What aircraft holds the world's record for flight endurance (longest non-stop flying)?
In December 1958 and January and February 1959, two men flew a mission-modified Cessna 172 around and around over the desert Southwest for 64 days, 22 hours, and 19 minutes.
Believe it or not, they regularly transferred fuel from a truck driving on a long, straight stretch of roadway via a hose they lifted up to the airplane. A Ford truck, donated by Cashman Auto in Las Vegas, was outfitted with a fuel pump, tank, and other paraphernalia required to support the aircraft in flight. When fuel was required, a rendezvous would be arranged on a stretch of straight road in the desert near Blythe, California. An electric winch lowered a hook, the fuel pump hose was picked up, and Timm or Cook inserted it into the belly tank. It took a little more than three minutes to fill the belly tank.
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