To achieve the record, the pilots climbed steeply to reach cruise altitude as quickly as possible but leveled off at lower altitudes to be able to fly at higher true airspeeds. Air traffic controllers assisted when the crew asked for shortcuts from the standard great-circle route to cut down distance. The pilots entered “world record attempt” in the remarks section of their flight plan to help facilitate priority and direct routing from air traffic controllers.

“The tactical execution relied heavily on real-time data synthesis. Throughout the flight, the crew cross-referenced manual calculations with side-by-side computer flight-planning models. This allowed them to constantly recalibrate their altitude and routing based on shifting jet stream wind strengths,” according to Threshold Aviation.