RIYADH: British pilot Tracey Curtis-Taylor who is on a 13,000-mile solo flight Britain to Australia in a vintage open cockpit aircraft has hailed Saudi Arabia as “a great country” and its people as “simply wonderful.”

Speaking to Arab News during a stopover in Riyadh on Friday, she said: “There is a general misconception about Saudi Arabia in the West. Now, I know what a fantastic country it is and the people are nice and their hospitality is unique.”

The British aviatrix touched down in Al-Jouf on a 1942 Boeing Stearman Spirit of Artemis on Wednesday and found her way to Riyadh through Hail and Al-Qassim.

Taylor said she met many women in the Kingdom who are highly educated and many of them are professionals too.

She said she is thankful to the authorities of the Saudi Aviation Club for extending her the necessary facilities and services for her stay in the capital.

Taylor said the Kingdom has a very beautiful network of roads. “We followed these roads to find our way to Riyadh when there was poor visibility due to inclement weather.”

Self-styled ‘Bird in a Biplane’ , Taylor is flying across 23 countries, making 50 refueling stops in 14 weeks. The 53-year-old aviatrix, who hopes to arrive in Sydney in January, said she was following in the footsteps of Amy Johnson, who became the first woman to fly solo from the UK to Australia in 1930

“For my whole life, I have been inspired by the achievements of pioneers like Amy Johnson,” she said, adding that her own flight to Australia is the realization of a burning desire to “fly my beloved Boeing Stearman around the world.”

“I have the desire to do it but there are also the resources and a huge network of support behind me. I am very grateful for this.”

“More than 100 friends and supporters, including Prince Michael of Kent, The Avengers actress Dame Diana Rigg and Johnson’s niece Judy Chilvers, have extended moral support for this adventure,” she said.

Taylor was followed by a back up of a three-member aircraft, which helps her to refuel and film the whole operations. She plans to give the film to the Discovery channel which could be viewed by the entire world.

Pointing to her aircraft, she said: “This is my dream aeroplane.” She indicated that she wants to take this aircraft to display at the Boeing centenary celebrations.

She said she was entranced by the Breast Cancer Program- 10K Pink Ribbon- in the Kingdom. From Riyadh, she said she intends taking the message on breast cancer program to the countries that she hopes to visit during the next lap of her journey. “I will be the KSA’s ambassador to carry the message to the world,” she said.

Asked about her parting words from the Kingdom, Taylor said: “I am coming again to Saudi Arabia to meet these friendly people.”