18-Year Old Pilot Makes Aviation History

Lachlan Smart from Australia has set the Guinness World Record for being the youngest person to take a trip around the world in an aircraft.

On July 4 last year, the 18-year old took off in a Cirrus SR22 aircraft and completed the historic journey at Sunshine Coast Airport, Queensland, Australia on August 27.

The announcement was made after an extensive evidence review process that involved checking the GPS data for the entire journey, all take-off and landing times, multiple witness statements and video footage, the Guinness World Records said.

The previous record holder was Matthew Guthmiller from the US, who was aged 19 years when he achieved the title back in 2014. But Smart has now dethroned him with an impressive 24 locations in 15 different countries during his seven-week flight, covering 45,000 kilometers.

“My mission is to inspire youth to dream big and to follow their dreams, giving confidence to others so they can achieve their full potential and do what they may otherwise only dare to dream about,” said Smart, before embarking on the flight.