Zara Rutherford facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Zara Rutherford
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| Born | 5 July 2002 |
| Nationality | Belgian, British |
| Education | St Swithun's School, Winchester |
| Known for | Youngest female pilot to fly solo around the world |
| Relatives | Mack (brother) |
Zara Rutherford was born on July 5, 2002. She is an amazing pilot from Belgium and Britain. When she was just 19 years old, Zara became the youngest woman to fly a plane all by herself around the entire world! She was also the first person ever to fly a special, very light plane called a microlight around the globe. Her incredible five-month journey started in Kortrijk, Belgium, on August 18, 2021, and finished on January 20, 2022.
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Growing Up with Airplanes
Zara Rutherford was born in Belgium. Her family has a long history of flying! Her dad, Sam Rutherford, used to be a helicopter pilot for the British Army. Her mom, Beatrice De Smet, is also a pilot and a lawyer.
Zara grew up surrounded by planes. Her dad even organized exciting flying trips, like crossing all of Africa in old biplanes. As a young girl, Zara often flew with her parents. Sometimes, she even got to fly parts of the journey herself, like when they crossed Mozambique!
When Zara was 14, she started training to become a pilot. She earned her pilot's license in 2020. Zara and her brother, Mack Rutherford, are both record-holding pilots. Their family's love for flying goes back five generations! Their grandfathers were pilots, and their great-great-grandmother was one of the first women to learn to fly in South Africa.
Flying Solo Around the World
On July 26, 2021, Zara Rutherford announced her big plan. She wanted to become the youngest woman to fly solo around the world. She was 19 years old at the time. She hoped to break the record set by American pilot Shaesta Waiz, who was 30 when she flew around the world in 2017.
Zara also aimed for two other records:
- To be the first woman to fly a microlight aircraft around the world.
- To be the first Belgian person to fly solo around the world in a single-engine plane.
Her journey also had an important goal: to encourage more girls and women to get involved in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) and aviation. Many companies and groups supported her. These included ICDSoft, Virgin Group, SafeSky, and TMC Group. She also worked with charities like Girls Who Code and Dreams Soar. These groups help inspire girls to enter STEM fields.
Starting the Journey
Zara began her solo flight from Kortrijk-Wevelgem Airport in Belgium on August 18, 2021. She flew a special plane called a Shark UL, which was loaned to her. From Kortrijk, she flew to Popham Airfield in England, then to Wick in Scotland. The next day, she landed in Reykjavík, Iceland, after a five-hour flight.
Challenges Along the Way
After Iceland, Zara flew to Greenland, Canada, and the East Coast of the United States. She also visited The Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, British Virgin Islands, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Mexico, the West Coast of the United States, and Alaska.
When she reached Nome, Alaska, on September 30, 2021, she had to wait a week for her Russian visa. Then, the weather turned bad, and she had to wait three more weeks before she could cross the Bering Strait. She used this time to do maintenance on her plane.
On November 1, 2021, she finally reached Anadyr, Russia. This was the halfway point of her journey! The next day, she flew to Magadan. On November 9, she stopped in Ayan, a small town with only 800 people. No one there spoke English, and there was no Wi-Fi. She got stuck again because of a winter storm. She finally reached Khabarovsk on November 30 and Vladivostok on December 2.
Flying Through Asia
After leaving Russia on December 11, 2021, Zara planned to stop in China. But because of China's strict COVID-19 rules, she had to fly over the Sea of Japan to South Korea instead. During this six-hour flight, she had trouble talking to air traffic controllers in Seoul. A commercial pilot from KLM helped her by passing her messages and finding the right radio frequencies. She landed in Gimpo that same day.
On December 13, she flew to Muan, then to Taipei, Taiwan, the next day. On December 16, Zara landed in Clark, in the Philippines. She planned another stop, but had to fly to Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, the next day to avoid a big storm called Typhoon Rai.
The Final Stretch
From Kota Kinabalu, she stopped in Ketapang and Jakarta in Indonesia, and Seletar in Singapore. On December 27, while flying to Banda Aceh, she flew too close to a thunderstorm. She saw lightning bolts about 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) away!
After Banda Aceh, she stopped in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and Coimbatore, India. She spent New Year's in Mumbai. In 2022, Zara continued her journey with stops in Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates, and in Riyadh and Tabuk in Saudi Arabia. There, she was welcomed by a Saudi prince who was also a former pilot and astronaut, Sultan bin Salman Al Saud.
After a stop in Alexandria, Egypt, on January 8, 2022, she arrived in Heraklion on the Greek island of Crete.
Zara then made stops in Sofia, Bulgaria, on January 14, 2022; in Senica, Slovakia; and in Benešov, Czech Republic, on January 16. She landed at Frankfurt Egelsbach Airport, Germany, on January 19.
Finally, Zara arrived back in Kortrijk, Belgium, on January 20, 2022. She landed at the same airport where her amazing journey began, completing her flight around the world!
After the Solo Flight
On March 23, 2022, Zara's younger brother, Mack Rutherford, who was 16, started his own trip around the world in an ultralight plane. Five months later, on August 24, Mack arrived back in Sofia, breaking the Guinness World Record for the youngest person to fly around the world.
Awards and Recognition
Zara Rutherford has received several awards for her incredible flight:
- In June 2022, she received the Nicolaus August Otto Award from Deutz AG.
- In August 2022, she was given the Baron Hilton Award by the Living Legends of Aviation.
- On September 12, 2022, the Honourable Company of Air Pilots gave her and her brother Mack the Master's Medal. This was to celebrate their amazing flying and endurance.
- In 2023, Zara (and her brother Mack) received the Royal Automobile Club's Segrave Trophy. This award goes to a British person who shows "Outstanding Skill, Courage and Initiative on Land, Water and in the Air." Zara was the youngest woman, and Mack the youngest person, to receive it for flying around the globe.
Education and Future Plans
Zara Rutherford finished her high school studies at St. Swithun's School in England. She studied Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Economics, and Physics.
In September 2022, she started college at Stanford University. She is interested in computer science, engineering, and aeronautics (the science of flight). Zara has said she plans to keep flying for fun and wants to become a flight instructor.
Public Speaking
Zara is also a public speaker. She shares her story and inspires others at many events. She has spoken at places like the Festival de las Ideas in Mexico and the Misk "Generation Transformation" event in Saudi Arabia.
Her Book
Zara Rutherford wrote a book called I Flew Around the World. It tells the story of her amazing solo flight. The book was published by DK publishing.
See also
In Spanish: Zara Rutherford para niños
- List of circumnavigations
- List of women aviators
