piccard was the first to ascend into the stratosphere in a balloon in 1931.

The route was deliberately laid out through favorable weather regions, with the maximum number of sunny days. However, both the flight organizers and the pilots themselves were well aware of how high the risk was. Especially when flying over Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic. Even the “worst case scenario” - ejection and splashdown into the ocean - could not be ruled out...

Our attempt at first round the world flight“, regardless of how it ends, we want to show the world that environmentally friendly technologies and renewable energy sources can already achieve what was previously considered impossible,” Picard said before the flight. “We want governments, leaders and especially young professionals to see that everything that Solar Impulse 2 can achieve in the air will soon be able to become part of everyday life.

However, experts are not so optimistic in their assessments of the prospects of the solar fly: we will not see such commercial aircraft for a very long time. They have little power, they cannot lift much weight into the air and fly at high speeds. The sun doesn't have enough "energy density" to lift planes that need to get somewhere in a reasonable time. short time, experts say. And one of the aviation authorities bluntly stated: the goal of solar planes is just to be in the air, and not to fly at the appropriate speed. Whatever one may say, going around the world without a drop of kerosene is rather a demonstration of the possibilities of use solar energy for experimental purposes.

Despite the fact that Solar Impulse 2 will not revolutionize aircraft manufacturing, there are benefits from the project: for example, engineers had to make aircraft engines extremely efficient. Solar Impulse 2 engines lose just 3 percent of their energy through heat, compared to 70 percent in a conventional airplane.

Meanwhile

One of the most promising substitutes for aviation kerosene is biofuel. According to experts, its share in transport by 2020 could reach up to 25 percent. There are already a dozen variants of products and plants from which a new type of aircraft “fuel” is obtained. The products used are algae, coconuts, Brazil nuts, plants of the genus Jatropha (a woody shrub with large oily seeds), and non-food animal fats.


January 11, 1935 American pilot Amelia Earhart committed a single flight across the Pacific Ocean, which no one in the world had ever managed before. This was the peak of the career of the brave American, her most impressive achievement, which transferred Earhart to the category of legends. And today we will tell you about ten of the most iconic and famous air records throughout the history of aviation.




The history of aviation records is unthinkable without the achievements achieved by the Wright brothers on December 17, 1903. On this day, they made the world's first four flights on the Wright Flyer, each of which was a record in terms of range and duration compared to the previous ones. As a result, we settled on 260 meters and 59 seconds.



On May 20-21, 1927, American pilot Charles Lindbergh made a flight that remains the most famous in the history of world aviation. He took off from New York on a plane with the poetic name “Spirit of St. Louis”, and 33.5 hours later landed at Le Bourget Airport near Paris. This was the first solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean.



The next aviation record of this magnitude was set only in 1935 by Amelia Earhart. The brave American, on her Vega 5b aircraft, was the first in the world to make a solo flight across the Pacific Ocean, starting from Hawaiian Islands and landing 18 hours and 16 minutes later in Oakland, California. On July 2, 1937, Earhart died while trying to fly an airplane around the globe.





At that time, the Soviet Union had its own star pilot, very comparable in popularity to the Americans Lindbergh and Earhart. We are talking about Valery Chkalov, who on June 18-20, 1937, as part of the Chkalov-Baidukov-Belyakov crew, made a transcontinental flight from Moscow to the American city of Portland, Vancouver, flying through the Arctic Ocean and the North Pole.



On January 16-18, 1957, three American B-52B heavy bombers made the world's first non-stop flight around the world. During the flight, they refueled three times from a refueling aircraft. In 45 hours and 19 minutes, these stratospheric fortresses (as their nickname Stratofortress is translated into Russian) covered a distance of 39,165 kilometers by air.



Sometimes the fact of setting a new record becomes a record in itself. For example, a similar thing happened on March 22, 1989 with an airplane, which during a 3.5-hour flight immediately set 110 new world achievements, such as maximum cargo weight, maximum take-off weight, as well as speed, altitude and flight range records for aircraft of this type. type.



Bertrand Piccard was born in great family. His grandfather Auguste and father Jacques became famous for their famous submersible dive to the bottom Mariana Trench, many of his relatives are famous conquerors of the air and stratosphere. And Bertrand himself did not make a mistake. In 1999, he and Briton Brian Jones made the first ever circumnavigation of the world in a hot air balloon. In 19 days, 21 hours and 47 minutes, they covered a distance of 45,755 kilometers on the Breitling Orbiter 3.



On October 4, 2004, American pilot Brian Binney made the highest flight in aviation history on SpaceShipOne. He raised his aircraft to a height of just over 112 kilometers above the Earth's surface, thereby breaking the boundary between the atmosphere and space.

Longest flight by plane

The time has come for new aviation records. Classic aircraft, of course, continue to develop, but aircraft with alternative energy sources are much more promising and interesting. The first such famous aircraft was the Solar Impulse, on which Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg flew in May-June 2013 from west coast United States of America to the east, from San Francisco to New York. In the future, they plan to cross the Atlantic on Solar Impulse, and then travel around the world.

