Eddie McCallum Flew A Flight Design CT-SW To Oshkosh All The Way From England Over The Past Month

Just in case you think a light sport aircraft is not a “traveling machine,” Edward “Eddie” McCallum, of Longframlington, England, would beg to differ with you.  He touched down in Oshkosh Last Friday morning after flying his Flight Design CT-SW microlight all the way from England.

The rules for a microlight aircraft in the UK have similarities to the U.S. rules for light sport aircraft. One big difference is that under the microlight rules, the aircraft has a lower gross weight than our light sport rules. This story goes to show that recreational flying in a light airplane does not have to be limited to flying the local pattern.

Eddie departed Wick, Scotland, on June 11, and proceeded past the Faroe Islands to Iceland, then Greenland and over to Canada–where he met up with his wife and spent a couple of weeks before proceeding to the United States. His total flight time was about 55 hours, with the longest leg over water between Scotland and Iceland measuring 540 nautical miles.

He decided to make the trip to Oshkosh because he had flown to virtually every other European country in his 20 years and 2,600 flight hours as a pilot. “I’ve been everywhere…Greece, Portugal, Gibraltar,” he said. Eddie originally looked forward to attending AirVenture, but circumstances forced him to depart about three weeks earlier than planned.

The airplane has a 7 to 8 hour range at 102 knots. He flew the Rotax 912S-powered CT-SW on premium auto fuel. You’ve got to love the low fuel burn of the Rotax!

Following a fuel stop in Western Iceland, he flew to Greenland, but was forced to deviate south from his original course after ice accumulated on the wing and wind screen. He landed in Nuuk, Greenland, and later departed the country from Sisimiut headed for Canada.

While in Greenland, Eddie was able to catch England’s June 14 World Cup opening soccer game against Italy, and there just happened to be an Italian watching as well. They made a bet that the loser would have to jump into the frigid waters of a nearby fiord. When Italy defeated England, 2-1, Eddie took the plunge.

Luckily, that was his only brush with water, although he was prepared with survival gear including a full wet suit. Eddie was very surprised at how wide Lake Michigan is, which he flew over on Friday morning before landing in Oshkosh.

Eddie, who operates a construction company, owns a 600-yard grass strip. He plans to begin his flight home before AirVenture officially begins, and although he won’t be able to be a part of AirVenture, he’ll follow the convention through EAA.org. And, we hope he’ll watch our full and continuous coverage of AirVenture 2014 on Aero-News.net.

(Photo of Eddie McCallum taken by Ric Reynolds and provided by EAA)

FMI: www.eaa.org