As the fight against polio intensifies, APG, alongside the Gates Foundation, is teaming up with pilots and Rotarians Peter Teahen and John Ockenfels to support them with mission-critical software on their journey around the globe. Together, Peter and John strive to make a lasting impact on polio eradication by piloting around the globe in a Cessna T210M single-engine airplane to raise awareness and encourage contributions to the Rotary Foundation Polio Plus Program. Polio eradication has been a primary focus of Rotary International for over 35 years and the planned mission is the most daring yet to raise awareness. While the end of polio seems attainable, no child is safe until every child has been vaccinated.
On May 5, 2023, Peter and John will commence their daring around-the-globe mission and take off from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, making 36 landings in 28 countries, spending 165+ hours in the air, and traveling over 25,323 miles in 90 days. APG’s software will be a mission-critical component during the whole journey and specifically enable the landings and take-offs at often very remote airports.
For over 20 years, aircraft operators worldwide have turned to APG for accurate, up-to-the-minute performance data for Flight Feasibility & Planning, Runway Analysis and Weight & Balance. APG software and data solutions cover more than 10k airports globally, with more than 2.9k Engine Out Procedures supporting more than 350 aircraft types.
APG is proud to support Peter and John in their mission by creating a custom weight and balance profile for the Cessna T210M single-engine airplane that will be performance modified for the mission. APG’s software will allow for an expanded performance envelope of the aircraft to maximize take-off and landing weights, which will give Peter and John the comfort to operate the aircraft at its performance limits to maximize the impact of the mission.
The Cessna T210M Turbo Centurion was built in 1977 with seating for up to six people and a maximum takeoff weight of 4,000 pounds. It is powered by a Teledyne Continental TSIO-520-R engine that produces 300 horsepower.
Peter and John are modifying the aircraft to include the following:
- Flint-Aero wing tip fuel tanks adding 33 gallons of fuel to the wings (16.5 per side). This modification will increase the length of the wings from 36’ 9” to 39’ (+26”) and will increase wing lift which will carry the fuel weight.
- A complete 160 Gal “Turtle Pac” rubber bladder Ferry tank system.
“We are proud of our mission-critical software’s impact on the ability to operate the aircraft safely at its peak performance throughout the mission and maximize the payload to extend the range of the aircraft. The opportunity to help Peter and John is uniquely special as we can apply our proven engineering and software capabilities and have a real-world impact to a very worthy cause,” stated Gene Albright, Global Head of Aircraft Engineering and Production for APG.
We invite you to follow the flight live (with a five-minute delay) on the Flight To End Polio website and watch the flight videos that Peter and John will post throughout the flight.
If you want to support Peter and John, please consider donating here. 100% of your contribution will be donated to the Rotary Foundation Polio Plus Program and thanks to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, each dollar you donate turns into three dollars with their generous 2:1 match. Ending polio is only a flight away.