‘The sky’s not the limit’
Halfway around the world, 18-year-old pilot hopes to inspire youth to live their dreams
Lachlan Smart took off from Queensland, Australia, on July 4 — July 3 in North American time zones — on a quest to become the youngest pilot to fly solo around the world.
But it’s not the thought of a Guinness Book of World Records title that inspired the 18-year-old to make the long journey. Smart wanted to inspire other young people to work toward their own goals, and figured he’d lead by example.
Shortly after landing in St. John’s Friday afternoon, he told The Telegram it’s a common thing at home in Australia, and around the world, for young people to have dreams but lack the motivation or self-belief to chase them.
“So I want to help other young people find that, by doing something that I think is really hard. So I decided flying around the world would by my challenge.
“If I can plan that in 2 ½ years, and complete it by 18 and 8 months when I land, and break the world record, maybe I can demonstrate to other young people that they can go for their dreams as well, and there’s nothing holding them back, because the sky’s not the limit, as I’m trying to prove now. So dream big.”
Newfoundland joins a growing list of islands Smart has visited since the trip began a few weeks ago. His first stop was Nadi, Fiji. From there, he visited Pago Pago, American Samoa; Christmas Island, Kiribati; and Hilo, Hawaii. Then he made a few stops on the U.S. mainland — Hollister, Calif.; Las Vegas, Nev.; Fredericksburg, Texas; Nashville, Tenn.; and Niagara Falls, N.Y., before heading northeast to St. John’s.
“A lot of (locations) were based around the flying aspect, the landscape around. So Las Vegas, I chose that not only because it’s cool and I want to see Vegas, but because that’s the step-off point for the Grand Canyon,” he said.
The stop he’s looking forward to most is in England, where he has family and will rest for a while before continuing the journey.
“It’s closer to home, so it’s the second half of the trip and it feels like I’m on my way home,” he said. “I’m going to fly out of an airfield that my great-grandfather flew out of in World War II — actually two of my great grandfathers — and then I get to fly over the White Cliffs of Dover like they did in World War II again. So I think that’s going to be absolutely incredible. I can’t wait.”
What’s next
When the trip is over, Smart plans to continue helping young people achieve their goals. He said his organization, Young Achievers International, will provide practical assistance to young people from around the world.
“Rather than give a startup fund and say, ‘Good luck, on your way,’ we want to mentor people through until they’ve got a pitch together that’s ready to be presented to venture capitalists or a business investor — and we’ve got a big network that we’ve been growing of these people. So we’ll take them to our network, and then whoever’s best suited to them, we’ll let them present their pitch. And if they take it up, great — we’ll make sure they’re legally protected, make sure they’re ready to go and set up the business, and we’ll mentor them through the startup if they want that.”
To help achieve his own goal — being the face of the organization — Smart plans to work toward a double degree in business and aviation.
Smart leaves St. John’s Sunday morning to fly to the Azores. Until then, he said, he hopes to catch up on some sleep and take in a little of the area.
“It was beautiful to fly into. Everything is really green and amazing, so I might like to get out and see a bit of that.”
“If I can plan that in 2 ½ years, and complete it by 18 and 8 months when I land, and break the world record, maybe I can demonstrate to other young people that they can go for their dreams as well, and there’s nothing holding them back.” Lachlan Smart, 18-year-old pilot