The tallest woman in the world took to the skies and reached new heights after her first-ever flight.
Rumeysa Gelgi, 25, who stands at just above 7 feet, was recognized as the tallest woman in the world after the Guinness World Records gave her the title this year.
She finally took her first plane ride after Turkish Airlines made several adjustments to an airplane to accommodate her 7 foot stature, including taking off six seats.
Gelgi usually gets around using a wheelchair but can walk for short distances with the help of a walker. Her unusually tall height is caused by a condition called Weaver syndrome. Weaver syndrome is an extremely rare genetic condition that causes bones to grow very fast and become larger than usual, and people affected by this condition become very tall and have distinctive facial features. There is no cure for Weaver syndrome.
The Turkish native has been too tall to fit into a regular plane or its seats even when she was still young, so she has never traveled in one before.
Gelgi can now book flights and travel abroad, thanks to Turkish Airlines, which took the initiative and tore out half a dozen seats from one of its planes and replaced them with a custom-made stretcher for Gelgi to be comfortable in during her flight.
Her first flight was in September, and she jetted from Istanbul, Turkey to San Francisco, USA. Gelgi says she has caught the traveling bug and would love to fly more often.
Posting on her Instagram account and excitedly sharing her big news with her 25,000 Instagram followers, Gelgi thanked everyone who had made her journey possible, saying that her flight was flawless. She added that it was the first of many flights to come.
Gelgi posted several photos from the flight showing how the airline had accommodated her. In one of the pictures, she is gleefully lying on the stretcher and posing with a cabin crew member.
Gelgi, who works in the software development industry, traveled to the US to further her career, but she will also be working with the Guinness World Record to promote events. The 25-year-old said she would stay in the US for six months and has been documenting her stay in California and sharing the pictures on Instagram.
When the Guinness World Record confirmed Gelgi as the tallest living woman in the world last month, in her acceptance speech she said that anyone could turn their disadvantage into an advantage.
It was not the first time that Gelgi had held a world record. In 2014, the organization also named her the tallest living teenager in the world. She holds two more Guinness World Records, including the longest finger on a woman (4.40 inches). Gelgi, whose back is 23.58 inches, holds the world record for a living woman.
Speaking to reporters last month, she said that being different can bring people unexpected success.
Another Turkish citizen, Sultan Kosen, who measures about 8’3” holds the record for the world’s tallest man.