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I hadn't heard about Paul Redfern before, a fascinating tale.
Paul Redfern (right) sits beside Paul Varner, chairman of the committee backing his 1927 nonstop flight attempt to Rio de Janeiro, at Sea Island, Georgia.
Costal Georgia History
Gregory P. Liefer
After becoming the first to fly across the Caribbean Sea, Paul Redfern vanished in the Amazon jungle, spawning a dozen search expeditions and an unsolved mystery.
More than 3,000 spectators lined the dunes and hard-packed sand beach of Sea Island, Ga., as Paul Redfern walked slowly around a brightly colored Stinson monoplane gleaming in the afternoon sun. Reporters jostled in close, firing questions as the young pilot carefully checked the airframe, fuel tanks and engine for the last time. His expression was stern and focused, trying to appear confident without the obvious anxiety he surely felt over his planned 4,600-mile nonstop flight across the Caribbean Sea and South American jungle to Brazil.
The date was August 25, 1927, three months since Charles Lindbergh’s historic solo transatlantic flight from New York to Paris had inspired many aviators of his generation to seek their own fame and glory. The Caribbean had yet to be crossed by air, and to do so by flying from the United States to South America would set a new distance record. Flying the route solo would be another first, but even more difficult with fatigue potentially playing a major role. Whether the plane could carry enough fuel for the nonstop flight or its pilot could remain alert for more than 48 hours were questions yet unanswered. ...
Redfern barnstormed across the country and went on to establish the first commercial airfield in Columbia. Relocating to Ohio, he started another flying business and worked as a pilot for wealthy businessman Charles Hillabrand. In 1925 he married Hillabrand’s daughter Gertrude and moved to Savannah, Ga., where he flew for the U.S. Customs Service spotting illegal stills and ships smuggling bootleg liquor.
By 1927 aspirations of aviation glory were on the minds of many pilots, especially the young and bold like Redfern. Lindbergh’s success only fueled the fire.
Whether Redfern or someone else was the first to propose the idea is unclear, but when the Board of Trade in Brunswick, Ga., offered a $25,000 prize for a nonstop flight to Rio de Janeiro, he was the only pilot to accept the challenge. The city of Brunswick hoped the record flight would entice new investors and help make their port a major East Coast shipping center.
The flight from Brunswick to Rio was a significant undertaking. Roughly half the distance was over water and the other half over the dense Amazon jungle. Landing sites were limited to beaches on a few islands and coastal areas, mostly well off the intended route. Any emergency landing in the sea or jungle would leave the pilot with little hope of rescue. Fuel would be critical, requiring accurate navigation. No radio would be carried to save weight and flying solo required staying awake for the duration. Many individuals in the aviation community considered the flight dangerous and irresponsible.
For the attempt Redfern chose a new Stinson SM-1 Detroiter, a reliable single-engine monoplane. Powered by a 220-hp Wright J-5 Whirlwind 9-cylinder radial—the same engine Lindbergh used—the SM-1’s top speed was 122 mph and normal cruise speed 105 mph. Redfern purchased the aircraft directly from the Detroit factory with additional fuel tanks installed in the cabin, increasing capacity from 90 gallons to 525.
During his nonstop flight from the factory to Georgia, Redfern tested the fuel system with the tanks near capacity. He was accompanied by company owner Eddie Stinson, an experienced aviator in his own right. The plane performed well, averaging 86 mph over the 780-mile route. Based on a fuel consumption of 10 gallons an hour, the aircraft’s endurance would be about 52 hours.
Stinson’s only recommendation to Redfern was for another pilot to go along on the flight, since he thought going without sleep for such an extended period “was more than a man could stand.” Redfern ignored the advice, convinced he could safely deal with sleep deprivation for 50-plus hours.
In his autobiography The Spirit of St. Louis, Lindbergh recounted his struggle to stay awake during his 33½-hour flight to Paris. He described falling asleep several times with his eyes open, prolonged periods of drowsiness and episodes of hallucination. Redfern would be flying much longer. His father, Dr. Frederick Redfern, stated in simple yet prophetic terms what he thought about his son’s intention to fly to Brazil: “It is a matter of endurance, pure and simple; continuous running on the part of the machine and the man.” ...
Shortly before Redfern departed from Sea Island, a journalist asked him what he would do if his engine quit over the jungle. “Don’t lose hope of my return for at least six months or more…,” he said. “If I should be forced down over the Amazon Valley, I believe I can live for months with the equipment I am carrying….”
Over the years rumors and secondhand reports told of a white man, thought to be Redfern, living with a tribe of Indians deep in the Amazon jungle. Most of the stories described how a man fell from the sky in an airplane and was being held captive by the natives. Other accounts claimed the man was hobbled by broken limbs or living peacefully with an Indian wife who had borne him a son. A dozen expeditions were launched into the Amazon Basin over an 11-year period ending in 1938 in an attempt to find and rescue him, including searches sponsored by the U.S. government and the Smithsonian Institution. No confirmed evidence of Redfern’s fate was ever found. ...
https://www.historynet.com/lost-flight-to-brazil-in-1927-a-young-pilot-disappears-in-the-amazon.htm
Lost Flight to Brazil in 1927: A Young Pilot Disappears in the Amazon
Paul Redfern (right) sits beside Paul Varner, chairman of the committee backing his 1927 nonstop flight attempt to Rio de Janeiro, at Sea Island, Georgia.
