The Sandbag Times Issue No: 49

Pegasus Overland Expedition
Celebrates its 50th Anniversary
By John Proffitt
In 1968 traversing the deserts emerged as
one of the last frontiers to be conquered as
Sir Francis Chichester had sailed solo around
the world in a yacht, Captain Ridgeway and
Chay Blyth rowed the Atlantic and Sir
Edmund Hillary crossed the Antarctic over
ice.
Three former soldiers of 12/13th Battalion The
Parachute Regiment from Liverpool, John
Proffitt, John Doran, John Bate with two other
keen adventurers Tom McCormack and Victor
Parkinson took up the challenge and set off
to traverse thousands of miles over deserts
and unsealed tracks across the world in a
Land Rover Long wheel base Series II.
At the last minute the Government of the day
put a spoke in the wheel by placing a freeze
on money going out of the country allowing
just 50 pounds sterling per person which
barely covered the day to day running costs.
However funds could be drawn in sterling
areas .
At the time there was a lot of interest in this
expedition and on achieving success would
be referred to as a geographical footprint for
crossing great distances over open deserts
while crossing the world in a continuous journey.
This took place when there was no GPS,
Internet or Mobile Telephones as they had not
been invented. Also man had not stepped
foot on the moon. The soldiers relied on old
maps and compass settings as information to
travel across deserts was scarce or didn’t
exist. What set this apart from any other
expedition was it travelled most of the way
over deserts and was self-sufficient for taking
the majority of its own food provisions along
in dehydrated rations similar to WWII 24hr
military ration packs.
Crossing over deserts was not encouraged in
the Middle Eastern countries as there was
concern travellers may not make it across
deserts. Short distances took place by local
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