When two men aged 70-plus announced their dream of circumnavigating the world in a single-engine Cessna, people shook their heads and one wife absolutely put her foot down. “Not alone!” she insisted. But together, these two pilots added an element that made their dream worthwhile – delivering polio vaccines to save the lives of children in international countries. The mission of their Flight to End Polio was directed at helping local Rotarians around the world to raise awareness and funding for fighting polio.
Peter Teahen, 70, and John Ockenfels, 71, of Iowa, dreamed big, and, with approval of wives and supportive pilots, finally achieved their dream in 2023. They summarized their experiences during their personal presentation to the Rotary Club of Los Altos on Feb. 6.
First they planned in great detail, then met each obstacle that arose. The COVID-19 epidemic that erupted just 10 days before their original 2020 departure date was followed by news of the Russian invasion into Ukraine and the closure of Russian airspace to NATO countries. The resulting multiple cancellations upset their landing schedules, increased fuel costs, tangled visa issuance and complicated flight documentation. During the three years of delays, three-month flight insurance ballooned from $12,000 to over $27,000 when only one company was left in their insurance market.
When they realized the often-preferred northern route around the world through Alaska was no longer open to them, they began anew to envision a southern route. The two pilots tried a flight plan through Australia, New Caledonia, Fiji, Pago Pago, Hawaii and California. However, this was a route that had been successfully navigated by only 30 other pilots. They had to face operating through two 18 hour stints over water in such tight, shoulder-to-shoulder seating that they couldn’t even land to leave their seats.
Of course, there was the matter of which aircraft. When Peter and John recognized their little Piper Lance II was not up to the task, they pooled their money to purchase a 1977 Cessna T210M that could handle the southern route, fly faster and higher, and carry an additional fuel tank, meeting their focus on safety. In addition to administering the polio vaccine to children in Pakistan and India, their over-riding goal was to return home alive.
With a goal of producing the $30,000 needed for circumnavigating the globe through 27 countries to immunize children, they funded their dream by partnering with The Rotary Foundation’s 35-year End Polio Now campaign which matched the funds they raised. On top of that was added the vast 2:1 match by the Gates Foundation. Through these two matches, their $10,000 grew to the needed $30,000. Peter and John had committed to personally pay 100% of the flight expenses to guarantee that all funds raised would be directed exclusively to fighting polio.
With the support and organizing efforts of the International Fellowship of Flying Rotarians in 19 countries, the two pilots were able to place life-saving drops of the polio vaccine in the mouths of Pakistani and Indian children encouraged by their parents. Warm hospitality and 24 Rotarian fundraising events were directed toward that goal.
Unexpected challenges delayed their progress. Ice and snow storms in Canada, Newfoundland and Iceland, thunderstorms in India, recurring mechanical problems with the plane’s primary alternator, communication isolation during the two 17-hour legs of their routes – all were challenges they met and survived. However, the pilots’ personal energy did wane while Peter spent 12 days in hospital isolation recuperating from a Giardia infection received while working among children in the ghettoes of Karachi, India.
Three months after departure from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the Flight to End Polio returned home safely on July 30, 2023, after traveling over 30,000 miles that included 180 flight hours at 11,000 feet, with 37 landings in 19 countries.
Upon return, the two new recipients of the Circumnavigator Diploma briefly summarized their major challenges as mechanical, meteorological and medical. Their personal achievements were greatly enriched by the kindness and generosity of supporters, and the knowledge that vaccine they had delivered saved many children from the challenges of living with polio.
The Rotary Foundation and Gates Foundation pursue their support for immunizations in response to news of repeated polio outbreaks, most recently in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
The two pilots agreed, “The flight exceeded everything we expected.” Not only did they hope that polio would be eradicated – instead they now believe it will.
Marlene Cowan is a member of the Rotary Club of Los Altos. For more information, visit LosAltosRotary.org.
