It took Mack Rutherford—nickname “Mack Solo”—142 days to pilot a single-engine Shark Aero ultralight across five continents at a total distance of 29,225 nm.
[Courtesy: @macksolo2022]
Key Takeaways:
British-Belgian Mack Rutherford, at 17 years and 64 days old, became the youngest pilot to fly solo around the world, completing a 142-day journey.
Departing from and landing in Sofia, Bulgaria, he covered 29,225 nautical miles across four continents in a single-engine Shark Aero ultralight.
Guinness World Records recognized him for two records: youngest male to circumnavigate the world solo by aircraft and by microlight.
Rutherford was inspired by his older sister, Zara Rutherford, who also previously set a record for circumnavigating the globe in an ultralight aircraft.
Guinness World Records has declared British-Belgian national Mack Rutherford the youngest pilot to fly solo around the world.
At age 17 years and 64 days, Rutherford landed in Sofia, Bulgaria, Wednesday after departing from that city six months ago to begin his record-setting journey.
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Thom is a former senior editor for FLYING. Previously, his freelance reporting appeared in aviation industry magazines. Thom also spent three decades as a TV and digital journalist at CNN’s bureaus in Washington and Atlanta, eventually specializing in aviation. He has reported from air shows in Oshkosh, Farnborough and Paris. Follow Thom on Twitter @thompatterson.
