19-Year-Old Sets The Record For The Youngest Woman To Fly Solo Around The World

Zara Rutherford, a 19-year-old woman, has become the youngest woman to fly solo around the world after completing the 32,000-mile (52,000km) circumnavigation of the Earth.

Rutherford landed at Kortrijk-Wevelgem Airport in western Belgium on Thursday in an ultralight aircraft after flying around the Earth for 155 days.

The youngest-ever woman to have previously accomplished this was Shaesta Waiz from the United States, who later founded the non-profit organisation, Dreams Soar.

Rutherford crossed 41 countries in an attempt to inspire women and girls to enter STEM fields and especially aviation, an industry where only 5.1% of pilots are women. In an interview with CNN last year, Rutherford described the field of aviation as: "a career where you basically get paid to travel around the world."

A post shared by Zara Rutherford (@fly.zolo)

Although her plan initially was to visit 52 countries in three months, she had to change her route and make unscheduled landings in order to avoid harsh weather and wildfires.

In a press conference on Thursday, she said:

"I would say the hardest part was definitely flying over Siberia —it was extremely cold. It was minus 35 degrees Celsius on the ground. If the engine were to stall, I'd be hours away from rescue and I don't know how long I could have survived for."

[Based on reporting by: Good News Network]