Valery Chkalov, Georgy Baidukov and Aleksandr Belyakov flew 9130 km (5670 miles) from Moscow across the North Pole to Vancouver, Washington, near Portland, Oregon. The ANT-25 was named Stalinsky Marshrut (Stalin's Route), referring to an earlier, 9374-km flight from Moscow to the Russian Far East by the same plane and crew. Sister ship URSS-N025-1 flew 11,500 km from Moscow to California in favourable weather in July 1937. Photo from: Nationaal Archief (Netherlands)

ANT-25 aircraft made two non-stop flights from Moscow over the North Pole to the United States. URSS-N025 landed in Vancouver, Washington on 20 June 1937, having flown 9130 km (5673 miles) in 63 hours. URSS-N025-1 is seen in a cow pasture near San Jacinto on 14 July 1937 after 11,500 km (7146 miles) in 62 hours, having diverted inland because of fog in San Diego. Captain Gromov's crew had enough fuel left to continue as far as Panama but did not have permission to enter Mexican airspace. Photo from: University of California, Los Angeles