What is an Earthrounder?
The Earthrounders is an international community of pilots who share a rare aviation achievement: flying themselves around the globe in a light aircraft. Conceived to unite adventurous aviators who have crossed oceans, mountains, and deserts across all of the Earth's meridians, the register recognizes flights completed outside the realm of commercial airliners and long-range executive jets.
The only way to join is to fly yourself around the world in a light aircraft.
Official Qualifying Criteria
The light aircraft cut-off limit of 7,000 kg (15,500 lbs) Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW) is the official ICAO figure classifying aircraft in the light wake turbulence category:
- Flights may originate from any country, but must terminate at the exact point of departure.
- All meridians must be crossed in a continuous forward motion to close the circle (unless completing a transpolar circumnavigation); crossing the equator is not strictly mandatory.
- Circling near the North Pole does not qualify—the route must stay between the two Polar Circles (N 66° 33′ and S 66° 33′).
- At least one pilot must remain on board for the entire circumnavigation.
- The same aircraft must be used for the entirety of the flight.
- All legs around the world must be flown (several separate trips in different aircraft at different times do not constitute a qualifying RTW flight).
- There is no minimum mileage requirement and no time limit on total duration.
History & International Meetings
While researching a book on solo round-the-world pilots (having flown his own Aerostar around the world in 1996), Claude Meunier visited Hans Gutmann in Austria and proposed bringing circumnavigation pilots together. With the support of EAA President Tom Poberezny and Margi Moss, the inaugural gathering took place at Oshkosh AirVenture in July 2000, where 16 round-the-world aircraft flew in and over 50 Earthrounder pilots attended.