Zara Rutherford, who is attempting to become the youngest woman to fly solo around the world, reflected on the difficulties she faced through a barren and ice-bound Siberia after landing in Jakarta on Wednesday.
By mid-January 2022, the 19-year-old Belgian-British pilot intends to have completed her 51,000-kilometer (32,000-mile) journey over five continents and 52 nations.
Flying over northern Russia was the most difficult step thus far, she told reporters in Jakarta since if anything went wrong, rescue would be hours away in sub-zero weather.
“If the engine fails for whatever reason, I believe I will be able to live. I could either land on the land or (use) the parachute or ditch in the water. I’ll be ok,” she said.
“The difficulty is, once I’m on the ground and three hours away from the next human, I don’t know how long I can survive in – 35 degrees Celsius.”
Rutherford has identified two places on opposite sides of the globe, Jambi in Indonesia and Tumaco in Colombia, to match the criteria for a round-the-world trip.
Every solo flight, she said, was an “adventure” and a test of wits, and she hoped her voyage would encourage other young women to pursue careers in aviation, science, technology, mathematics, and engineering.
Shaesta Waiz, who was 30 when she flew solo around the world in 2017, holds the record she is attempting to beat.
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