The Vintage Air Rally’s next event will run for six weeks from Ushuaia, Argentina, to Lakeland, Florida. Setting off from the southern tip of Argentina on March 1, 2018, the group expects to fly 9,000 miles, passing through 19 countries, and arrive in Florida just in time for Sun N’ Fun. For fifteen teams with the fortitude and access to a pre-WWII era airplane, the costs of participating in Ushuaia2USA (U2U) are fully covered by the sponsors. “All costs including travel, shipping, accommodation, food, fuel, permits, fees, immigration and insurance” are covered, say the event promoters. Vintage Air Rally Director Sam Rutherford said, “This is a unique journey and we want to invite everyone in the world to join us. U2U is totally free, so we’re looking for characters with character who want to join us. Vintage Air Rally isn’t about smart hotels. It’s about grit (and glory), going to places usually out of reach. If you’re someone who thrives on adventure, excitement and derring-do then this is for you.”
Rutherford and the Vintage Air Rally previously organized the Crete2Cape Vintage Air Rally, which took place in November 2016, and saw teams of planes re-create the 1920s aviation pioneer route across Africa, from Crete to Cape Town. Of the 19 aircraft that set out from Crete, Greece, on Nov. 12, 2016, 14 survivors arrived in Cape Town, South Africa, after 8,000 miles and over a month of flying. The pre-WWII aircraft were the first to land at the Egyptian Pyramids at Giza in 80 years and the first to receive permission for level overflight of Victoria Falls on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Image Credit: @Beatrice De Smet
