Three female Ohio State pilots took off Tuesday morning from Sweetwater, Texas, commencing a unique competition that will cover 2,656 miles, ending in Fryeburg, Maine, on Friday. 

A stopover at Newark-Heath Airport is planned for Thursday and Friday, June 21-22. 

Student pilots Yasmine Abu Arab, who recently graduated with an aviation engineering degree; Josie Cotugno, an air transportation major; and Aly Bond, completing a double major in engineering and mathematics, are intent on finishing among the top five collegiate teams in the 42nd Annual Air Race Classic.

The cross-country women’s flight competition has hundreds of pilots, ranging in age from 17 to 90 years old.  A total 55 airplanes with 119 aviators were scheduled to take off at intervals of 30 seconds.  

The process will include determining “how many legs of the race to fly each day, and which stop they are planning on spending the night along the route,” said Matt Schutte, media spokesperson for the OSU College of Engineering.

Last year’s OSU aviation team finished in the top group of collegiate teams. A combination of weather and knowledge of the terrain are crucial for pilots, who will fly only during the daytime. 

Schutte said the original race dates back to 1929, when 20 pilots took off from Santa Monica, California, and finished the competition in Cleveland, Ohio. 

He added, “These young women may remind some viewers of Jerrie Mock, the Columbus native who was the first woman to fly solo around the world in 1964.”