According to the Guinness World Records, the fastest aerial circumnavigation (without going into space) still belongs to Concorde. In 1995, the supersonic passenger jet set off from New York, USA, and circled the globe in just 31 hours, 27 minutes and 49 seconds, reaching Mach 2 -twice the speed of sound.
The historical flight was made as part of an event to celebrate the anniversary of Christopher Columbus’ discovery of America. Steve Fossett set the solo record in March 2005, piloting Virgin Atlantic’s Global Flyer. Fie flew almost 37,000 kilometres (22,991 miles) in just 67 hours and one minute without even stopping to refuel.
