NAGPUR: A 19-year-old American attempting to become the youngest person ever to fly around the world solo reached India Thursday, more than a month into his aerial odyssey.
Matt Guthmiller, a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), smiled and flashed a thumbs-up after he landed his single-engined Beechcraft A36 Bonanza aircraft in the city of Nagpur in Maharashtra state early Thursday.
“It’s been good, actually a lot of fun. I have been to some really interesting places. There have been a few small issues but overall it’s been fun,” Guthmiller told AFP by telephone. The bespectacled teen is set to cover 29,000 miles during his month-long journey, making 25 stops across 14 countries. He hopes to set a Guinness World Record by landing on July 8 in California, when he will be 16 days younger than Ryan Campbell of Australia, the current record holder.
Campbell was 19 years, seven months, and 25 days old when he arrived south of Sydney in 2013.
With more than 500 flying hours under his belt, Guthmiller has already zipped across the United States, Europe and the Mediterranean Sea, down through Egypt and onto the Gulf since he took flight in San Diego on May 31.
Guthmiller flew into Nagpur from Abu Dhabi where he said, “instead of aviation gas they gave me P4 engine oil. But it was all sorted out in the end.”
His next stops are Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, the Philippines, Australia and Samoa, where he said the weather can prove to be a challenge.
“I am going to a part of the world where monsoons can be an issue. The weather can really change from the time that I take off,” he said.
Guthmiller is raising money through sponsors and plans to donate all proceeds to Code.org, a non-profit organization that pushes for computer science and programming to be taught in schools.
“The goal is to raise $250,000. Cost of the trip is about $145,000. So I am looking at (donating) about $105,000 to Code.org,” he said.
US teen pilot reaches India in world tour
US teen pilot reaches India in world tour
France demands EU-Mercosur trade pact signing be put off
- “France asks that the deadlines be pushed back to continue work on getting the legitimate measures of protection for our European agriculture,” said the statement
PARIS, France: France on Sunday urged the European Union to postpone the deadlines set for signing a free trade agreement with South American bloc Mercosur, rejecting the deal in its current form.
In a statement from Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu’s office, Paris said the conditions were not in place for EU member states to vote on the agreement.
“France asks that the deadlines be pushed back to continue work on getting the legitimate measures of protection for our European agriculture,” said the statement.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is due in Brazil on Monday for talks to finalize the landmark pact with the Mercosur bloc, which includes Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay.
But Brussels first has to get the approval of the EU member states over the coming week.
“Given a Mercosur summit is announced for December 20 (Saturday), it is clear in this context that the conditions have not been met for any vote (by states) on authorizing the signing of the agreement,” said the statement from Paris.
Earlier Sunday, in an interview published in the Germany financial daily Handelsblatt, France’s Finance Minister Roland Lescure made France’s objections clear.
“As it stands, the treaty is simply not acceptable,” he said.
Securing robust and effective safeguard clauses was one of the three key conditions France set before giving its blessing to the agreement, he added.
The other key points were requiring the same production standards faced by EU farmers and establishing “import controls.”
“Until we have obtained assurances on these three points, France will not accept the agreement,” said Lescure.
European nations are poised to vote on the trade agreement between Tuesday and Friday, according to EU sources.
The European Parliament votes Tuesday on safeguards to reassure farmers — particularly those in France — who are fiercely opposed to the treaty.
If approved, the EU-Mercosur agreement would create a common market of 722 million people.
It is intended to allow the EU to export more cars, machinery, wine, and other goods, and will also facilitate the entry into the European Union of beef, poultry, sugar, honey, and other products.
Farmers in France and some other European countries say it will create unfair competition due to less stringent standards, which they fear could destabilize already fragile European food sectors.
