French pensioner, 71, plans to cross Atlantic inside a tiny wooden barrel

A FRENCH pensioner is attempting to across the treacherous Atlantic Ocean in a barrel capsule made from WOOD.

Jean-Jacques Savin, 71, is hoping to the water’s currents will be enough to propel his specially-constructed vessel to the Caribbean.

The Frenchman set off from El Hierro in Spain's Canary Islands on Wednesday and is aiming to complete his 2,800-mile journey in about three months.

He said: "The weather is great, I've got a swell of one metre and I'm moving at two or three km an hour," reports the BBC.

Jean-Jacques will drop markers from his 10-ft long, seven-ft wide resin-coated plywood capsule along the trip to assist oceanographers in their study of currents in the Atlantic Ocean.

The barrel is equipped with a kitchen area and a mattress with straps to keep him from being thrown about by rough seas.

There is also a porthole in the floor which enables the adventurer to watch passing fish.

The vessel is also built to resist attacks from killer whales, according to reports.

A solar panel generates power to enable GPS positioning and to allow Jean-Jacques to communicate with his team.

The Frenchman, a former military paratrooper, park ranger and pilot, crowdfunded most of his £54,000 budget for the daring journey.

Updates on the astonishing mission are being posted on the Frenchman's Facebook page.

Yesterday he said the barrel was "behaving well" while today he said "everything is fine."