Longest Flight Record Still Holds

[Lowflynjack]

"Late last August, a solar-powered drone called Zephyr almost beat one of aviation’s most enduring records.

The unmanned aircraft, operated by the US Army and produced by Airbus, flew for 64 days, 18 hours and 26 minutes before unexpectedly crashing down in Arizona – just four hours shy of breaking the record for the longest ever continuous flight.

That record was set 64 years ago, in 1959, by Robert Timm and John Cook, who flew aboard a four-seater aircraft in the skies over Las Vegas for 64 days, 22 hours and 19 minutes."

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/longest-ever-continuous-flight-1959/index.html

 

[texasclouds]

Those men had serious determination! Also, unmanned don’t count!

 

[Gary Ward]

First thing that came to mind is that they didn't have gas cans like in the above picture in 1959.
I know it is just promotion picture. OMG my back hurts just thinking about it.
I have seen that 172 somewhere in Vegas in the last 15 years, is the Hacienda casino still there?

 

[RyanShort1]

How long will a PT-6 run? Wonder if a King Air or PC-12 or something like it could beat the record?

 

[texasclouds]

How long will a PT-6 run? Wonder if a King Air or PC-12 or something like it could beat the record?

You want to feed a King Air for that long? And burn up hours on two engines?

The 172 was/is a perfect platform for something like this.

 

[Salty]

How long will a PT-6 run? Wonder if a King Air or PC-12 or something like it could beat the record?

What would it cost to fly a pt-6 continuously for 60 days? Also, refueling would be a lot harder at those speeds and with that outside visibility. I’d like to watch someone refuel a king air at night - from a respectable distance.

 

[SixPapaCharlie]

I was in Vegas last week and it was hanging from the ceiling of the airport.

 

[Lowflynjack]

First thing that came to mind is that they didn't have gas cans like in the above picture in 1959.
I know it is just promotion picture. OMG my back hurts just thinking about it.

Yeah, here is the way they really did it.

 

[SixPapaCharlie]

I want to see the flight track, altitudes, etc.
This is really fascinating. I picture them flying 200 feet off the ground in a circle but I guess they probably went "out" and came back for fuel.

I am guessing they can fly 6-8 hours even with ferry tanks so they are doing this fueling operation at all possible hours.
Hot temperatures, cold temperatures.

I heard they rigged it so they could do inflight oil changes.

Wish there were GoPros back then.

 

[RyanShort1]

The 172 was/is a perfect platform for something like this.

Except from a physiological standpoint.

 

[Racerx]

"Next time I feel in the mood to fly endurance, I’m going to lock myself in a garbage can with the vacuum cleaner running, and have Bob [Timm] serve me T-bone steaks chopped up in a Thermos bottle. That is, until my psychiatrist opens for business in the morning.”"

 

[Pilawt]

Ponder that -- over 1,500 hours on one logbook entry.

I was in Vegas last week and it was hanging from the ceiling of the airport.

 

[RyanShort1]

Ponder that -- over 1,500 hours on one logbook entry.

With a big difference between "total flight duration" and "PIC" columns!

 

[mandm]

Oh wow, so the airplane doesn’t burn any oil?? I would have thought the oil would dry up or you’d have to have a way to add oil in flight?

 

[texasclouds]

Oh wow, so the airplane doesn’t burn any oil?? I would have thought the oil would dry up or you’d have to have a way to add oil in flight?

They had a oil tube/funnel in the cockpit. Tossed in a quart every so many hours. Continental O-300 baby!

 

[Pugs]

I am guessing they can fly 6-8 hours even with ferry tanks so they are doing this fueling operation at all possible hours.
Hot temperatures, cold temperatures.

I’d do it like we do TRANSLANTs and not wait until you needed fuel to take fuel. Conditions good? Top off even if you just got gas two hours ago.

 

[Pinecone]

Ferrying the A-10 to England, there is a point where you tank 4 times as quickly as you get to the point that it will take fuel, which was 1500 pounds used IIRC.

If you hooked up, and could not take fuel, you disconnected IMMEDIATELY and turned left and headed to Iceland. You had just enough fuel to reach there and land with a small reserve. But it allowed the track to be further south and shorter.

12 aerial refuelings in one flight.

 

[Lowflynjack]

Except from a physiological standpoint.

And from a psychological standpoint. When your buddy heads to the back of the plane... "bathroom duties were handled with a folding camp toilet and plastic bags, which were then deposited over uninhabited ares of the desert." Yuck!

I am guessing they can fly 6-8 hours even with ferry tanks so they are doing this fueling operation at all possible hours.

With a 95 gallon belly tank, it was still filled 128 times!

The Longest Ever Flight

 

[3393RP]

The unmanned aircraft, operated by the US Army and produced by Airbus, flew for 64 days, 18 hours and 26 minutes before unexpectedly crashing down in Arizona – just four hours shy of breaking the record for the longest ever continuous flight.

That record was set 64 years ago, in 1959, by Robert Timm and John Cook, who flew aboard a four-seater aircraft in the skies over Las Vegas for 64 days, 22 hours and 19 minutes."

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/longest-ever-continuous-flight-1959/index.html

In the late 90s, the Thunderbird was displayed on the second floor concourse that overlooked the baggage claim area. The 172 was hung near that location so one could take photos that included both the airplane and the car.

 

[Matthew]

Ponder that -- over 1,500 hours on one logbook entry.

And it probably wasn’t even a >50NM cross country.

 

[Zeldman]

With a 95 gallon belly tank, it was still filled 128 times!

With today's average fuel prices that would be over $75,000.!!!

"bathroom duties were handled with a folding camp toilet and plastic bags, which were then deposited over uninhabited ares of the desert." Yuck!

1000 years from now some kid will be playing in the desert and discover a glass Coke bottle and a fossilized bag of poo dropped from the airplane, and believe it to be a gift from their gods. Then when the kid sets out to return the gifts to the gods, his journey becomes intertwined with that of a biologist, a newly hired village school teacher and a band of guerrilla terrorists, who all believe the gods must be crazy...... Oh wait...

 

[Pinecone]

And it probably wasn’t even a >50NM cross country.

Under current rules, it wouldn't count if they landed back at the same airport. Needed to land 51 miles away. 1500 hours to go 51 NM.

 

[MBDiagMan]

First thing that came to mind is that they didn't have gas cans like in the above picture in 1959.
I know it is just promotion picture. OMG my back hurts just thinking about it.
I have seen that 172 somewhere in Vegas in the last 15 years, is the Hacienda casino still there?

Are you sure about the gas can? That looks a gear lube can from that period which were commonly used after emptied as gas cans. Painting one up to be used as a gas can would make sense.

 

[DMD3.]

As someone already posted, it doesn’t count if it’s unmanned. Otherwise, a satellite dish holds the record after being in orbit.

It’s my understanding that the flight may have gone on longer, but they were forced to finally land due to not being able to maintain altitude (engine reached TBO after running nonstop for 1,500 hours. ).