Arc en Ciel ? The name of the first three-engine aircraft piloted by Jean Mermoz across the South Atlantic in 1934.
Arc en Ciel ? An association of volunteers whose goal is to promote aviation through the organization of aeronautic events.
Who is Arc en Ciel ? Everyone who has followed Bernard and Maryse Lamy in air races since the early eighties.
And who too is Arc en Ciel ? Those who will come along for the next race.
How does one become a part of Arc en Ciel ? An unknown. There is no entrance examination. The women and men of Arc en Ciel generally lead a "normal" life. Yet, once a race begins, their personality metamorphoses, adventure exalts them.
They have been seen scrutinizing the sky throughout the night, committing themselves with a smile to control towers, landing in the eye of a storm. They have been seen pounding away at computer keyboards at four o'clock in the morning, manipulating wires, and dialoguing with the stars.
They have been seen, hibernating for two weeks behind a basement computer, copying over flight plans for hours, handling out keys and baskets filled with sustenance.
They have been seen fraternizing with kings and porters, sheltering an Asian sovereign from the rain, holding Bengali children by the hand.
They are never seen slumbering.
And when asked what makes them take-off each time Bernard sends for them, they merely respond with a smile.
Patricia Airault, preface from the book Around the World Air Race, 1994

The Couzinet trimotor model 70 "Arc en Ciel" was the first land plane to cross the South Atlantic in 1934.

  Arc en Ciel was founded in the early eighties by Bernard and Maryse Lamy, who live outside Paris, France. Bernard won the 1981 Paris - New York - Paris air race with Maryse and their three children as a support team. He had already accumulated a huge experience of international air travel in small airplanes, and decided to become a race organizer.

  In short, Bernard has all the crazy ideas, like landing in China in 1987 or criss-crossing Russia without local "navigators" in 1992, and then rely on the rest of us to make them work.

  Maryse is the logistics guru, handling hotel reservations, competitors and staff transportation, and the finances in general. And she is extremely good at it.

  Arc en Ciel is made of roughly 30 volunteers, with two backgrounds : the technical teams are in charge of the airports. Airline pilots, air traffic controllers or airport operations specialists are among them. They plan the landings and the handling of competing aircraft with the local authorities and track the progress of each flight. The reception teams are constituted mainly of small business owners, who are well versed in organization and finance matters and "run" every stopover like their own business, dealing with hotels, cab companies and other suppliers.

  A typical Arc en Ciel advanced team is made of four individuals, two from each category. They arrive 48 hours before the competitors and make sure that everything is ready and tested when the race arrives.

  It takes about two years to organize a long international air race. It all begins with a meticulous study of the projected route : airport equipment, entry requirements, fuel availability, usual weather conditions and wind patterns, etc. As soon as a technically acceptable route is selected, the long and tedious process of obtaining a go-ahead from the local authorities may start. Most countries demand overflight and landing authorization, and their requirements vary. Once all the authorizations have been obtained, the race is formally announced and would-be competitors may go out looking for sponsors and a good plane.

  Approximately eight months before the beginning of the race, we fly a reconnaissance trip, following the race route and staying a few days at each projected stop. We then select all of ours suppliers for quality of service, reliability and cost. For instance, our hotel requirements are the same as those of airlines for their own crews : superior soundproofing, good telephone and business services, 24 hour room service. The reality is quite often different from the advertising brochures, and actually visiting hotels is the only sure way to know what the competitors will get for their money. From a safety standpoint, this trip is also important, as all airport facilities are tested and local procedures checked with the authorities.

  During the last months before the race, all the details are refined and we do our best to help the competitors to prepare their trips, providing advice and technical assistance. All race aircraft manuals are studied, and their reference speed computed.

  And then, the great day arrives :

  The competitors assemble at the starting point two days before the departure. The required safety items are checked, like survival equipment or emergency distress beacons. The validity of travel documents and aircraft certificates is also verified. And off they go.

  One organization aircraft flies one or two day ahead of the pack, to activate stopovers in advance. The other Arc en Ciel aircraft is a jet, and flies faster than the competitors. While it takes-off last, its greater speed lets it overtake the competing aircraft, providing a safety net should a problem arises in flight. The sequence of departures is also established considering individual aircraft performances, with the aim of avoiding airways congestion in areas where air traffic controllers are not accustomed to see so many aircraft on the same route at the same time. On the ground or in flight, the Arc en Ciel staff is there to help in any way. In 1990 for instance, a competing crew suffered a cracked windshield in Delhi, India. The aircraft manufacturer could send a replacement in 4 days. Arc en Ciel located a spare windshield and shipped it to India in 24 hours flat. It was fitted overnight by Hubert "magician" Rault, the staff engineer. This aircraft was back on the departure line in time for the next flight...