young pilot Ryan Campbell nominated for Pride of Australia medal after becoming youngest pilot and the first teenager to fly solo around the world

SEEMINGLY impossible dreams do come true. It’s a message 20-year-old pilot Ryan Campbell wants to share with teenagers across Australia to inspire them to reach new heights.

SEEMINGLY impossible dreams do come true.

It’s a message 20-year-old pilot Ryan Campbell is determined to share with teenagers across Australia to inspire them to reach new heights.

Mr Campbell fulfilled his dream to fly solo around the world last September and set a record for the youngest pilot and the first teenager to complete the feat.

It took two years of planning and fundraising before Mr Campbell took off on his epic 70-day journey across the globe — visiting 15 countries and 34 destinations along the way and spending 200 hours in air.

Young pilot Ryan Campbell hopes to inspire others following his flight of fancy around the world. Picture: Toby Zerna

“It still blows me away,” Mr Campbell, from Merimbula on the state’s far south coast, said.

“I’ve seen volcanoes, glaciers, castles, desert, islands and more ocean than you’d ever need to see in your life.”

Mr Campbell raised more than $250,000 for the flight and personally asked Cessna Aircraft Company, headquartered in the US, to loan him a plane.

“I’ve found something I’m passionate about and I’ve taken it and been able to give myself some pretty phenomenal experiences,” Mr Campbell said. “I’ve learnt that it doesn’t matter what you want to do, provided you have a level head on your shoulders, all you need is the courage to do it.

“It’s not always easy but you’ll get there eventually.”

Mr Campbell now spends his spare time talking to teens on school tours to inspire them to set the bar high and dream big.

He also raises money to help get other youngsters involved in aviation.

In the coming months, Mr Campbell will join forces with a Sydney-based Cessna aircraft dealer to give teens interested in aviation a chance to spend time in the air alongside trained pilots.

“We’re creating pretty exciting programs to get young kids up in the air and in the pilot’s seat to see the world from a different perspective,” Mr Campbell said.

Mr Campbell is hoping to one day offer scholarships to train more young pilots.

Ryan Campbell has been nominated for a Pride of Australia medal following his successful world record attempt.

He was just 14 when he began flying, working at a supermarket and washing dishes at his local RSL to pay for lessons.

Kenneth Evers, who flew around the world in 2010, nominated Mr Campbell for the Pride of Australia Young Leader Medal.

“I had the privilege of working as Ryan’s mentor and I saw the ordeals and challenges he had to deal with both in the logistics and planning of the flight and the s execution of the flight,” Mr Evers said. “Throughout the many difficulties that came his way, he never once considered giving up.”