Oliver's first solo flight at Northamptonshire flight club has him following in dad's footsteps
Oliver Edgar, a 15-year-old member of Welland Gliding Club, has successfully completed his first solo flight on his path to becoming a pilot, almost 30 years to the day after his dad achieved the same feat.
Watching on was his father, who himself is currently a commercial pilot, regularly shepherding passengers on flights in a Boeing 777.
Dad Philip is ‘immensely proud’ of Oliver’s achievement, as 30 years ago at the very same club he was in Oliver’s shoes.
He said: “He’s come a long way, there have been plenty of ups and downs. For ourselves, over the last few years we’ve travelled a lot around the world, and Oliver has been in and out of aviation a long time.
“I’m immensely proud, even though I’m a pilot it’s nerve-wracking at times when he’s up there flying with instructors and then by himself. I’ve got the utmost confidence in him but as a parent it’s nerve-wracking, as you can imagine.
“To send your 15 year-old solo in a glider, it’s mind-blowing.”
Oliver has taken to the job like a duck to water, completing his first flight in a K13 glider in around 10 minutes over Lyveden Airfield, the home of Welland Gliding Club.
He said: “It was good, as soon as I got the top of the launch another guy flew over me which was cool to see. After it released from the winch I felt a big sigh of relief that all this hard work has paid off.”
Two months of flight training and a few pre-flight checks on the day served as suitable preparation for Oliver, who took to the sky in suitable weather conditions on September 28.
Oliver is hoping to pursue a career in aviation, possibly as a commercial pilot or as part of the Royal Air Force, though dad Philip said: “I hope he doesn’t ask me to pay for him to be a commercial pilot because I’ll have to remortgage the house!”
Philip came down from Scotland as a boy and was brought up in Corby, having worked in the steelworks for years before pursuing his flying dream at 30. On the day of Oliver’s maiden solo voyage Philip’s flying coach, now in his 80s, also happened to drop by.
Philip says that the learning syllabus in place was ‘very similar then to what it is now’, though health and safety procedures have improved over time to a point where thigs are safer now than they ever were.
He added: "We’ll be very proud of whatever he decides to do. It’s fantastic we’ve both got a passion we share, we’re lucky to have that, not every parent gets to have something that they can do together.”
Mark Rushton, Welland Gliding Club’s chief flying instructor, added: “We are absolutely delighted that Oliver has followed in his father’s footsteps by launching his solo flying career with us.
"He is the latest in a steady stream of teenagers who have learned to fly with us in recent times – indeed, since the Covid lockdowns no less than seven local youngsters have achieved this feat at Lyveden, with one of them going on to compete in the UK Junior National Gliding Championships this summer.
"We are immensely proud of them all.”