47-hour fundraiser was longest Christmas Day
A SCOT has enjoyed the world’s longest Christmas Day after spending nearly two days flying in different planes and countries.
Fraser Watt, 58, enjoyed a December 25 this year that lasted 47 hours as he crossed time zones on airliners.
Mr Watt started his race on Christmas Eve, flying from Auckland in New Zealand.
He passed through Hong Kong, London and Los Angeles before eventually arriving in Honolulu in Hawaii at 11.38pm local time.
On December 24 at 11.50pm, he flew with Air New Zealand from Auckland to Hong Kong and arrived at 6.05am.
At 9.40am local time on Christmas, he flew from Hong Kong to Heathrow with Cathay Pacific.
He then left at 4pm from London Heathrow and arrived at 6.40pm local time in Los Angeles on a Virgin Atlantic flight.
On the final leg, the American Airlines plane took off at 8.05pm and arrived in Hawaii at 11.38pm local time.
He also broke the record for the furthest distance travelled on commercial airliners in a single day and the record for the furthest distance travelled in any 24-hour period.
The incredible journey saw him travel almost 20,000 miles – and stretched his Christmas Day to 47 hours.
Mr Watt, originally from Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire, has managed to raise nearly $AUS16,000 (around £9,000) for Unicef for his feat.
He said: “I am currently incredibly tired but very, very happy to have managed to do this.
“There were a few moments where it looked like it wasn’t going to be possible.
“At Los Angeles, it took forever to get off the plane and at the check-in desk I had to argue my case to get my boarding pass after initially being denied a place on board.
“We were 25 minutes late in leaving Los Angeles but actually managed to arrive on the ground early in Hawaii.
“The transfer at Heathrow turned out to be a lot tighter than I thought it would be and we ended up leaving half an hour late.
“I’ve been running on adrenaline for the last two days and have managed to stay awake for the majority of the time.
“But as soon as my head hits the pillow in my hotel, I’ll have the best sleep of my life.”