Idaho record-breaker David Rush caught 20 paper planes in his mouth in one minute, helped by his 13-year-old niece, Ali.
The pair beat the previous Guinness World Record of 17 after falling short on their first official attempt. Guinness lists both David and Ali Rush as the record holders.
The achievement took place in Stanley, Idaho, on June 29, 2026, although UPI reported it on October 13.
For Rush, who holds more than 200 Guinness World Records titles, the challenge revived an idea he had abandoned years earlier. For Ali, it delivered her first Guinness title.
A different design revived the attempt
Rush initially shelved the project after discovering how painful it was to catch conventional pointed paper planes with his mouth.
In his account, he described impacts to his lips and cheeks and concerns about a pointed aircraft hitting an eye. Those early tests persuaded him to stop pursuing the record.
He eventually returned to the challenge after modifying the fold to create a blunt nose. The revised design “still stung”, but he considered it “painful” rather than “dangerous”.
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The change addressed one problem, but he still needed someone who could throw accurately and consistently.
Rush first practised with his 10-year-old son. However, the upward throwing angle from his son’s height made a slow, steady flight path difficult.
Ali then volunteered, giving the attempt a new partner.
Hundreds of throws before the record
“Ali had an advantage from her first throw. Her release angle was higher, and her delivery was remarkably steady (not surprising since she’s a top-tier soccer goalie). We spent a day drilling, burning through hundreds of throws until the timing was good enough to try for the record,” Rush wrote online.
After practising, the pair set up cameras and brought in witnesses for the official attempts.
Their first effort produced 14 successful catches, three below the existing record. They reset and tried again.
On the second attempt, Ali launched the planes while Rush caught them in his mouth and dropped them into a container.
When the minute ended, they had reached 20. That improved their first attempt by six catches and surpassed the previous record by three.
Another paper-plane achievement for Rush
Guinness previously identified American record-breaker Ashrita Furman as the holder of the 17-plane benchmark.
Rush also has experience with another paper-aircraft category: the fastest time to fold and throw a plane.
According to Guinness, he claimed that title in November 2023 with a time of 6.15 seconds. He improved it to 5.12 seconds in June 2024.
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After losing the title, Rush reclaimed it in January 2026 with 4.82 seconds. Japan’s Ikai Tomoki subsequently lowered that mark to 4.54 seconds in April.
This time, Rush’s paper-plane achievement depended on a partnership, with Guinness recording Ali alongside her uncle for their 20 catches.
