Based in Melbourne, Australia, Michael is a registered pilot with dual British and Australian citizenship, but flying has never been his day job. He completed his pilot’s training later in life after a career spent designing cinema equipment, eventually building his business to own several cinemas. It was only when Michael’s sons took gap years before university that the idea of flying from Australia to England took hold.

“There was definitely no lightbulb moment and the whole idea was just percolating away in the back of my mind,” Michael tells us. “I spent a few years thinking about it, a couple of years working towards it, and a full year planning. There was more duration of time planning than there was doing the actual trip.”

Meet The Pilot Who Risked Everything To Fly Around The World Alone