Rust , aged 18 , was an inexperienced pilot , with about 50 hours of flying experience at the time of his flight . On 13 May 1987 , Rust left Uetersen near Hamburg and his home town Wedel in his rented Reims Cessna F172P D-ECJB , which was modified by removing some of the seats and replacing them with auxiliary fuel tanks . He spent the next two weeks travelling across northern Europe , visiting the Faroe islands , spending a week in Iceland , and then visiting Bergen on his way back . He was later quoted as saying that he had the idea of attempting to reach Moscow even before the departure , and he saw the trip to Iceland ( where he visited Hofdi House , the site of unsuccessful talks between the United States and the Soviet Union in October 1986 ) as a way to test his piloting skills
unsuccessful talks
Reykjavík Summit
Mathias Rust