March 30 - June 17, 1922. Lieutenant Commander Sacadura Cabral and Commander Gago Coutinho of Portugal flew from from Lisbon, Portugal, to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.
The aircrafts used were three Fairey IIID floatplanes (Lusitania, Portugal, and Santa Cruz). After two ditchings they reached Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.
They only had internal means of navigation, that was the Coutinho-invented sextant with artificial horizon.
The journey started at the Bom Sucesso Naval Air Station in the Tagus, near the Belém Tower in Lisbon, at 16.30 on the March 30 1922. The aircraft, Lusitânia, a Fairey III-D MkII seaplane was fitted with an artificial horizon for aeronautical use.
The first part of the journey ended on the same day at Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Canary Islands).
On April 5, they departed for São Vicente Island, Cape Verde, traversing 850 miles.
After making repairs on the Lusitânia, they departed to Praia on Santiago Island on April 17.
From here they flew to the Saint Peter and Saint Paul Archipelago, already in Brazilian waters, where they arrived on April 17.
They arrived in Brazil after flying 1,700 kilometers over the South Atlantic.
Note worthy is that they had flown here relying only on the Coutinho's sextant with its artificial horizon.
However, when ditching on the rough seas near the archipelago, the Lusitânia lost one of its floats, and the plane sank.
The two aviators were saved by the cruiser NRP República, which had been sent by the Portuguese Navy to support the aerial crossing.
The aviators were then carried to the Brazilian Fernando de Noronha islands.
Enthusiastic Portuguese and Brazilian public outcry led the Portuguese Government to send them another seaplane for them to be able to complete the journey.
The second plane was of the same type as the first plane.
The new plane, baptized Pátria, arrived at Fernando Noronha on May 6.
After being refitted, the Pátria departed on May 11 with Coutinho and Cabral on board.
They flew to the Saint Peter and Saint Paul Archipelago, to resume the journey at the point where had been interrupted.
However, an engine problem forced them to make an emergency ditching in the middle of the ocean.
They stayed out there for 9 hours until they were saved by the nearby British cargo ship Paris City which carried them back to Fernando Noronha.
A third Fairey III aircraft the was sent to them, the Santa Cruz.
On the June 5, the Santa Cruz was put in the waters of Fernando Noronha and Coutinho and Cabral resumed their journey.
Flying to Recife, then to Salvador da Bahia, then to Vitória and from there to Rio de Janeiro.
As they arrived on the June 17 1922, ditching on the Guanabara bay, they were received as heroes.
There to great them was the aviation pioneer Santos Dumont and huge crowds of people.
Although the journey lasted 79 days, the actual flight time was just 62 hours and 26 minutes.
Source: Wikipedia
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