At 2:48pm and 46 seconds ET on Thursday, March 3rd 2005, Steve Fosset achieved aeronautical history by piloting his Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer airplane around the world in just over 67 hours.

The journey took exactly 67 hours, 2 minutes and 38 seconds.

Fossett's average speed: 300mph.

On Monday, February 28th, Steve Fossett started in Kansas and on Thursday, he landed in Kansas. But on Wednesday, over the Pacific Ocean, he almost didn't make it.

Fossett has already 62 adventure records to his name. This one almost came undone yesterday over the Hawaiian Islands.

Fossett and his team considered abandoning the trip because the experimental plane came up about 2,600 pounds of fuel short after taking off on Monday.

Fossett decided to press on because of favorable tail winds.

The team speculated that fuel was vented from four tanks shortly after takeoff.

Early warnings that the dramatic drop in fuel could have forced Fossett to land in Hawaii were later revised.

With faith that the tailwinds would help him, he forged on.

Yesterday, 75 million hits were recorded to Fossett's website, after learning of Fossett's concern that he might not make it.

Make it, he did, and with "flying colors!"

Fossett is being called a modern-day Magellan, the mariner who circumnavigated the globe from 1519 to 1521.

In 2002, Fossett became the first solo balloonist to circle the globe nonstop, despite an on-board fire and dangerous winds.

Two years later, he and his crew made the fastest circumnavigation on a sailing ship in 58 days.

The first nonstop global flight without refueling was made in 1986 by Jeana Yeager and Dick Rutan, Burt Rutan's brother.

The difference for Fossett is that, where Yeager and Rutan did it together, Fossett flew solo.

Last year, Burt Rutan led the first manned commercial flight to reach the edge of space.

Rutan's SpaceShipOne won his team the $10 million X Prize, an award from a nonprofit foundation aimed at spurring civilian space flight.

Burt Rutan is also responsible for designing Fossett's Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer.

Fossett had his Virgin Atlantic plane, a good engine (made by Williams International), the team who built them both, his financier, Sir Richard Branson and his wife, Peggy.

Last but not least, he had favorable tail winds to thank for his success.

The sixty-year-old millionaire adventurer reached the runway at Salina, Kansas safe-and-sound on Thursday afternoon, March 3rd, completing his almost 20,000 mile quest to become the first person to successfully fly a plane solo around-the-world without refueling.

One man's ambition: to fly the fastest, non-stop, non-refueled flight around the world, ever.

One plane's technical ability: Fossett's GlobalFlyer plane consists of three hulls attached to a 114-foot (35-meter) wing that measures more than half the wingspan of a Boeing 747.

Twin "boom" hulls on either side of the cockpit hull each carried almost 5,500 pounds (2,500 kilograms) of fuel.

One world to conquer: Fossett took off from Kansas and headed northeast toward Chicago.

From Chicago he flew over Canada, Finland, Ireland, Wales and England.

He then headed south over Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, India, then north up to China, Japan, across the Pacific Ocean, and home to Peggy in Kansas.

At 3:06pm ET Fossett climbed out of his seven foot cockpit, the top of his head a little redder than three days ago, when he started his 20,000 mile journey.

The rest of his face was beaming ear-to-ear.

Fossett was all smiles as he greeted his crew, his family and fans in Kansas.

After nearly 3 days surviving only on 2-3 minute 'power naps' and a diet of milkshakes, an ecstatic Fossett drank champagne with his wife Peggy and his main sponsor Sir Richard Branson.

Sir Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin, which supplied the plane, was the second person to greet Fossett upon his touchdown -- after Steve's wife gave him a huge welcome hug.

Branson gave Fossett a High Ten.

Fossett's Touchdown Speech

Fossett said, "That was a big one!"

Branson took the microphone and thanked everyone for being there. He encouraged all those at the airfield to give Steve a round of applause.

Branson proclaimed:

He's the first person in the world to go around it solo.

Fossett took the microphone and said:

Well, that was something I've wanted to do for a long time.

It was a major ambition, and I had good fortune about getting the right people to associate with it.

Fossett credited the primary designer and builder of the plane, John Karkow.

Steve said, "Richard brought Virgin to make this a much better project."

Fossett also credited his fabulous team in Kansas, the airport authority and Kansas City University (which created hoops and hollers in the crowd).

Fossett said:

I'm a really lucky guy now having achieved my ambition.

Branson was as much a financial partner in the endeavor, as he was at the top of the list of people living vicariously through Fossett throughout this journey.

After Fossett's touchdown speech, Sir Richard Branson asked, "Can you walk?"

Fossett can not only walk, he can fly!

More over Howard Hughes. There's another aviator in town.

To learn more about Steve Fossett, Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer, Richard Branson and Steve Fossett's stellar team, go to:

To learn more about Virgin Atlantic's GlobalFlyer, go to:

Inspire & Be Inspired.

Here's to healthy, adventuresome, soulful, "building the right team to achieve your dreams" living!

~ Jennifer Carolyn King , Rugged Elegant Living publisher

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