The World’s Longest Flight Took 64 Days, and the Pilots Had To Be Carried Out of the Plane



The world record for the longest flight was set 64 years ago when Robert Timm and John Cook spent 64 days, 22 hours and 19 minutes in the air. The daring duo flew aboard a 4-seater aircraft in the skies over Las Vegas, sleeping, eating, and doing everything else in the tiny plane. Their incredible feat began when Hacienda Hotel and Casino opened on the Las Vegas Strip and wanted to run a publicity stunt involving beating the then-flight endurance record of 47 days, set 7 years earlier. Timm, who had flown in World War II before becoming a slot machine repairman, was given $100,000 to complete the flight, more than $1 million today. He set about modifying a Cessna 172, stripping its non-crucial elements out and adding a sink and mattress. He also added a rudimentary autopilot system in hopes it would give him and his co-pilot some down time. He added an extra fuel tank to the aircraft, which could be accessed via a hose from a truck driving alongside the plane while it flew just above ground height. It was a dramatic show of airmanship, because they sometimes had to do it at night, which required a certain amount of precision flying. The pilots set off on Dec. 4, 1958 from McCarran Airport in Las Vegas. By the time they touched down on February 7, 1959, the had been in the air for more than 2 months and had flown 150,000 miles. Due to a lack of exercise and being unable to stand straight up for such a long period, the pilots had to be carried out of the aircraft. Remarkably, the record they set remains today, almost 65 years later.