An Autobiographical Account
Anoop Verma
AN ANGEL IN THE COCKPIT by Vijaypat Singhania Roli Books, 2006, 288 pp., 395
March 2006, volume 30, No 3

Adventures beckon those with pockets deep, despite the fact that being an adventurer entails sacrifice of the very luxuries millionaires may be accustomed to. When Dennis Tito paid $20 million or so to the Russian space agency, he was tapping into a fast growing trend—spending big bucks to experience adventures that remain out of bounds for the vast majority. For the privilege of a week’s stay in space Tito underwent arduous training, at the space station he lived in cramped conditions without gravity. But in lieu of all that his was a wonderful space experience. If there is any Indian millionaire adventurer club, it is Vijaypat Singhania who dominates it. Not content with spending his time in devising ways to make even more money, Singhania has become a super achiever of sorts in his forays of adventure. It was far back in 1988 that he successfully broke Brain Milton’s record by flying a microlight aircraft England-India in just 19 flying days. Then in 2005 he became the first person to fly a hot air balloon to the edge of space at the height of 70,000 feet.

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