Dick Rutan co-piloted the Voyager around the world in 1986, taking off from and landing at Edwards Air Force Base without stopping in one of aviation's greatest feats.

On December 23, 1986, an airplane landed at Edwards AFB. This by itself wouldn’t mean much, but this particular airplane had just written history. Piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, the ...

Piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, the Rutan Model 76 Voyager had just completed its non-stop flight around the world after taking off from that very same runway just over nine days prior.

Dick Rutan in 1985 at the Mojave Airport in California, where his brother, Burt, designed and built the Voyager, the plane in which he would fly around the world a year later.

A decorated Vietnam War pilot, Rutan died Friday evening at a hospital in Coeur d’Alene, ... Voyager left from Edwards Air Force Base in California just after 8 a.m. on Dec. 14, 1986.

This cover shows the Rutan Voyager, the two-place composite aircraft, designed by Burt Rutan for Voyager Aircraft Co., flying over Mojave Airport near Edwards AFB, California in 1984.

Co-pilots Dick Rutan, right, and Jeana Yeager, no relationship to test pilot Chuck Yeager, pose for a photo after a test flight over the Mojave Desert, Dec. 19, 1985.

MEREDITH, N.H. (AP) — Burt Rutan was alarmed to see the plane he had designed was so loaded with fuel that the wing tips started dragging along the ground as it taxied down the runway.

He grabbed the radio to warn the pilot, his older brother Dick Rutan. But Dick […] Skip to content. All Sections. Subscribe Now °F. Monday, February 10th 2025 Daily e-Edition.