A TEENAGER who only passed his driving test late last year has swapped four wheels for wings after becoming one of the youngest people to secure a private pilot’s licence for microlight aircraft.

Issac Smith aims to become a commercial pilot and took the first step to achieving that dream when he took to the skies above East Fortune last Monday for his assessment.

He was delighted to pass the General Skills Test (GST) at the age of just 17 – the youngest age for a pilot to be allowed to take the test – after first sampling a microlight flight at just 14 years old.

He told the Courier: “The test went so much better than I thought – I thought I would be really nervous.

“The examiner was one of the instructors, Gordon Douglas, so I would not say it was relaxed but it was not overly formal and he made me feel at ease.

“It is a bit tense and it takes a bit of time to find out if you have passed because you have to shut the plane down and put it away.

“There is a bit of anticipation but it is hugely rewarding.”

The Knox Academy pupil was first given the chance to sample a microlight flight as a present for his 14th birthday.

Since then, it has helped inspire a love of flight, which Isaac, who is in S6 at school, hopes to take all the way.

He said: “I had seen it advertised before and thought it might be cool to try.

“My mum and dad got me it for my birthday and I was kind of just considering ‘that was fun, what can I do next? What are the steps I need to do to get a licence?’ I was always focused once I went and I wanted to get a licence.”

Regular flights at East Fortune with instructors for East of Scotland Microlights followed, Isaac relying on lifts from his parents to the airfield until he passed his driving test in November.

Isaac, who lives just outside Haddington, learned the basics before he was able to take to the sky on his own and fly to Lempitlaw, in the Scottish Borders, and Eshott, near Newcastle.

He said of his first solo flight: “It was the scariest experience of my life. That sounds strange because the instructor would not let me up unless I was safe, but I was terrified.”

Flying instructor Graeme Ritchie congratulated Isaac. He added: “I trained him all the way through and he took the test with Gordon.

“He took a little bit longer than some people because he could only fly at weekends and at school holidays but, in terms of hours, he was pretty good.”

Now, Isaac is hoping this is just the first step as he aims for a career in the skies.

Isaac said: “The plan is to, hopefully, go on and train commercially to be an airline pilot.

“My number one choice is at a school in Iceland. They have got a course in August and I might go on that course, which is roughly 18 months – much quicker than university.”