Mack Rutherford (born 21 June 2005) is a British-Belgian aviator. On 24 August 2022, under the name Macksolo, he became the youngest person ever to fly solo around the world (and first ever minor/under eighteen years old). He holds four

Guinness Guinness () is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in 1759. It is one of the most successful alcohol brands worldwide, brewed in almost 50 countries, and available in ove ...

World Records: These include youngest person to fly solo around the world - previously held by

Travis Ludlow Travis Ludlow (born 13 February 2003) is an English aviator. In 2021, he became the youngest person to fly solo around the world at age 18 years old, a record he held for 1 year. Early life Ludlow was born on 13 February 2003. He is from Ibsto ...

, and, youngest person to fly a microlight solo around the world - previously held by his sister

Zara Rutherford Zara Rutherford (born 5 July 2002) is a Belgian-British aviator. At age 19, she became the youngest female pilot to fly solo around the world and the first person to complete a circumnavigation in a microlight aircraft after a five-month journ ...

. His successful record attempt received significant global exposure for his mission explaining that young people make a difference. His planned departure in March 2022 and solo flight was made significantly more complicated with the outbreak of the Ukrainian-Russian war in February 2022. His intended route and permits had to be altered multiple times to adapt to the new geo-political circumstances. His longest and most difficult flight took him 10h over the icy waters of the Northern Pacific Ocean, from Kushiro, Japan, to Attu island, USA, an uninhabited island where he had to land due to unexpected headwinds and the sun setting. He spent the night in an abandoned shed on the runway of this former US Coast guard station, before continuing his journey over the Aleutian islands to mainland Alaska. The journey was originally expected to take about 2,5 months, but in the end, it took 5 months and a day. On 24 August 2022, he landed back at his starting point: Sofia West, an airfield close to the capital of Sofia, Bulgaria, where his sponsor ICDSoft is based. On 12 September 2022, the Honourable Company of Air Pilots announced that Mack Rutherford, jointly with his sister

, had been awarded the Master's Medal "''in recognition of his amazing feat of flying and endurance"''. Previous recipients, include Sir Richard Branson,

Bertrand Piccard Bertrand Piccard FRSGS (born 1 March 1958) is a Swiss explorer, psychiatrist and environmentalist. Along with Brian Jones, he was the first to complete a non-stop balloon flight around the globe, in a balloon named Breitling Orbiter 3. He was t ...

Polly Vacher Polly Vacher (born 1944) is an English aviator specialising in long-distance solo flights. She was awarded the MBE for services to charity in 2002. She lives in Oxfordshire. Born in south Devon, she trained in physiotherapy and spent twen ...

, Andre Borschberg, Tim Peak and James Ketchall amongst many others. The 20th of January 2022 Mack was honoured at the annual Awards of the Living Legends of Aviation with the "

Barron Hilton William Barron Hilton (October 23, 1927 – September 19, 2019) was an American business magnate, philanthropist and sportsman. The second son and successor of hotelier Conrad Hilton, he was the chairman, president and chief executive officer of ...

Aviation Inspiration Award". The event took place at the International Ballroom of the The Beverly Hilton, where Golden Globes are awarded, and was hosted by pilot and aviation enthusiast

John Travolta John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing on the television sitcom ''Welcome Back, Kotter'' (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes ''Carrie'' (19 ...

. He received his award from the hands of Living Legend

Julie Clark Julie E. Clark (born June 27, 1948) is a retired American aerobatic air show aviator and commercial airline pilot. She started her commercial flying career with Golden West Airlines as a first officer and ended it in 2003 as a Northwest Airl ...

. Other attendees included, amongst others, aviators and "Living Legends of Aviation" Buzz Aldrin, William Shatner, Shane Lundgren and Haemish Harding.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rutherford, Mack 2005 births Belgian aviation record holders Belgian people of British descent British aviation record holders Circumnavigators of the globe English aviators Living people

See also

References