Costal Georgia History
Gregory P. Liefer
After becoming the first to fly across the Caribbean Sea, Paul Redfern vanished in the Amazon jungle, spawning a dozen search expeditions and an unsolved mystery.
More than 3,000 spectators lined the dunes and hard-packed sand beach of Sea Island, Ga., as Paul Redfern walked slowly around a brightly colored Stinson monoplane gleaming in the afternoon sun. Reporters jostled in close, firing questions as the young pilot carefully checked the airframe, fuel tanks and engine for the last time. His expression was stern and focused, trying to appear confident without the obvious anxiety he surely felt over his planned 4,600-mile nonstop flight across the Caribbean Sea and South American jungle to Brazil.
The date was August 25, 1927, three months since Charles Lindbergh’s historic solo transatlantic flight from New York to Paris had inspired many aviators of his generation to seek their own fame and glory. The Caribbean had yet to be crossed by air, and to do so by flying from the United States to South America would set a new distance record. Flying the route solo would be another first, but even more difficult with fatigue potentially playing a major role. Whether the plane could carry enough fuel for the nonstop flight or its pilot could remain alert for more than 48 hours were questions yet unanswered. ...
Redfern barnstormed across the country and went on to establish the first commercial airfield in Columbia. Relocating to Ohio, he started another flying business and worked as a pilot for wealthy businessman Charles Hillabrand. In 1925 he married Hillabrand’s daughter Gertrude and moved to Savannah, Ga., where he flew for the U.S. Customs Service spotting illegal stills and ships smuggling bootleg liquor.
By 1927 aspirations of aviation glory were on the minds of many pilots, especially the young and bold like Redfern. Lindbergh’s success only fueled the fire.
Whether Redfern or someone else was the first to propose the idea is unclear, but when the Board of Trade in Brunswick, Ga., offered a $25,000 prize for a nonstop flight to Rio de Janeiro, he was the only pilot to accept the challenge. The city of Brunswick hoped the record flight would entice new investors and help make their port a major East Coast shipping center.
The flight from Brunswick to Rio was a significant undertaking. Roughly half the distance was over water and the other half over the dense Amazon jungle. Landing sites were limited to beaches on a few islands and coastal areas, mostly well off the intended route. Any emergency landing in the sea or jungle would leave the pilot with little hope of rescue. Fuel would be critical, requiring accurate navigation. No radio would be carried to save weight and flying solo required staying awake for the duration. Many individuals in the aviation community considered the flight dangerous and irresponsible.
For the attempt Redfern chose a new Stinson SM-1 Detroiter, a reliable single-engine monoplane. Powered by a 220-hp Wright J-5 Whirlwind 9-cylinder radial—the same engine Lindbergh used—the SM-1’s top speed was 122 mph and normal cruise speed 105 mph. Redfern purchased the aircraft directly from the Detroit factory with additional fuel tanks installed in the cabin, increasing capacity from 90 gallons to 525.
During his nonstop flight from the factory to Georgia, Redfern tested the fuel system with the tanks near capacity. He was accompanied by company owner Eddie Stinson, an experienced aviator in his own right. The plane performed well, averaging 86 mph over the 780-mile route. Based on a fuel consumption of 10 gallons an hour, the aircraft’s endurance would be about 52 hours.
Stinson’s only recommendation to Redfern was for another pilot to go along on the flight, since he thought going without sleep for such an extended period “was more than a man could stand.” Redfern ignored the advice, convinced he could safely deal with sleep deprivation for 50-plus hours.
In his autobiography The Spirit of St. Louis, Lindbergh recounted his struggle to stay awake during his 33½-hour flight to Paris. He described falling asleep several times with his eyes open, prolonged periods of drowsiness and episodes of hallucination. Redfern would be flying much longer. His father, Dr. Frederick Redfern, stated in simple yet prophetic terms what he thought about his son’s intention to fly to Brazil: “It is a matter of endurance, pure and simple; continuous running on the part of the machine and the man.” ...
Shortly before Redfern departed from Sea Island, a journalist asked him what he would do if his engine quit over the jungle. “Don’t lose hope of my return for at least six months or more…,” he said. “If I should be forced down over the Amazon Valley, I believe I can live for months with the equipment I am carrying….”
Over the years rumors and secondhand reports told of a white man, thought to be Redfern, living with a tribe of Indians deep in the Amazon jungle. Most of the stories described how a man fell from the sky in an airplane and was being held captive by the natives. Other accounts claimed the man was hobbled by broken limbs or living peacefully with an Indian wife who had borne him a son. A dozen expeditions were launched into the Amazon Basin over an 11-year period ending in 1938 in an attempt to find and rescue him, including searches sponsored by the U.S. government and the Smithsonian Institution. No confirmed evidence of Redfern’s fate was ever found. ...
https://www.historynet.com/lost-flight-to-brazil-in-1927-a-young-pilot-disappears-in-the-amazon.htm