Dreaming A Little Dream
By ANN Correspondent Tyson V. Rininger
We've all had dreams and aspirations of doing things that most
would snicker at or at the least, divulge their extent of caution.
Four months ago, 32 year old Jared Aicher became one of those
dreamers, or would that be realist?
Aicher, who is a traveler by nature, decided a few months back
to take it a bit further, around the world further. But, before you
go through the been there, done that routine, check out what he's
flying; a 1232 lb. Escapade with an 80hp Rotax 912 engine at a
110mph cruising speed. Talk about putting the new Sport Pilot class
aircraft to the test!
The most comparable aircraft to make a round the world (RTW)
journey was Jon Johanson (Australia) in his RV-4 in 1995 and Hans
Georg Schmid (Switzerland) in a Long Eze in 2000.
As an EAA member, Aicher has much more in mind besides just a
trip around the world. Riding along the success of the Young Eagles
Program, students located near each stop of his trip can
voluntarily write an essay along the lines of "Why I want to be a
pilot". The winning essays will result in a Young Eagles ride. This
is of course in addition to Aicher's proposed companion, a now
infamous volleyball named Wilson.
Departure is scheduled for June 5th, 2005 from Boise (ID),
weather pending. Initial plans are to head east, devoting between
five to eight hours per day for flying. Supplies such as oil and
routine wear parts will be drop-shipped to each intended
destination based on calculated mileage.
For those following other RTW efforts, Barry Jones in his
Gyrocopter was recently forced to put on hold his attempt do to
monsoons in India and will resume in late August, early September.
The most recent person to complete their RTW trip was Thomas
Scherer in his Europa on June 20th, 2004. To date, 242 aircraft
have flown around the world.
Aicher's demonstration Escapade aircraft as pictured, took home
the Grand Champion Award at the 2004 Sun n' Fun Fly-in at Lakeland
(FL). Flying alongside Aicher in the newest variant of the
Escapade, the Highlander could only be described as a real-world
thrill. Piloted by Gary Schmitt as the photo ship, it's monstrous
backcountry tires and beefy suspension combined with the enormous
30sqft of cargo area in the rear make this a very contentious
aircraft for a whole new class of buyers.