Alain Bombard

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Alain Bombard (October 27, 1924 - July 19, 2005) was a French biologist and physician famous for sailing across the Atlantic Ocean in a small boat.

Alain Bombard was born in Paris. He theorized that a human being could very well survive the trip across the ocean without provisions and decided to test his theory himself in order to save thousands of lives of people lost at sea.

On October 19 1952 Bombard began his trip with a British friend from the Canary Islands heading across the Atlantic for the West Indies. He sailed in a Zodiac inflatable boat called l'Hérétique, which was only 4.5 meters long, taking only a sextant and almost no provisions.

Bombard survived by fishing with a self-made harpoon and harvesting the surface plankton with a small net. He also drank a limited amount of seawater every day. In the first days of the journey Bombard had to mend a torn sail and the humidity caused an uncomfortable itch.

In the 53rd day of the journey he encountered a ship. The crew told him that he was still over thousand kilometers short of his goal. However, after the ship's crew offered him a meal, Bombard decided to go on.

Bombard reached Barbados December 23 1952 after 4400 km of travel. Bombard had lost 25 kg and was briefly hospitalized. He published a book entitled "Naufragé Volontaire" about his trip in 1958.

Bombard died in the southern French town of Toulon in 2005 at age 80.