Fastest non-refueled solo aerial circumnavigation

What to remember

Flying the Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer alone, Steve Fossett circled the Earth in 2005 without stopping or refuelling, in 67 hours, or 2 days and 19 hours, covering 37,000 kilometers. It was the first non-stop, non-refuelled solo circumnavigation in an airplane, and it is the fastest aerial circumnavigation.

Circumnavigation means travelling all the way around an island, a continent or an astronomical body. The first trip around the Earth was the Magellan Expedition, which left Sanlucar de Barrameda, Spain, in 1519 and returned in 1522 after crossing the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans.

Since commercial aviation took off in the mid 20th century, going around the planet has become a matter of days rather than years. The challenge has shifted towards endurance, technology, speed and less conventional methods. Fossett's flight ticks several of those boxes at once: alone, in one go, with no fuel stop.