Canadian man pays touching tribute to dad after pair broke record flying around the world
To immortalize his father, a proud Canadian man is sharing the incredible adventures the pair had while breaking a record by flying around the world.
Steven Dengler and his dad W.R. "Bob" Dengler made history together in 2017 when they became the first father and son to circumnavigate the world by aircraft.
In Bob’s Bell 429 helicopter, they flew 36,956 km (22,963 mi) around the globe, making 92 stops in 14 different countries. The trip lasted for 48 days, 30 of which they were in the air.
They created priceless memories Steven will treasure forever following Bob’s sad passing at the age of 84.
Steven said: “When I look back on our accomplishment, I am overwhelmed with gratitude. Gratitude for the opportunity to undertake such an adventure together, gratitude for the opportunity to strengthen our relationship, gratitude for all the people and organizations that helped us make our audacious vision a reality.
“The adventure we undertook together provided us with so many unexpected moments of discovery and camaraderie and joy. I'm tremendously proud of what we accomplished, working together, as father and son. We are deeply honoured that our voyage was recognized by Guinness World Records, and we extend our heartfelt appreciation and thanks.”
Steven and Bob’s incredible adventure, with support from safety pilot R. Dugal MacDuff, became part of the Canada Day celebrations that year, and they even met then-Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau as part of it.
Aged 48 and 77 at the time, it was the biggest challenge they’d ever taken on together, and it required meticulous planning.
Steven explained: “2017 was the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, and large celebrations and events were planned throughout the nation. We decided to coordinate our circumnavigation so that we left on Canada Day of that year, and stopped along the way at historical landmarks to commemorative milestones in Canadian history and aviation.
Steven and Bob with then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
“Our planning started in 2015 and took the better part of two years.”
He added: “The planning and execution of the circumnavigation was incredibly daunting. I have a presentation that I give on this pretty regularly. It is its own story and I often joke that it would make for an excellent miniseries or documentary. We shot over 4,000 photos and hundreds of hours of video on the trip.”
Of course, they both had an extensive background in the aviation industry – with Steven, now 56, a private fixed wing pilot and his dad a private helicopter pilot – although they didn’t do it full time.
Dad-of-four Bob worked in the mining industry and Steven, who got his helicopter endorsement to fly the record attempt, worked in the financial services industry.
They’d both travelled the world extensively through their work, but this was the first time they’d made such a long journey as pilots.
The duo had to get special clearance to fly through certain parts of the world, particularly for where they’d come close to military bases.
As well as various stops around Canada, they visited Greenland, the UK, France, Poland, the US, and more.
The trip also raised a lot of money for charity – over $500,000 – that went to the Southlake Regional Health Centre Foundation near their hometown, and the True Patriot Love Foundation, which supports Canadian veterans and their families.
Steven loved the journey so much that he’s hoping to do something similar one day with his own kids.
“I talked to my dad about it,” Steven said. “I started to think about maybe in the future doing a circumnavigation myself with one or both of my kids. So, you know, the next generation. There’s probably a Guinness World Records title in there somewhere.”
The family played a big part in Steven and Bob’s record attempt, regularly meeting up with them at stops along the way.
Bob and Steven visited numerous landmarks in Canadian history throughout their trip, such as the spot in Newfoundland where Guglielmo Marconi received the first transatlantic radio signal in 1901 – as well as the station in Cornwall from which it was sent.
And they met up with Canadians all over the world, as well as being joined for some legs of their journey by well-known Canadians, like astronaut Dave Williams and hockey player Guy LaFleur.
Steven said it’s too hard to pick his favourite moments from the trip.
What really meant the most to him was all those conversations he had with his dad that he might not have had otherwise.
He told us: “Honestly, I know this sounds hokey, but it was the chance to connect with my father. The vast majority of the time in that circumnavigation is just us in a little tin can, right?
“It was really cool to have that time together doing something historic and very ambitious to come together as adults.
“You spend a lot of time as a kid with your dad and then, you know, when you get into adulthood, maybe not as much.
“I got to really talk to my dad and hear stories about his childhood and things that he did, and I told him about things I did, and we had a chance to really connect.”
The trip wasn’t without its danger. Steven and Bob often flew over very remote areas, where if something had gone wrong, help would have been a long way off.
But it was also filled with random moments they talked about all the time, like how they had some of the best coffee they’d ever tasted out of a machine in the middle of Serbia or how they were forced to land one night in a private airfield that turned out to be owned by someone Steven had done business with in the 90s.
It was an unforgettable trip and one that Steven will treasure forever.