19-Year Old Youngest Woman to Fly the Globe, Solo | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-06.23.25

Airborne-NextGen-06.24.25

AirborneUnlimited-06.25.25

Airborne-AffordableFlyers-06.26.25

AirborneUnlimited-06.27.25

Sat, Jan 22, 2022

19-Year Old Youngest Woman to Fly the Globe, Solo

Belgian Teen Completes World Tour in Ultralight in 155 Days

Zara Rutherford, 19, has officially completed her around-the-world flight and become the youngest woman in history to complete the voyage alone in a small aircraft.

Rutherford took her Shark Aero Ultralight around the world in 155 days, or just over 5 months. Zara says she wants to encourage young women to pursue their dreams and reduce the gender gap in aviation as well as in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. 

The Young woman set off from Belgium in August of 2021, heading westward across the Atlantic before stopping by Iceland and Greenland. Her trip then took her through a succession of North America, then the Caribbean to Columbia, then north again through the Alaskan Bering Strait into Russia.

After, she passed through South Korea, Indonesia, India, the Middle East, then finally back home to Kortrijk in Belgium. The trip took twice as long as originally expected, requiring several weeks-long waiting periods for freezing temperatures to subside along the route, as well as detours around less-friendly governments. Californian wildfires, Mexican earthquakes, a Filipino typhoon, and more all caused trouble during her attempt, but she was able to complete the act, earning 2 Guinness World Records, beating the previous 'youngest' by over a decade. 

“Only 5% of commercial pilots and 15% of computer scientists are women. In both areas – aviation and STEM – the gender gap is huge. But during my journey I met many incredible, talented women – pilots, engineers, car racers. I believe together we can make a real change. We can encourage other women to be bold, ambitious and pursue their dreams," said Rutherford. 

FMI: www.flyzolo.com

Advertisement

More News

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (06.30.25): Ground Stop (GS)

Ground Stop (GS) The GS is a process that requires aircraft that meet a specific criteria to remain on the ground. The criteria may be airport specific, airspace specific, or equip>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (06.30.25)

Aero Linx: Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) improves safety and public confidence in aviation, marine and rail transport thro>[...]

Aero-News: Quote of the Day (06.30.25)

“The Palo Alto stopover confirmed—yet again—that flight schools and aero-clubs are no longer just curious about electric training; they are ready to buy. In just >[...]

NTSB Final Report: ICON A5

Pilot’s Failure To Maintain Clearance From The Water While Flying At A Low Altitude Analysis: The flight of two airplanes was in cruise flight on a north heading about 50 ft >[...]

Airborne Affordable Flyers 06.26.25: PA18 Upgrades, ‘Delta Force’, Rhinebeck

Also: 48th Annual Air Race Classic, Hot Air Balloon Fire, FAA v Banning 100LL, Complete Remote Pilot The news Piper PA-18 Super Cub owners have been waiting for has finally arrived>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2025 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC