In the hurly burly of modern media, the theme of ‘breaking news’ resonates with the urgency and immediacy of an interconnected world. It encapsulates the dynamic nature of information dissemination, where stories unfold in real-time, grabbing attention and shaping perception.
One hundred years ago in the aftermath of World War 1, the airplane and its rapidly advancing capabilities was often the subject of ‘breaking news’ around the world. Airplanes and their fearless pilots had conquered the Atlantic and flown from London to Australia. In 1924 the race was on to circumnavigate the globe by air.
This year marks the centenary of the first flight round the.world. https://www.firstworldflightcentennial.org/ Four Douglas Air Cruisers operated by the US Army Air Service, departed Seattle on April 6, 1924. They flew a westwards route that took them north to Alaska, along the Aleutian Islands to Russian Kamchatka and onto Japan. https://www.seattleworldcruiser.org/1924-world-flight-chronicle
Three of the aircraft reached Kagoshima on 2nd June and from there they flew across China and India arriving in Brough, Yorkshire (near Hull in the UK), on 17th July. During the following two weeks, essential maintenance was performed and pontoons refitted in preparation for a continuation of the flight over the North Atlantic via Iceland and Greenland and onto the USA.
One of the four planes crashed in Alaska, but the crew was rescued. A second aircraft ditched in the North Atlantic and the crew was picked up by the U.S. Navy. The two remaining flight crews returned to a huge welcoming crowd in Seattle on September 28, 1924 after completing the epic 175 day, 26,345 mile journey and becoming the First to Fly Around the World.
So what is the significance of this..? Well, 2019 round the world flyer Barry Payne bazflyer.com will leave New Zealand later in May flying his trusty Piper Comanche, ZK-BAZ, to Mount Hagen in the Central Highlands of Papua New Guinea. Here he will be joined by good friend Bob Bates http://www.pngtours.com/tours/Bobsflights.htm. Together they will fly a westwards World Flight closely reenacting the original 1924 flight route.
Step one will have Barry and Bob flying north of the Equator to arrive in Kagoshima, Japan, at the same time the original flyers were there 100 years previous. They will then traverse Russia meeting many aviators across the land and carry onto the UK landing at Breighton Airfield which is close to Brough. They will leave the UK late August, retracing the original flyer’s air path over the North Atlantic, across the USA all the way back to Seattle.
After Seattle , Barry and Bob pickup the original 1924 route through Alaska, down the Aleutian Islands to Kamchatka and complete a full circle at Kagoshima. They are scheduled to arrive back in Mount Hagen on 28th September, the same day the two Douglas Air Cruiser’s landed back at Seattle in 1924 completing the First Flight Round the World.
Barry and Bob proudly represent the South Canterbury Aero Club, Timaru Airport, New Zealand. Also for the record book, the two flyers have a combined age of 161 years, and 105 years pilot experience.
'Breaking News', Blogs and YouTube video along the journey can be accessed at www.bazflyer.com. Click "Follow" to be notified.
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| Preparing the trusty Comanche for a second World Flight |
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| Douglas Air Cruiser |
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| Bob and Barry (Baz) |
