HIGH FLYING Blackburn student Adam Jackson is reaching for the skies to get his pilot's licence -- before he even gets his driving licence!

The 16-year-old from Rhodes Avenue spent the summer learning to fly, completed his first solo flight after an amazing 11 hours and is well on his way to gaining his Private Pilot's Licence.

And all this before he is even old to get behind the wheel of a car!

Adam, who is studying for his A levels at Blackburn College, has had an interest in planes and flying since he was a little boy.

Dad Nick said: "As Adam grew older he said he wanted to be a pilot and we realised it wasn't just a whim. Flying is his hobby as well as his prospective career and so his mum Janice and I had to make a the decision to support him. Flying is a very expensive pastime -- Adam's lessons are almost £100 an hour -- and there is a great deal of theoretical work and exams to pass.

"He is having to work very hard because, of course, not only does he need excellent grades in his A levels to get any chance of becoming a commercial pilot, but he also needs to study and practice for his pilot's licence."

Adam's flying instructors at Westair Flying School, Blackpool, were so impressed with his competency that they invited him to take his first solo flight after only 11 hours of lessons.

Mr Jackson said: "The minimum number of hours is 10 hours before a trainee pilot is allowed to fly solo but many people need much longer.

"However Adam had just one extra hour and that, coupled with his age, marked a great achievement for him. His mum and I watched as he flew the plane alone and I can't explain how we felt exactly but we were so relieved and proud when he landed back at the airport!" Now Adam needs a total of 45 hours of flying before he can qualify for his Private Pilot's Licence at 17 years old.

Then there will be the hard slog of trying to get sponsorship from a commercial airline to get his commercial pilot's licence.

But Adam, although modest, appears unfazed by the pressures of his own career flight path.

He said: "I have set my sights on a career as a pilot. I know there is a lot of hard work ahead of me but my motivation is my ambition to fly and that will, hopefully, see me through my studies. The A' levels I have chosen -- maths, further maths, physics and chemistry -- are all geared up to becoming a pilot and now all I have to do is make the grade!"