Georges Estienne

Georges Estienne (18 April 1896 – 25 January 1969) was a French aviator, explorer and businessman. He mapped and commercially exploited the longest automobile route in the world, linking the Mediterranean to the Niger, Chad and Congo. His company ran a network of automobile transport lines across the Sahara, and later provided air service between many of the French colonies in Africa. The demand from tourists collapsed with the Algerian War (1954–62), and eventually Estienne's companies were taken over by the government of independent Algeria.