GLAZEBURY headmaster Jeffrey Johnson has flown off into the sunset!

The CE Primary School boss took early retirment on Thursday.

And he has taken up a part-time job on the operations staff of Air Nova, a company based at Liverpool Airport where he can indulge in his greatest passion - flying.

Mr. Johnson, 50, has been at the growing Glazebury school since 1978 when he arrived as Deputy Head from Little Sutton in Ellesmere Port.

Since taking over as headteacher in 1986 he has seen pupil numbers grow from 73 to its present 96, with more arriving next term.

But under the new education rules he had the option of taking early retirement now or having to wait until he was 60. It was a choice he made quickly.

He said: "I am sad to be leaving Glazebury after all this time but if it meant waiting for another 10 years or taking the opportunity of doing other things now, then I had to make this choice."

Mr. Johnson, a bachelor, is a qualified pilot and owns his own aircraft, a single engine Scheiber Falke, a German plane which he has been flying for some years.

He first took up gliding 20 years ago "and loved it" before taking to flying itself 10 years ago.

He has also flown often in the United States which he regularly visits, describing such jaunts as a flight over Mount St Helens, which erupted about 15 years ago, as "absolutely magnificent!"

Mr. Johnson, added: "I decided now was the right time for me to retire. I don't have any family responsibilities and I will have a chance to travel and fly more often. In addition, I think teaching has become much harder in recent years with all the new rules and regulations and it is much more stressful and expectations are higher.

"I certainly don't regret teaching and the years I have spent at Glazebury are filled with special memories. I will be staying in touch with them and I would like to thank everyone who has been supportive over the years."

Mrs. Joan O'Rourke, one of the present teaching staff, will take over as Acting Headteacher at the start of the autumn term, pending the appointment of a full-time head.

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