 In June 1923, Smith and Lt. Paul Richter performed the first ever mid-air refuelling, between a pair of De Havilland Airco DH.4Bs.During the flight, he broke 16 world records for flight distance, speed and duration, remaining airborne for 37 hours 15 minutes.By the time of the round the world flight, Smith had accumulated over 2,000 hours' flying time.