Mira Slovak’s own account of flying an RF4D from West Germany to California by way of the Faeroes, Iceland and Greenland — the complete original, all 16 pages.
AuthorMira Slovak
PrologueMerl Dobry
AircraftRF4D N1700 “Spirit of Santa Paula” — now G-RFAD
Original16 pages — held by the club
The complete article. This page previously carried a condensed retelling of the article. It has been replaced so that readers see the author’s own words and the original illustrations, not a summary. Where and when the piece was first published isn’t stated on the copy we hold; if you know, please tell us.
Photographs held with the article in the club archive.
N1700, the red and white Fournier RF4, parked inside the Sportavia hangar at Dahlemer Binz
Mira Slovak preparing N1700 for departure, working at the wing root
Aerial view of N1700 over Brussels, with the city and a river below
Close-up of N1700 in flight near the English coast
N1700 parked with a figure standing beside it during the stop in Scotland
N1700 flying low over open water, seen from above
Icy, snow-covered coastline near the Faeroe Islands or Iceland
N1700 climbing near clouds over Greenland's icecap
N1700 flying low at dusk near a wire or pole, silhouetted against the sky
Wreckage of N1700 on a hillside near Santa Paula, with two men standing beside it
Two men working at the wreckage of N1700
Close-up of the damaged instrument panel of N1700 after the crash
N1700 restored and suspended from the ceiling of a museum hangar
N1700 photographed from below, restored, showing the wing and tail
Credit: Articles and photographs from the Club Fournier International–America archive are used with the permission of Collin Gyenes, who runs CFI America — see CFI worldwide and photo credits. The articles themselves remain the copyright of their authors and publishers. If you can add to or correct anything on this page, email us.
