Afterward, Zhang will fly over Northeast China, Russia, the Bering Strait and then return to Chicago. The around-the-world flight will pass through 23 countries and is scheduled to take two months.

Zhang is in Zhejiang to attend the Yunqi 2050 Conference, a volunteer-only, non-profit conference.

The event runs April 26-28 in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province.

On April 28, he will fly from Jiande Qiaodaohu General Aviation Airport to Yunqi Cloud Town, where the conference will be held.