Solo to Sydney

Sir Francis Chichester was an aviator and sailor, most famous for being the first and fastest person to sail solo around the globe in The Gipsy Moth IV. After this accomplishment, he authored several books and produced films documenting his sailing voyages.

Born in Devon and educated at Marlborough College, Chichester relocated to New Zealand at eighteen. He spent a decade in the forestry, mining, and property development sectors. Upon returning to England, he learned to fly. In the original Gipsy Moth seaplane, he became the first individual to complete a solo East-West flight across the Tasman Sea, earning him the inaugural Amy Johnson Memorial Trophy.

Chichester penned numerous popular books detailing his aviation adventures. During World War II, he authored the navigation manual utilized by single-man fighter pilots for cross-European flights. In 1964, Chichester published his autobiography, the highly successful The Lonely Sea and the Sky. Three years later, he was knighted for his “individual achievement and sustained endeavour in the navigation and seamanship of small craft.”

Leveraging his navigation expertise, Chichester established a prosperous map-making company, Francis Chichester Ltd. This company continues to publish pocket guides and maps that are distributed globally.