[2] At the age of twenty-one, Gerbault joined in the Flying Corps, serving as an officer; by the end of the war, he was a decorated hero.

On June 6, 1923, Gerbault set off from Gibraltar in his boat Firecrest to make a single-handed circumnavigation of the world.

The crossing of the Atlantic in a small boat was still considered a major and risky undertaking, and Gerbault was not well prepared for the voyage, either in terms of equipment or experience.

Although the passage was extremely arduous, and troubled by a number of equipment failures, he made it to New York after 101 days at sea.

Although he was not the first person to single-handedly sail the Atlantic, he was given a hero's welcome, and was awarded the Blue Water Medal by the Cruising Club of America for his achievement.

He sailed again on May 31, 1924, and after stopping in the Galapagos islands he arrived in Mangareva, in French Polynesia, after 49 days at sea.

At this time he began writing extensively on the history and society of the Pacific islands, and criticising the colonial exploitation of the natives.

He made his way gradually to the Torres Strait, and thence to the Indian Ocean, where he visited the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Mauritius, and Madagascar, arriving at Durban in time for Christmas, 1927.

He also knew William Atkin's boats of the Colin Archer type and based on these, Gerbault designed his own version.

[6] The boat was built by Paul Jouët boatyard and launched 4 June 1931 at Sartrouville and christened L'Alain Gerbault.