Father and son, 19, take to the air as pilot and co-pilot
TEENAGER Alex Kempton has clearly been taken under his father’s wing....
To prove it, the 19-year-old marked Father’s Day by sharing the cockpit of a new Boeing 737-800 with his father, Captain David Kempton.
Both are pilots with airline Norwegian.
The pair flew 180 passengers on a four-and-a-half hour flight from Tenerife to Birmingham Airport, with Alex acting as co-pilot. It is the first time a father and son have been in charge of a Norwegian jet.
Alex, from Kenilworth, Warwickshire, became the youngest pilot at Europe’s third largest low-cost airline last September – just two years after starting flight school.
He was offered his first professional pilot job by Norwegian just a week before his 19th birthday.
Alex was bitten by the aviation bug while watching planes take off from Coventry Airport with his father.
Norwegian arranged for the pair to fly together as part of Alex’s flight training.
David is a training captain, giving him the chance to show his son the ropes.
David, 54, said: “It’s truly an hon- our to take to the skies and share the cockpit with my son. I’ve always been fascinated with flying and I’ve encouraged Alex to share my aviation passion at every opportunity, so this was an extremely proud moment.
“I’m very grateful to Norwegian for not only giving my son the opportunity to take-off his flying career but also arranging for us to fly together on this special flight.”
David has 30 years’ flying experience and has flown private jets for the likes of Sir Paul McCartney, 90s pop groups and even a former prime minister.
He joined Norwegian in 2013 and is the most senior pilot at Norwegian’s Tenerife base.
Alex, a First Officer, said: “I never would have thought my first pilot job would involve getting trained by my dad – this has never been done before at Norwegian.
“From following my dad to work at an early age to flying a brand-new Norwegian aircraft together is a little daunting, but very exciting.
“It’s even more special that I flew alongside my dad into Birmingham Airport, where he spent his whole career before joining Norwegian.”