He may be the youngest person to fly around the world alone in an airplane. Mack Rutherford took off from Sofia five months ago heading east.
London/Sofia – A British-Belgian youth has completed his circumnavigation of the world in a light aircraft. 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 may be the youngest person to fly around the world alone in an airplane. A confirmation of the record from the Guinness Book was initially pending. 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 professional 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. dpa
