air and aviation sports
World record: 17-year-old circumnavigates the globe in a light aircraft
Mack Rutherford on his plane after landing at Sofia West Airport. photo
© Jordan Simeonov/AP/dpa
He is the youngest person to fly around the world solo in an airplane. Mack Rutherford took off from Sofia five months ago heading east.
A British-Belgian youth has circumnavigated the world in an ultralight aircraft, setting several world records at the same time.
Mack Rutherford’s Facebook account shared a video of the 17-year-old landing at an airfield in the Bulgarian capital Sofia. It was the last stage in his world record attempt.
Rutherford is the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe alone in an airplane, as confirmed by the publisher of the Guinness Book of Records. He also holds the records for the youngest person to fly in an ultralight and the youngest male in the two categories. Rutherford had started east from Sofia five months ago.
He faced a number of challenges on his journey – from sandstorms in Sudan, extreme heat in Dubai to airport closures in India.
Rutherford belongs to a veritable aviation dynasty: Several generations before him made flying their profession or at least their favorite pastime. Mack’s father is a commercial pilot, his mother is a hobby pilot and his older sister Zara just completed her own circumnavigation of the world a few months ago. In January, at the age of 19, she became the youngest woman to have flown solo around the world.