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Youngest around the world pilot
Inspirational Keynote Speaker
Motivational Youth Speaker
Aviation Ambassador
Sustainable Aviation Advocate
Embrey-Riddle Aeronautical University Student
Meet Travis
Travis the Pilot
In June 2021, at the age of 18, Travis became the youngest person to fly solo around the world but it didn’t start there;
Travis started flying gliders when he was just 12 years old and went on to became the UK’s youngest glider pilot at 14, completing his PPL at 16 and becoming the youngest certified PPL pilot at 17. These early successes fuelled his flying ambitions and led to his dream of fly around the world.
But it wasn’t all blue skies and tailwinds, Travis had to overcome numerous challenges. The Covid pandemic halted his original plan, to take off in June 2020 at the age of 17 and issues with his original aircraft nearly put an end to his dream all together.
His determination to succeed saw him raise half a million dollars in corporate sponsorship, such was the belief in him that he was able to raise half of that before he even had a plane… or a pilot’s licence!
His around the world flight took three years of planning but just 43 days to complete, making his circumnavigation the fastest of all the young solo pilots, while flying the slowest plane. His flights were often over eight hours long with little sleep between legs, hist story is one of endurance, perseverance and commitment.
Travis his now half way through his Air Traffic Pilots Licence but his aim is not to be a commercial pilot but an engineer developing sustainability in aviation. He currently studies, electrical engineering and continues to fly at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
Travis the Speaker
As well as being a world record holder at 18, Travis became an Ambassador for Aviation for the British Government at 19 and is an established TEDx Speaker, Youth Ambassador and an envoy for Sustainable Aviation.
Travis’s struggle to get off the ground (excuse the pun) and the hair-raising stories of his incredible journey around the world is now the foundation of many of his talks but there is so much more to them than that. He talks about his passion for flight and how his has long hours in the cockpit made him appreciate how lucky he was to see the world from this inspiring perspective and gave him time to ponder what he was doing as an aviator and what he had gone through to get there.
Travis now shares what he has learned from making the impossible possible, never giving up on dreams and finding the strength to conquer any possibility, when failure was not an option. His talks help motivate and develop the leaders of the future and reaches out to all generations, in many inspiring and rewarding ways.
Travis became the first ever ‘youth speaker’ at TEDx in New York, where his talk varied from his usual story by comparing the key message for pilots in trouble to the danger dangers the world faces in the future.
Travis’s talks are varied, he is proud of his achievements in aviation and is determined to help and inspiring others. He also talks of his concerns for the future of aviation and his excitement about the speed in which new technology is being developed to provide a sustainable future for aviation and the planet.
"Dreams are not what you see in your sleep, dreams are goals that do not let you sleep!"
"Man must rise above the Earth to the top of the atmosphere and beyond, for only thus will he fully understand the world in which he lives."
~ Socrates
Recent News
Story September 2022 – Project eFlight
Travis didn’t waste any time. Two weeks after the start of the first semester at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Travis held the first meeting of Project
Story August 2022 – The next step – Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
After losing out on his University Placement at Shenyang University in China, due to Covid restrictions on foreign students, Travis was unsure where his future
Story June 2022 – Electro Flight and the Rolls-Royce electric aircraft
Electro flight are the company behind the record breaking Roles-Royce ‘Spirit of Innovation’ all electric aircraft. Travis got a tour of the battery factory and
Story May 2022 – A talk at True Noord in Amsterdam
Travis had a great trip to Amsterdam to give a talk to the staff at True Noord. True Noord is an aircraft leasing company, with