The Solar Impulse-2 aircraft, powered by solar panels, took off in Abu Dhabi on March 9, 2015 and headed east from the United States. United Arab Emirates towards Oman to set a world record for circumnavigation of the world.

The plane will fly around the Earth difficult route with numerous stops over the next five months. Stops will be required for rest, repairs and popularization of the technology.

The single-seater will be piloted alternately by two Swiss enthusiasts of environmentally friendly technologies - Andre Borschberg, who was at the helm in Abu Dhabi, and Bertrand Picard.

Conditions for success

“I am confident that we have a special airplane and it will take us across the oceans,” Borschberg told the BBC before takeoff.

The predecessor of the current machine, Solar Impulse-1, set a number of world records, including flying across the North American continent in 2013.

However, traveling around the Earth turned out to be a more ambitious goal, and for this it was necessary to build an even larger aircraft. The wingspan of Solar Impulse-2 is 72 meters, which is larger than that of the Boeing 747. Moreover, it weighs only 2.3 tons. Low mass is one of the conditions for the success of the expedition.

The aircraft's monowing is covered with 17.2 thousand solar panels, which produce energy to power the aircraft's electric motors. The maximum speed of the aircraft is 140 kilometers per hour.

Performance and reliability of 17 thousand solar cells on the upper surface of the wings, as well as lithium-ion batteries recharged from solar panels for flight in dark time days is the second condition for successful completion of the flight.

This is especially important for flights across the Pacific and atlantic oceans, which will continue for several days without landing.

The aircraft was manufactured by the French design company Dassault Systemes. The Solar Impulse 2 aircraft was presented to the public in April 2014. In June he passed the next tests. The first long-duration flight of a solar-powered aircraft took place on April 7, 2010. Then Solar Impulse managed to stay in the air for approximately 75 minutes.

Without sleep

On Tuesday morning, the crew will depart towards India and China, after which travelers will fly over the Pacific Ocean, the United States and European countries. The aircraft is expected to cover 35 thousand kilometers in five months.

Pilots will have to go without sleep almost all this time - they will only be able to doze off for 20 minutes, as solo yachtsmen do.

The task is complicated by the need to stay all this time in a cabin measuring only 3.8 cubic meters, which is not much larger than a telephone booth.

Borshberg says that yoga will allow him to withstand these loads. Picard hopes for self-hypnosis. “But my passion will also support me,” he adds.

“16 years ago, I had a dream to fly around the world without fuel using solar energy alone. And now we're about to do it. I’m looking forward to being in the cockpit,” said Picard.

The aviators are supported by a well-trained team of engineers. The flight control center is in Monaco, but a team of engineers will follow the aircraft everywhere. They have a mobile hangar for layovers.

The success of Solar Impulse-2 is by no means guaranteed. Computer models show that ocean flights are possible, but only under favorable weather conditions.

This means the team may have to wait weeks for good weather on the ground.

If the plane is unable to make it across the Pacific or Atlantic, the pilot will eject and float in the ocean using survival gear until picked up by a passing ship.

Andre Borschberg is an engineer and military pilot by training, but he made his fortune on Internet technologies.

Bertrand Piccard is famous for his exploits in the field of aeronautics. In 1999, he made the first non-stop flight around the Earth in a hot air balloon.

He is the son of Jacques Piccard, who was the first to descend to the bottom of the Mariana Trench in 1960 - the most deep point World ocean.

And his grandfather Auguste Picard was the first to ascend into the stratosphere in a hot air balloon in 1931.

There are plane tickets that allow you to travel around the world. Moreover, such a ticket is valid for 1 year and includes up to 16 flights, so it is a kind of multi-ticket. You can fly to different continents with one ticket, and such a ticket can save a lot of money and time, especially if you chose a popular one a tourist route. You book all your tickets to all destinations at once, so there will be no surprises along the way. But for such tickets there are established strict rules which must be strictly observed. Around the world tickets are called “RTW tickets” (Round the World).

How it works

Such tickets are sold by large associations of airlines (alliances). By purchasing this ticket, you can fly on all airlines that are part of the alliance. On this moment There are 3 large alliances: Star Alliance, Oneworld and SkyTeam (Aeroflot is a member), and it is best to buy such tickets from the first two, because these alliances have many more partners, which means you will have more choice of flights.

Example of an RTW ticket. Flight from Moscow: Moscow - New Delhi (India) - Bangkok (Thailand) - Beijing (China) - Los Angeles (USA) - New York (USA) - London - Moscow.

RTW Ticket Rules

There are strict rules for such tickets:

  • Ticket is valid for 1 year
  • You need to move in one direction (east or west)
  • There are no return routes
  • The journey begins and ends in the same country
  • All flights and stops must be booked in advance
  • If you miss one of the flights, all subsequent flights will be cancelled.

