Matt Guthmiller is a man of limitless horizons. He’s a pilot - the youngest to have ever circumnavigated the globe, a videographer, a public speaker, a student at MIT, and an entrepreneur currently working on launching a new company. He’s also just 23 years old.
For Matt, aviation is more than just about getting from point A to B. On a commercial flight it’s pretty simple: you get on the plane, fly to your destination, then get off the plane. When you’re the pilot, “anywhere in the world can be your pitstop”, and there are so many beautiful places to see.
The freedom of flying is just incredible - the feeling of being able to go wherever you want at any time really changes everything. It’s the possibility space that feels so staggering.
Flying has also opened doors for Matt and pushed him to develop new skills. Two years ago, he would never have considered becoming a professional youtuber. But he has found that it ties in beautifully with his flying life. It’s gratifying to share aviation with other enthusiasts and the general public, and Youtube really helps open doors to people who want to make videos. Matt explains his approach this way, “There are definitely things in life I have to keep separate from my video work, but a lot of it blurs - I’m not a very private person. It’s simply a fun way of sharing the things I love doing.”
We chatted with Matt to learn more about what keeps him flying.
What’s your favorite place to land?
My absolute favorite place I’ve been was flying around Greenland. It’s gorgeous and the culture is so resourceful. The very fact that they have civilization there is remarkable… and they’ve been able to sustain themselves throughout history.
How do you balance all your pursuits?
I’m studying electrical engineering and computer science at MIT. In a very literal sense, flying opens up a lot of doors in terms of moving through physical space. I can do so much more in one day when space is compressed by flying. Flying also helps me stay motivated in a way: There is a constant ability to go do new things and a constant source of new and interesting experiences.
What has surprised you while flying?
A few weeks ago I was trying to fly from New Mexico to Colorado. We ended up having to fly around for almost three hours-almost down to Mexico-but somewhere over Nevada we saw just the most massive, beautiful canyon, and if we hadn’t been flying we never would have seen it.
Where to next?
I’d love to see Antarctica. The only two continents I’ve never been to are South America and Antarctica. Next year I want to spend time flying around the Pacific Northwest.
Anything else we should know?
MoS is fantastic for traveling. Air conditioning isn’t available in smal aircraft, so MoS is perfect for dressing however you want when in hot temperatures. When you’re taxi-ing or taking off it’s SUPER hot and MoS breaths so well. From Las Vegas to Colorado, I was good. Wrinkle-free is great too.
