Teen pilot Zara reached India, lands in Coimbatore

A teenage pilot Zara Rutherford reached India and landed in Coimbatore on Thursday as part of her bid to become the youngest woman to fly around the world solo and cover 51,000 kms, spanning five continents and 52 countries.The 19-year old British-Belgian Zara embarked on her journey on August 18 from Kortrik Wevelgem Airport in Belgium to set a world record to become the youngest solo pilot of the world's fastest Shark Ultralight plane.Of the 51,000 kms journey, I have covered a little over 30,000 kms, she noted and said she wanted to land in Delhi or Chennai in India, but owing to bad weather, landed in Coimbatore,  Zara said. Upon completion of her journey, Zara said by January 13, she will be in Belgium and expressed hope to pave the way for girls and women to pursue their dreams in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).The current female record holder is American Shaesta Waiz, who was 30 at the time of her challenge in 2017.

"It has been a challenging task, particularly given the weather conditions and Covid-19 restrictions. Actually my plan is to complete the task by mid November, but due to various formalities, like obtaining Visa, it was delayed by nearly two months," Zara told reporters here at the office of Elgi Equipments, the major air compressor manufacturers and sponsors of the attempt. Elgi Managing Director, Jairam Varadaraj said the company was proud to sponsor the 19-year-old's record-breaking attempt to circumnavigate the globe in a single engine aircraft. Miss Rutherford, who comes from a family of pilots, began training when she was 14 and gained her pilot's licence in 2020.