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04 July 2016 07:57
easyJet can boast Britain's youngest airline pilot
People who holiday abroad with easyJet might be forgiven for doing a double-take when they see one of its newest pilots entering the cockpit.
Luke Elsworth is 19 years young and is not only the UK's youngest qualified airline pilot, but also one of the most youthful since British aviation records began.
Luke's route to the top
The budget carrier offered the teenager a job in April after he finished an 18-month training course at the Southampton-based CTC Aviation centre.
The now First Officer Elsworth was only nine days past his 18th birthday when he enrolled and is now qualified to take passengers on easyJet routes.
The training programme included:
• flying light planes in the American state of Arizona
• half-a-year's worth of training on a simulator
Successful completion of the course secured him a licence as a multi-crew pilot.
Peace of mind, whoever the pilot is
Most airline passengers jetting off abroad might not care about a pilot's age, as long as they are fully trained.
But peace of mind can be left on the runway if holidaymakers leave without trusted travel insurance.
This is because it means they have to trust to luck as they are uncovered should the worst mishaps happen on holiday.
Insurance protection covers delayed or cancelled flights, stolen luggage and possessions, and mislaid travel documents, such as passports.
What the pilot says
Mr Elsworth believes that it does not matter to travellers how old a pilot is, as long as they are competent enough and fully trained.
He says he would have no problem in travelling in a train driven by an 18 year old and would trust him 100%.
Mr Elsworth told Press Association journalists that he has not yet received any squeamish looks from passengers on account of his lack of years.
He says aptitude and thorough training are more important than a pilot's age.
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