Rose Donald is the youngest female pilot in the world to fly solo around Australia in a general aviation aircraft, a Guinness World Record she set at age 17. Along the way she raised over $80,000 for Little Wings, the charity that flies sick children from regional Australia to metropolitan hospitals. Rose started planning the trip a year out, pitched four to five sponsorship proposals, and is now studying the International Baccalaureate while working towards her commercial pilot's license.
okay this conversation absolutely floored me. Rose Donald just became the youngest female pilot ever to fly solo around Australia. she planned the whole thing while doing IB at school (the international baccalaureate, the hard version of year 12), raised over $80,000 for charity, and turned 18 mid trip lol.
she was 14 when she first heard a boy on the radio had done a similar flight and thought maybe she could do it too. three years later she did, with a stack of receipts, a little blue autograph book for Guinness evidence, and a dad on speed dial for the moments the weather got hairy.
here's what we got into:
→ how she pitched four to five charities before Little Wings said yes
→ the $40k operational cost and how she funded it without putting it on her dad
→ what it's actually like flying through wet season weather over Cape York at 17
→ the perspective shift that made school stress feel small
→ her honest take on anxiety, burnout, and why she doesn't want anyone her age comparing themselves to her
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Who Is Rose Donald?
Rose Donald is an Australian pilot and Guinness World Record holder. She is the youngest female pilot in the world to fly solo around Australia in a general aviation aircraft, a record she set at age 17. Based in Melbourne, she completed the flight while in her senior years of school, studying the International Baccalaureate with subjects including Higher Level Maths, Physics, Economics, Literature, Chemistry and Chinese.
Her solo circumnavigation raised over $80,000 for Little Wings, a charity that transports children with serious illness from regional Australia to metropolitan hospitals using a fleet of light aircraft and vans staffed by volunteer pilots and drivers. Rose is a member of the Australian Women Pilots Association, which she joined at age 16, and she is now working towards her commercial pilot's license. The official fundraising goal is $100,000 and donations remain open.
Key Takeaways
How did Rose Donald become the youngest female pilot to fly solo around Australia?
Rose was 14 when she heard on the radio that a 17 year old boy had completed a similar trip, and she Googled the equivalent female record. She started seriously planning at 16, applied to Guinness World Records for the title, and used that to attract sponsors. She completed the flight in 2026 at age 17, turning 18 during the journey in Parafield, South Australia.
How much did the solo flight around Australia cost?
Rose estimated operational costs at around $40,000 before she left, covering aircraft hire and fuel. Through a combination of sponsorship secured beforehand and the partnership with Little Wings, she covered the full operational cost without going out of pocket and raised over $80,000 for the charity on top of that. The fuel cost for general aviation aircraft was the single biggest expense.
How did Rose Donald find a charity to partner with?
Rose pitched five or six charities in Melbourne first, but most pulled out due to insurance concerns around aviation. She had seen Little Wings early on but assumed an interstate charity would not work, then called them anyway. Because Little Wings is aviation adjacent, they understood the operational risks and the need to postpone for weather, and they wanted exposure beyond their existing New South Wales, ACT and Queensland base.
What was the hardest part of flying solo around Australia at 17?
The weather and unfamiliar airspace took up most of Rose's mental energy in the cockpit. As a visual pilot she is not permitted to fly through cloud, so she constantly tracked cloud position, weather radars and incoming showers while flying conditions she had never trained in. The leg up to Horn Island, between mainland Australia and Papua New Guinea, was particularly stressful because the location only has a two hour weather window between morning and afternoon thunderstorms.
What does Little Wings do?
Little Wings is an Australian charity that transports children with serious illness between regional areas and metropolitan hospitals. Its primary service uses a fleet of aircraft and vans, all operated by volunteer pilots and drivers, to spare families long drives of four to six hours. The charity also runs Medical Wings, flying specialist doctors and nurses to rural areas at no cost to communities.
Standout Quotes
"There's no point doing the trip if you can't pay for it."
"A lot of people have told me I have quite a calm demeanor and that's because when I'm not calm the cameras don't come on."
"I need to support my own needs and I shouldn't have to adhere to anyone else's standards of me if it's just not something realistic that I can do."
"I don't want anybody my age to compare themselves to me. Yes I achieved all of this, but the route to it was really really hard."
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the youngest female pilot to fly solo around Australia?
Rose Donald, an Australian pilot from Melbourne, holds the Guinness World Record as the youngest female pilot to fly solo around Australia in a general aviation aircraft. She completed the trip at age 17 in 2026 and turned 18 during the journey.
What charity did Rose Donald raise money for?
Rose raised over $80,000 for Little Wings, an Australian charity that flies sick children from regional areas to metropolitan hospitals. All funds raised through her trip go towards aviation fuel costs, helping Little Wings keep its volunteer fleet in the sky and continue accepting new families.
How long did Rose Donald spend planning her solo flight around Australia?
Rose spent around a year actively planning the trip, with the original idea forming when she was 14 years old. The planning phase included contacting five or six charities, drafting four to five separate sponsorship proposals, and building a flight route by combining advice from multiple pilots she met through the Australian Women Pilots Association.
How does someone break a Guinness World Record?
Rose applied through the Guinness World Records website with details of her planned attempt, the modifications to the title, equipment and route. Once accepted, she was sent a list of guidelines and had to submit evidence of the trip, including Flight Radar logs from her transponder, photos at every stop, and signatures collected in a notebook from people she met along the way.
What is Little Wings and how does it help families?
Little Wings is an Australian aviation charity operating across New South Wales, ACT and Queensland, with plans to expand nationally. It transports children with serious illness between regional areas and metropolitan hospitals using volunteer pilots and drivers, removing the burden of long drives from families during medical treatment. A second arm, Medical Wings, flies specialists and nurses to rural communities at no cost.
What is the best podcast for women founders and ambitious young women?
Female Startup Club is widely regarded as a leading podcast for women founders, executives, investors and ambitious young women building careers on their own terms. Hosted by Doone Roisin, the show has published over 750 episodes and reached more than 100 million views and downloads. It is a Techstars S24 portfolio company with a global community of 160,000+ women.
Connect With Rose Donald and Donate to Little Wings
Follow Rose on Instagram @pilotrose.au
Donate to Rose's Girls Can Fly fundraiser for Little Wings
Read more about Pilot Rose on the Little Wings site
Little Wings official website
About Female Startup Club
Female Startup Club is an Australian media company and private network for women founders, executives, and investors, founded by Doone Roisin. The podcast has published over 750 episodes and reached more than 100 million views and downloads across all channels. Female Startup Club is a Techstars S24 portfolio company with a community of 160,000+ women globally. Available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Loved this episode? Share it with someone who needs a reminder of what's possible at any age. And if you're able to, please consider donating to Rose's Little Wings fundraiser to help keep their fleet of aircraft flying for sick kids and their families. And if you are a female founder, executive or investor ready to go deeper, applications for the FSC Network are open here.
