25. “Homeward Bound”
He landed in the city of Kushiro, on the island of Hokkaido, Japan. He needed some rest. The weather was difficult, but he made it through Japan in one week. He headed to the Philippines in a couple of days, then stopped in Ambon in Malaku, Indonesia. Soon he was homeward bound. He landed in Longreach in the outback of Queensland, the birthplace of Qantas Airlines, completing his trip around the globe.
26. “The End”
Technically, it took another two days to actually get home. He was reunited with his family in Melbourne on Saturday, November 14, 2015. He was proud to learn that his ship, the Southern Sun, had become the official “first amphibian aircraft to complete a solo circumnavigation.”
27. “A New World Record”
If you actually study his journey on a map, you will see that this incredible voyage covered 52,000 kilometers (or 32,500 miles). His adventure took 210 days and included 80 stops in 25 countries and 480 hours of flight time. While Smith doubts he will ever top this trip, he does intend on flying the friendly skies again. He noted that he would like to fly the entire length of the famous Volga River in Russia and land in little places along the way to meet the locals and explore the area. The Southern Sun is far from being “decommissioned.”
