Last year, aviation enthusiast Zhang Tao and his friend embarked on an extraordinary journey, piloting a small aircraft from the United States to China. Over the course of 17 days, they flew more than 23,000 kilometers, crossing through the airspace of 24 countries and regions. Zhang’s experience serves as a reflection of the growing and increasingly skilled community of Chinese aviation enthusiasts.
Based in New York and originally from Nanjing, Zhang Tao runs a multinational logistics company and teaches at a flight school on Long Island during his free time. He also owns a private plane. Zhang shares that he has loved aviation since childhood, frequently devouring aviation magazines. It wasn’t until he moved to the U.S. that he discovered his passion for flying could be pursued as a hobby. While skiing in Pennsylvania, he spotted a small aircraft in the sky and discovered a local flight school, which opened up a new world for him. After years of entrepreneurship, he rekindled his love for flying, self-taught, and acquired multiple licenses, recently earning a flight instructor certification for Cirrus aircraft.
Long-distance cross-border flights have always been on Zhang’s bucket list. Last year, he teamed up with fellow aviation enthusiast Zhang Bo to plan a flying challenge between the U.S. and China. Before this journey, Zhang Bo had already gained significant recognition in the aviation community for successfully completing a round-the-world flight in 2016, earning the title of “China’s first around-the-world pilot.” In their April collaboration, Zhang Bo served as the pilot-in-command, while Zhang Tao took on the role of co-pilot in a Diamond DA42 twin-engine aircraft. They launched from New Jersey, flew through Canada, crossed over Greenland, traversed the Atlantic, entered Europe from the UK, navigated through the tense Middle Eastern region, passed through India into Southeast Asia, and ultimately entered China via Hong Kong, landing in Hangzhou. Zhang noted that had it not been for the closures of Russian airspace due to the Ukraine war, they might have completed a full global circumnavigation on this journey.
The 17-day flight filled with thrilling stories was not without its challenges. After a smooth flight across Europe, landing in Pakistan proved to be quite alarming for Zhang, who remembers being escorted by armed personnel upon deplaning. They faced three layers of security before reaching their hotel, where all personal items and vehicles were searched through various metal detectors. Zhang described feeling a sense of urgency and fear, marking the first time he felt insecurity in such a way: “It was an eye-opener to the more dangerous places in the world.”
Another tense moment occurred as they flew from India to Bangladesh. Due to thunderstorms, they had to divert, exiting Indian airspace but struggling to establish contact with Bangladeshi air traffic control. Zhang expressed concern about navigating into an unfamiliar country without contact, worried about how their aircraft might be perceived. Fortunately, they eventually connected with the controller, easing their fears.
Zhang recalled the most poignant moment of their journey: entering Chinese airspace after flying from Hong Kong through Guangzhou. For the first time in over ten days, he heard Chinese spoken from air traffic control, greeting them with “Hello, Guangzhou.” He described the overwhelming emotion he felt during that moment, likening it to a sense of returning home.
Today, despite a demanding logistics business, Zhang makes a concerted effort to spend time flying and instructing others, as aviation has become an integral part of his life. Just a day before our interview, after a full day of work, he committed to flying with a student that evening. In his Long Island office, he has dedicated a room for a simulator, welcoming Chinese aviation enthusiasts to gather, learn, and practice together. His social media showcases not only his flying achievements but also joyful selfies with students. Through flying, he has found a close-knit community and a different kind of vitality in life. Over a year has passed since the U.S.-China flight, and he is already collaborating with other amateur pilots to plan the next long-distance adventure.
Having flown for over a decade and taught for seven years, Zhang has observed a growing interest among Chinese individuals wanting to learn to fly. “When I first started, there were no Chinese students at my flight school,” he recalls. “Now, learning to fly in the U.S. has become a cultural phenomenon. Many students pursue flying as a way to unwind; once you’re up in the sky, it’s astonishing how trivial earthly concerns can seem.”
