Learjet embarks on global circumnavigation

On April 3, 2024, a Learjet 36A (with registration N41GJ) embarked on an around-the world trip, with the aim of raising funds for the Classic Lear Jet Foundation. 

This project, which has been named the ‘Century Mission’, also aims to mark the centenary of the first aerial circumnavigation of the globe, which was completed in 1924 by eight members of the U.S. Army Air Service flying on four specially modified DT-2 torpedo bomber aircraft. 

On this occasion, the aircraft has been provided by Global Jet Care, an air ambulance services provider based in Florida. The expedition, which seeks to complete the journey in the space of 60 hours, is also being supported by a number of private sponsors. 

The funds raised by this initiative are destined to fund the restoration back to flying condition of one of the first production Learjets, an airframe that was delivered in 1964. 

The Century Mission set off from Wichita, Kansas, a city that’s the historical home of the Learjet production line. 

The flight path will take Global Jetcare founder Bart Gray and four other pilots and crew members in a westbound direction, with stopovers planned at 11 different airports in California, Hawaii, the Marshall Islands, Palau, Singapore, India, Dubai, Egypt, Italy, Portugal and Canada. If everything goes according to plan, the voyagers are expected to touch down again in Wichita 54 hours and 30 minutes after their initial departure.