Imagine soaring in delicious silence, motor off, above some of the world’s most stunning scenery?
Flying in harmony with nature, catching a ride from the wind and the warmth of the sun.
The Super Ximango – a glider with an independent spirit – is built by Aeromot in Porto Alegre, southern Brazil, where it was specially prepared for a long odyssey – a flight around the world never before attempted in a motor-glider. The advantage of a glider with an engine is obviously that it can take off without being towed by another aircraft and it can always reach its destination when conditions do not allow for gliding!
This was Gerard’s thinking when he came up with the crazy idea. After long months of planning, he took off from Rio de Janeiro on 20th June 2001, headed in a northwesterly direction up across the Amazon, through Central America and western USA towards Canada, Alaska and the Bering Straits. Skimming through Eastern Russia, he flew down through the Far East, across Asia to Europe, and returned to Brazil in an audacious crossing of the vast South Atlantic ocean.
Gérard made the flight solo, with the exception of Russian territory. At that time, the authorities obliged foreign aircraft to carry a Russian navigator on board on internal flights in Russia. Throughout the 100-day venture, Margi was the earthbound support, responsible for obtaining flight clearances as well as general coordination of the project.
In addition to the innovative flight, Gérard collected air samples to measure low-altitude ozone levels and made history by making the first ever live transmissions direct to TV from a moving aircraft.
Upon returning home, Gérard had clocked up another 407 flying hours, covered 55,600 km, visited 31 countries and landed at 89 different airports. Quite a journey!
