A man from Massachusetts who is 18 years old is trying to set a new world record by being the youngest person to fly solo across all seven countries. He is doing this for a good reason.
“This plane has been changed a lot for this trip around the world,” pilot Ethan Guo said.
Guo said that his dream to raise $1 million for cancer research at St. Jude Children’s Hospital comes from his heart.
The man said, “A few years ago, my 18-year-old cousin was told he had stage 4 Hodgkin’s lymphoma.”
Guo grew up in Milton, Massachusetts, and said he’s been planning this trip since he was 13. He said that now that he has a reason to do it, he feels more driven than ever.
There have been some problems with the plan, though. He said that he tried to make the flight six months ago but had an engine failure at 12,000 feet, which kept his plane from taking off or landing for three to four months.
Guo said that he’s ready to work on this project until it’s finished now that his plane has a new engine and the weather is getting better. He encouraged anyone with a dream to follow theirs.
He said, “At the end of the day it’s okay to be crazy, set big goals, and dream big, but you have to be willing to make sacrifices to get what you want.”
Guo said he plans to start his trip in the middle of May and thinks it will take more than three months to finish.
