1 June 2007
Those who visted last year’s Flyer Summer Bash at Enstone may recall the sponsor-sticker covered RV-6 on display, and its modest Portugese-born owner: last year, Manuel Queiroz flew solo around the world in just 39 days in the self-modified RV, becoming the first and only pilot to circumnavigate the globe in a British-registered homebuilt aircraft.
Manuel’s pioneering achievement has now been recognised by the Royal Aero Club, when the Club’s President, HRH The Duke of York presented him with the Britannia Trophy, one of the world’s greatest aviation awards. The ceremony took place at the Royal Air Force Club in Piccadilly, London.
Manuel’s name joins the distinguished list of aviators who have previously been awarded this trophy including, among others: Sir John Alcock, the first person to fly non-stop across the Atlantic in 1919; Sir Alan Cobham, pioneer of long-distance flying; Alex Henshaw MBE, WWII Spitfire test pilot, who set the world record for a return flight to Cape Town in 1939 (which still stands today) and Worcester-born pilot Sheila Scott, the first person to fly over the North Pole in a single engine aircraft.
Manuel was Flyer Magazine’s 2006 ‘Pilot of the Year’. He has also been awarded the Popular Flying Association’s trophy for Navigation 2006. His flight established a new British speed record for circumnavigation of the globe in a single engine aircraft under 1,000 kg.
<a href=’http://chasingthemorningsun.com’ target=’_blank’>Manuel’s website</a>
