Flying the dream, for young Taunton pilot.
| Published: 2nd September 2008 10:07 |
Would you believe this all stems from a computer flight simulator?
February this year, Kurtis Green was 16, he is now officially old enough to fly solo for the first time. He discovered his passion for flying some years ago when the family got their first computer, and one of the games that came with it was Flight Simulator '98.
When his 11th birthday came, Kurtis' parents paid for and accompanied him on his first flight in a light aircraft. This experience ensured flying was for him. However, he had to wait until he was 14 until he could start lessons, following curriculum set by the training body JAR-PPL. Every two months for his first year of training Kurtis was able to take lessons.
He is at Dunkeswell airfield every weekend, helping out at the flying school, while learning. He has had to master the phonetic alphabet, where an English aircraft call sign such as G-OFRY, would be pronounced Golf - Oscar, Foxtrot, Romeo, Yankee to ensure all call signs are not misheard.
For example, pilot's say ‘negative' for no, but ‘affirm' for yes, as the word ‘affirmative' can sound too like it's opposite. A private pilot needs 45 hours under his belt before he can qualify, and so far, he has clocked 10.4 hours.
Kurtis now finds himself operating the radio. At Dunkeswell, there can be up to 15 planes in the air at any one time, and it is to his credit that he is deemed responsible enough to help out.
Kurtis has now reached the point where he has completed his first solo flight which will soon be followed by the rest of his training including more technical manoeuvres as well as cross country flights to other airports. He will be able to gain a licence when he is 17, by which time he will have gained first-class experience, which will all look good on his CV.
Kurtis took his GCSEs last June and gained 12 A-C GCSEs passing by far the requirement of five A to C's to get into his chosen college. Kurtis started college at the beginning of September where he is taking A-Levels in Mathematics, Physics, Business and an AS-Level in computing. It is obvious that Kurtis has his sights set on a flying career. His first choice is to be a Corporate Jet Pilot/Airline Pilot.
Contributed by Kurt Green
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