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Seventy Five years ago a couple of USAAF Veteran pilots were having a discussion about the new Piper Super Cruiser aircraft. The PA-12 Super Cruiser was developed from the J-3 Cub, but with a wider fuselage and a 100 HP engine (the basic J-3 had 65 HP). It also had much greater fuel capacity and a little more speed.
One of these gentlemen claimed that if he had a Super Cruiser, he could fly it around the World! That discussion started the journey. They contacted William Piper with the idea, and Piper donated a pair of aircraft. Lycoming donated the engines, and various other companies contributed to the effort.