- Drafting
- BBC News World
image source, Reuters
The teenager, who comes from a family of pilots, began training when she was 14 years old.
A teenage pilot became the youngest woman to fly solo around the world after a five-month challenge.
Zara Rutherford, 19, landed at Kortrijk-Wevelgem International Airport in Belgium two months later than expected due to bad weather.
During the trip he was a month trapped in Nome, Alaska, and 41 days in Russia.
Upon her return to Belgium, she was welcomed by her family, journalists and her supporters.
She was accompanied on her landing by four planes from the Belgian Red Devils aerobatic display team.
After landing, he wrapped himself in the British and Belgian flags, telling reporters: “It’s really crazy, I didn’t quite process it.”
image source, Reuters
The Shark UL ultralight sport plane was accompanied by the Belgian Red Devils before landing.
At a press conference, she said she was “very happy” to have achieved the fly 51,000k challengethemeters.
“The hardest part was flying over Siberia: it was very cold and if the engine had stopped, she was hours away from being rescued. I’m not sure she would have survived,” she said.
“I really want to tell people about my experiences and encourage people to do something crazy with their lives,” he added.
“If you have the opportunity, do it.”
image source, Reuters
Rutherford was interviewed by reporters upon her arrival in Seoul.
Pioneer in superlight aircraft
The circumnavigation included more than 60 stops on five continents and started on August 18.
The British-Belgian aviator, whose parents are pilots, said she hoped to inspire other girls to pursue STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields.
The trip was made possible by sponsors, including the school he attended in Hampshire, UK, and Shark, the Slovak manufacturer of his Shark UL aircraft.
Her former school was one of the first to congratulate her, tweeting that she was “super proud” of her achievement.
image source, FlyZolo
Extreme weather meant Rutherford was stranded in Ayan for a month.
Previously, the youngest woman to fly solo around the world was American Shaesta Waiz, who was 30 years old at the time of her challenge in 2017. The youngest male record holder is 18 years old.
In addition to being the youngest woman to complete the challenge, Rutherford is the first woman to circumnavigate the world in a avifrom the microlight, and the first Belgian to circumnavigate the world alone by air.
image source, FlyZolo
The young pilot performed aircraft maintenance in Jakarta.
Five months around the planet
The trip was expected to last three months, but numerous weather delays they had a domino effect and caused his Russian visa to expire, as the Siberian winter approached.
When he arrived in Nome, only three of the 39 flights had gone as planned, and he had to wait while his passport was airmailed to the Russian consulate in Houston.
But even with his new visa, it was another three weeks before he was able to cross the Bering Strait.
image source, Reuters
The teenager, who comes from a family of pilots, began training when she was 14 years old.
In a video posted on Instagram, he said: “It’s -18C and my hands are literally freezing. I’ve been here for almost a month.”
“I’ve been keeping busy, I’ve been applying to universities and keeping the plane ready to take off,” she added.
“The weather hasn’t been good. Every time (I want to go out), the weather in Russia is very bad or in Nome it’s very bad.”
Obstacles on the way
Once in Siberia, where temperatures were as low as -35°C on the ground and -20°C in the air, a mechanic blocked some of his plane’s air intakes to keep the engine warm in the extreme cold.
image source, FlyZolo
It was unclear how the plane would perform in the extreme cold.
Despite the adjustments, Rutherford had to stay in Magadan for a week and then in Ayan for three weeks.
And after the weather forced a unscheduled stopover the airport Rahadi Osman . Airport, en Indonesian, had to sleep in the terminal for two nights because he did not have the necessary documentation to leave the airport.
Despite the setbacks, and after spending Christmas and New Year away from her family, the teenager was happy and smiling in her Instagram messages.
Another challenge he faced was flying through smoke from California wildfires.
image source, FlyZolo
A crowd gathered to greet Zara Rutherford in Monterrey.
image source, FlyZolo
The pilot was greeted by locals during her trip around the world.
Her plane also failed in New Mexico due to a blocked Pitot tube, and a flat tire left her stranded in Singapore at Christmas.
While in Veracruz, Mexico, he experienced an earthquake in his hotel room on the sixth floor.
“Suddenly the building started to sway. I don’t think I’ve ever gone down the stairs that fast. I really expected the most dangerous part of this trip to be in the air.”
image source, FlyZolo
Zara Rutherford, pictured here 19 years ago with her mother, comes from a family of aviators.
Her school’s principal, Jane Gandee, said that students and staff had been following Rutherford’s journey “with interest and admiration”.
“As if actual flight and navigation weren’t challenging enough, he had to deal with extreme weather and complicated bureaucracy,” he said.
“We are immensely proud of the good humor and resilience he showed at all times,” he added.
“Fifty of our students were inspired by Zara to try their hand at flying, and I’m sure their example will inspire many more young women around the world,” she concluded.
image source, FlyZolo
Storms forced him to extend his stay in Colombia.
Now you can receive notifications from BBC World. Download our app and activate it so you don’t miss our best content.
www.bbc.com
Eddie is an Australian news reporter with over 9 years in the industry and has published on Forbes and tech crunch.