2250 NM Nonstop From Japan To Alaska!

Now... here's a guy who loves to fly... all over the world! Marc Aurel Lehman took delivery of his DA40XL at Diamond's London, Ontario facility last summer. Currently, he is back in London for some scheduled maintenance and upgrade of his G1000 with GARMIN's new SVT (Synthetic Vision Technology).

What is unusual about this, is that the return to London involved flying completely around the world!

Marc and Karl-Heinz Maxwitat started their latest adventure on May 11th, 2008, flying some very long legs, with stops in Croatia, Greece, Kuwait, Dubai, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan, Alaska and Northern Canada. In total, the circumnavigation took approximately 150 flight hours and covered over 20,000 nautical miles.

Their longest leg, surely a record, was a non-stop flight from Japan to Nome, Alaska, a distance of over 2250 nm, flown in 16 hrs 52 minutes.

"Piloting an around-the-world flight has been my dream since I received some flight training lessons for my birthday in 2004," said Marc.

"I went for my night and IFR ratings, and purchased the DA40 equipped with Garmin G1000 glass cockpit. After adding an extra fuel tank, visiting the dentist and checking the batteries in my watch, we were off to experience many adventures and see many wonderful sights. The aircraft has excellent fuel economy and range. The comfortable seats, and the great visibility assured that we enjoyed even the longest flights."

The return to Europe, is planned with nonstop legs from London to St. John's, and St. John's to the Azores, off the Portuguese coast.

FMI: www.flugzeug-weltumrundung.de, www.diamondaircraft.com