The Wrap

The Rough Stats
15 flying days
13,000 nautical miles (about 25,000km)
12 countries landed in
20 countries airspace traversed
95 hours flown
4900 litres of fuel

What I Lost

One shirt
One pair of sunglasses (subsequently found)
About 25 meals
About 5 kilograms
About 25 kilos from my hip-pocket
Some misunderstandings about some countries
A case of heartburn that had been troubling me for some time

What I Gained

A beautiful plane
95 hours of guided experience on how best to fly her
Exposure to challenging metereological conditions
Lessons in how to fly through international borders
Confidence that comes from the above experiences
Passport stamps that I would never have otherwise got
The opportunity to meet a variety of interesting people
A story that not many people can tell.

The Thanks

First thanks must go to the lovely Donna from whom I have robbed three weeks of precious holiday time.  There are not many wives who would tolerate a husband as diverted to a task as I have been.  I hope I can repay the time with some great flying holidays over many years.

Jan Wells (the HappyFerryPilot) must be the next.  Jan is an excellent man to have on such a journey - light (so you can carry more fuel), experienced, skilled as a mechanic, concerned about my hip pocket, good company in a small cockpit, and able to get done whatever needs to be done to complete the job safely and in as timely a manner as possible. 

Isabel and Mario in Santarem who were hospitable and really helped in Santarem to manage the transfer for us (including dealing with the spanish authorities) and get us off the ground.

Guiseppe (Pepe) and the other guys in Catania who did everything he could to try to help us diagnose the nose gear troubles.

Eckhardt and Paul in Empuriabrava who worked quickly for us to complete the diagnosis and repair of the nose gear trouble and let me hang around to learn something about the airframe structures.

Sonny and Woot in Utapou who kept us out of the Bangkok Hilton and showed us a fantastic time in Patthaya.

The Brand brothers from Horsham Aviation who accepted a lot of calls and emails from me during the day and night about the plane and are in the process of giving great service for the certificate of airworthiness.

Mike from White Rose Aviation who tolerated early calls from me and otherwise ensured that we had all the needed country and landing clearances.

Pete Vernon for the loan of his Spot which provided so much excitement for my dedicated followers.

The blokes from Schon Air, Karachi.

The CASA guys, Gary Arnold and Jurgen, who did what they needed to do quickly and efficiently for me, despite being on leave.

All the handlers and everyone else who contributed to the success of the project.

I have loved it.