Kenshi Tagami, who successfully completed a 1,000-kilometer glider flight in Japan, is seen at Itakura Gliding Field in the town of Itakura, Gunma Prefecture, on July 22, 2021. (Mainichi/Naomichi Senoo)

       ITAKURA, Gunma -- A Japanese amateur glider pilot has been awarded the Federation Aeronautique Internationale's (FAI) 1,000-kilometer badge for his successful unpowered 1,084.4-kilometer flight between the prefectures of Tochigi and Iwate.

       It is reportedly the first time the insignia has been won for a flight within Japan, where it is said to be difficult to glide long distances. But Kenshi Tagami, a resident of Saitama Prefecture, took advantage of weather conditions in the Ou mountain range said to occur only a few days a year to accomplish the feat on his seventh attempt.

       Under clear skies just before 7 a.m. on May 10, 52-year-old Tagami's DG-400 glider did an engine-powered takeoff from Itakura Gliding Field in the town of Itakura, Gunma Prefecture. At around 8 a.m., he switched to unpowered flight over Nasushiobara, Tochigi Prefecture, and made two round trips between there and Kanegasaki, Iwate Prefecture, approximately 250 kilometers apart.

       The glider was on its second loop and near Tochigi Prefecture's Mount Takahara at 3:40 p.m. when the flight distance reached 1,000 kilometers. Inside the cockpit, Tagami clenched his fists with joy. Total flight time, from takeoff to landing at Itakura Gliding Field, was about 10 hours. Tagami recalled, "It was very difficult, and I didn't succeed many times, but I'm relieved I accomplished it."

       A typical glider, or sailplane, can reportedly glide 30 to 40 meters at an altitude of 1 meter. Long-distance flight requires the craft to get on the updraft and keep gaining altitude. But unstable weather conditions caused by Japan's narrow landmass and mountainous terrain make it difficult to maintain "thermals" in which air warmed by the sun rises, which presents challenges when attempting to glide 1,000 kilometers. The distance is equivalent to traveling in a straight line from Tokyo in east Japan to Kagoshima Prefecture's Yakushima island in the country's southwest.

       According to the Japan Soaring Association (JSA) in Tokyo, nine other Japanese people have earned the FAI Gliding Commission (IGC) 1,000-kilometer badge. All were achieved overseas, and the longest domestic record was the 750-kilometer badge achieved in 2015. Even the IGC's silver badge, which requires 50 kilometers of flight in a straight line and other conditions, is only be won by a few flying domestically each year.

       Nobuo Sashida, JSA secretary-general, hailed the "success of the 1,000-kilometer flight resulting from a combination of skill, research into weather conditions, years of preparation and timing."

       (Japanese original by Naomichi Senoo, Maebashi Bureau)

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