Russell Boardman (1898–July 1, 1933) was an early American aviation pioneer who, along with John Polando, flew from

Floyd Bennett Field Floyd Bennett Field is an airfield in the Marine Park, Brooklyn, Marine Park neighborhood of southeast Brooklyn in New York City, along the shore of Jamaica Bay. The airport originally hosted commercial and general aviation traffic before bein ...

Istanbul, Turkey Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With a population over , it is home to 18% of the population of Turkey. Istanbul is among the largest cities in Europe and in th ...

in 1931 to set an aviation record for the longest continuous distance flown without refueling. Before this achievement, he was also a stunt pilot for the film Hell's Angels.

Biography

Early life

Born in 1898 on a farm in

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, Boardman flew as a stunt pilot for the

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American Aerospace engineering, aerospace engineer, business magnate, film producer, and investor. He was The World's Billionaires, one of the richest and most influential peo ...

film '' Hell's Angels''. He met John Polando at a "Wall of Death"

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...

event in Revere where Boardman was a rider. Polando decided that Boardman would make a good co-pilot due to his aviation maintenance skills, and the two teamed up and began to pursue a dream of breaking a world record.

Record attempt

The two men trained at Hyannis Airport in preparation for their trip to

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

. The attempt at the record took place between July 28 and 30, 1931. Boardman and John Polando took off from

in the aircraft ''

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...

''. Eighteen minutes later, Clyde Edward Pangborn and Hugh Herndon, Jr. took off from Floyd Bennett in an unsuccessful attempt to circumnavigate the world. Boardman and Polando then flew over

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

and dropped the

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at lighthouses in the province. Along the way, they also flew over

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, and

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

. They also circled the

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at night to avoid crashing into them. While it was originally planned for them to fly to

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, it was determined that Istanbul would be easier, because it would allow for them to still break the record. The distance of , over a total of forty nine hours and twenty minutes helped to establish a distance record, which was the first known non-stop flight whose distance surpassed either English (5,000 mi) or metric (8,000 km) mark. Following the landing of their aircraft in Istanbul, they were greeted with great fanfare.

Death and legacy

Boardman died on July 1, 1933, as a result of injuries sustained when his Gee Bee Model R crashed upon take-off following a fuel stop at Indianapolis. At the time of the crash, he was competing for the

Bendix Trophy The Bendix Trophy is a U.S. aeronautical racing trophy. The transcontinental, point-to-point race, sponsored by industrialist Vincent Bendix founder of Bendix Corporation, began in 1931 as part of the National Air Races. Initial prize money f ...

. In 1981, the airfield at Barnstable Municipal Airport was renamed Boardman/Polando Field to recognize their accomplishment.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boardman, Russell 1898 births 1932 deaths Flight distance record holders Aviators from Connecticut American aviation record holders