Star Alliance

Here the conditions for issuing a ticket depend on the length of your route. There are 3 types of tickets: 29,000 miles, 34,000 miles and 39,000 miles. 29,000 miles is enough to visit 3 continents, 34,000 miles - visit 4 continents, 39,000 miles - you can visit every continent.

In total you can stay in 15 places. If you stay in one city for more than a day, then this is considered a stopover. There is also an economy fare that is good for 26,000 miles with 5 stops. The system has a rule: the more miles the ticket is for, the large quantity stops you can make.

You need to start and end your trip in the same country, but it doesn’t have to be the same city. You can fly from one end of the continent to the other, but it is prohibited to fly over the same ocean several times (we only move from west to east or from east to west).

Even if you flew into Rome and went to Milan by train, the distance traveled by train will count towards your total number of miles. Official website - www.staralliance.com.

Oneworld

This alliance offers two types of tickets: 1) with a limited number of flights 2) with a limited maximum kilometer. The first type of ticket has 3 subtypes: 26,000 miles, 29,000 miles and 39,000 miles for economy class; 34,000 miles for business class and 34,000 miles for first class. Miles traveled by other means of transport are also taken into account here.

The second type of ticket is not limited by the number of miles. Only flights are taken into account. There should be less than 16 of them. Moreover, if you fly from Novosibirsk to Paris with a transfer in Moscow, then this is counted as 2 flights. This type of ticket is the best (at least for me): you can easily travel by other transport, you can not pay attention to miles. Official website - www.oneworld.com.

Skyteam

The conditions are the same as those of Star Alliance, but the trip will be more expensive. If the main stops are in Russia, China, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Taiwan, then this is a suitable alliance, but not for other countries. Official website - www.skyteam.com.

How much are

Prices for such tickets vary greatly. Prices depend mainly on the number of miles and stops. The most tickets are sold in the price range from $2500 to $8000. The date and time of flights can be changed if you do not change flight directions. If you want to add an additional stopover, you will be charged a large fine, so be very careful about your exact flight.

Where can I buy

Buying tickets on alliance websites is quite expensive. Better use third party schedulers round-the-world travel, in many cases it will be cheaper. The best such service is. It does not sell “multi-tickets”; it creates routes for possible travel using the cheapest tickets from DIFFERENT airlines. Those. this service can purchase regular air tickets from different alliances, and from them you get a trip around the world, and much cheaper than you would pay for one “multi-ticket” from an air alliance. There are also no RTW ticket rules, mileage or stop requirements. There are also services similar to AirTreks, such as Roundtheworldflights.com and www.ticketsroundtheworld.com, but I recommend using AirTreks because... This service has proven itself only with positive side and has been working for quite a long time.

Who should buy

RTW tickets are beneficial for people who have a strict schedule: they they know for sure, that from such and such a date they have a vacation and that they are free for this period. For such people, RTW tickets will save a lot of time and money. But keep in mind that first you need to find cheap ticket, and they are usually sold along popular tourist routes.

Highly recommend Before purchasing an RTW ticket, make your own itinerary and estimate how much the trip will cost if you buy tickets yourself one at a time. In some cases, independently selecting tickets will allow even reduce costs for travel compared to buying an RTW ticket. I wrote about how to buy, search and buy cheap tickets in.

If you can comply with all the rules of alliances, then buy an RTW ticket, it can save up to 30% of the cost of the entire flight. But if you suddenly want to change your stop locations, you will pay a large fine, which will destroy all your savings. Want to save on airfare while traveling around the world? Follow the rules.

How to find the cheapest ticket

RTW ticket prices vary from original departure point. Choose routes from different cities, and you will find the cheapest ticket. Recently, the cheapest departure points are London, Egypt and Bulgaria. Choosing Russia as your starting point will be an expensive decision; it will be cheaper to fly to London on a regular flight, and from there begin your trip around the world.

Fly when demand for tickets is minimal. Those. when there are no vacations for schoolchildren, there are no mass vacations for workers. You can read more about saving on air tickets.

Use the frequent flyer program. In Russia this is, although there are very good foreign analogues. For one trip around the world you will receive at least one more flight to another country for free.

Consider taxes and fees. Most often, they are not included in the cost of RTW tickets, and this can cost several thousand rubles for one country.

Consider the cost of obtaining visas. Because If you visit many countries, there will be many visas, which will significantly affect the cost of travel.

You can't miss flights. If you miss one of the flights, all subsequent flights will be cancelled. In some cases, you can call the airline and resolve this problem, so if you have trouble, call the airline immediately.

Get vaccinated. Some countries require vaccination. For example, if you are flying from Brazil, then in Australia you will be required to provide proof of vaccination. Please keep in mind that some vaccinations must be given in advance.

Travel around the world and enjoy life. Take action! All the best!

 

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