Around the Globe

Pilots!

This Sunday marks the 90th anniversary of the first flight around the globe! Along side the celebration, we're offering discounts and bonuses all weekend long. You can earn even more crew experience by completing this weekend's mission. Check out the details to the event below, along with a look at the story behind the celebration. 

The World Flight crews at Sand Point, Washington, before the start of their journey. Left to right: Tech. Sgt. Arthur Turner (who did not make the flight), Staff Sgt. Henry Ogden, Lt. Leslie Arnold, Lt. Leigh Wade, Lt. Lowell Smith, Maj. Frederick Martin, and Staff Sgt. Alva Harvey. Not pictured: Lt. Erik Nelson and Staff Sgt. John Harding Jr.

On April 6, 1924, eight U.S. Army Air Service pilots and mechanics in four airplanes left Seattle, Washington, to carry out the first circumnavigation of the globe by air. They completed the journey 175 days later on September 28, after making 74 stops and covering about 44,337 kilometers (27,550 miles).

Douglas World Cruiser

Finding that none of their existing fleet was suitable for the task, the group of officers charged with organizing the attempt received instructions from the War Office to evaluate the Fokker F-5 and the Davis-Douglas Cloudster. Rather than sending details about the Cloudster, Donald Douglas chose to submit information about a modified version of the DT-2 torpedo bomber, called the Douglas World Cruiser, which the Air Service selected.

Douglas delivered a modified World Cruiser with over five and a half times the original fuel capacity to the Air Service for testing. The aircraft met all the requirements and Douglas received an order for four more planes, the last of which arrived with the Air Service in March 1924.

The airplanes were named for American cities and carried a flight number: Seattle (1), Chicago (2), Boston (3), and New Orleans (4). They flew over the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic oceans and encountered climatic extremes from arctic to tropical. Only the Chicago, flown by Lts. Lowell Smith and Leslie Arnold, and the New Orleans, flown by Lts. Erik Nelson and John Harding Jr., completed the entire journey.

Start Date: Friday, April 4, 04:00 PDT (07:00 EDT)

End Date: Monday, April 7, 04:00 PDT (07:00 EDT)