Getting Off the Ground Of course, I can’t fly until I get off the


ground. I need another force for that. It’s called thrust. T e plane’s propeller and engine create thrust. T ey push me forward. T ere’s another force that tries to


hold me back, though. T at force is called drag. Drag slows things down. Flying into heavy wind creates drag. When drag is stronger than thrust,


my plane slows down. When thrust is greater than drag, my plane speeds up. For my plane to fly straight and level, I need to understand how all the forces of motion work.


Sandstorm My flight skills were tested over Saudi


Arabia. Everything was going great. T en I ran into a sandstorm. It came up so suddenly, there was no way to fly around it. I had to fly into it. Everything went dark. I felt the


sand pushing against my plane. I held the plane steady and increased the thrust. T e sound of sand scraping my windshield set my teeth on edge. Finally, I passed through the storm. T e storm did damage, though.


Sand clogged my plane’s brake lines. T e sand also damaged my battery. It had to be replaced.


6 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORER Start/Finish FLIGHT


Miami, Florida


PATH Barrington Irving’s solo trip around the world took 97 days. Here’s a look at his path.


A Fierce Storm Aſt er getting my plane fixed, I flew


on to Southeast Asia. T ere, I had a new challenge to face. I flew into a monsoon! It is a fierce storm. T e sky turned black. T e wind and


rain whipped my plane. I fought for control. A big burst of wind forced my plane to suddenly drop. T en a column of air pushed the plane back up. T e winds pushed and pulled at


my plane for hours. I worried that the winds would hurl me into a mountain. At last, I safely reached Hong Kong.


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