End of this week, a particular event will be celebrated, from the glory hours of aviation, that occurred 100 years ago on April 1st, 1921
Adrienne Bolland, a French woman pilot, was the first flyer to cross the Andes between Argentina and Chile, aboard a Fragile Caudron G3, riding up to 14,000 ft, from Mendoza (Argentina) to Santiago (Chile), just in the middle of Andes mountain chain
A Caudron G3:
A complete history of Adrienne and her trip is available on Wikipedia: Adrienne Bolland - Wikipedia
A broadcast report on French TV last sunday, relating her story and trip over the Andes is available here: Il y a 100 ans, la Française Adrienne Bolland réalisait l'un des plus beaux exploits de l'histoire de l'aviation | TF1 INFO
Although in French, you can still watch this report and see how this old Caudron G3 is flown and behaves, imagine it over high ridges at 14,000 ft
Interested, I reproduced the flight plan she flew for this trip between Mendoza and Santiago
Apart from the incredible danger and thrill she faced during her flight, I was amazed by the beauty of the landscapes there, lots of beautiful mountains, colors, shapes, reliefs, valleys,…
Flight plan: Mendoza-Santiago VFR Adrienne Bolland.PLN (3.6 KB)
This about 2:00 flight (on a light A/C) can be flown low altitude in Bush, the plan gives the macro directions, and then you mostly follow rivers, canyons, valleys, with a particular high ridge to cross between Argentina and Chile (at WPT06) up to 14,000 ft
I flew the GotGravel Carbon Savage mod, but possible and more challenging to fly a Cub or C152. At least, you will have to climb up to 14,000ft, so use a capable A/C
Enjoy this amazing trip and historical aviation record back in 1921!