Would you want to be f lown off on holiday by a pilot who’s just turned 19?
LOTS of little boys dream about flying aeroplanes when they grow up.
But only one can say he realised his ambition while still a teenager.
At only 19, Luke Elsworth is flying British tourists around the world – after qualifying as the UK’s youngest commercial airline pilot.
He was appointed a first officer with easyJet in April and last week completed his final checks before taking over the controls.
His father, Paul Elsworth, 52, who is also a pilot for the airline, said it was ‘all Luke ever thought about’ as a child, adding: ‘I do think it’s a bit mental that a 19-year-old is in charge of a £33million aircraft.
‘But as Luke would say, Marcus Rashford is only 18 and he plays for England – so if you’re good enough, you’re old enough, and I agree.
‘I have as much confidence in Luke flying as I have myself – and I’ve been doing this for 32 years. He’s very, very good.’
Asked whether it was appropriate for someone his age to be flying passenger jets, Luke said: ‘I don’t see why not. I want younger people to get into it.
‘If you’re good enough to be there, you’ve done the training and you’re suited towards it then I don’t think age really has an impact.’
He said his passengers didn’t look concerned when they saw him enter the cockpit, adding: ‘I’ve not had anything. If a train driver was 18 and he’d been through all the training I’d have complete trust. I wouldn’t bat an eyelid.’
Questioned about whether he would cope with a mid-air emergency, Luke said: ‘There’s no reason why I shouldn’t. I’m comfortable flying the aircraft.’
Mr Elsworth, of Appleton, Cheshire, said he remembered the moment when Luke decided he wanted to follow in his footsteps.
‘Luke must have been only about three or four,’ he said. ‘We were at an air show and he was stood underneath the wing of this great aircraft eating his sandwiches.
‘I looked at him and asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up and he said, “I’m going to be a pilot like you, Daddy”. Ever since that moment, all he has ever thought about is flying an aeroplane for a living.’
To prepare for his dream job, Luke joined the RAF Air Cadets on his 13th birthday – the earliest he could enrol, and signed up for easyJet’s pilot training programme days after he turned 18.
He did the course, which included six months on simulators, in 18 months.
Luke, who flies Airbus A319 and A320 planes out of Gatwick, is Britain’s youngest airline pilot, according to the Civil Aviation Authority.
Mr Elsworth said: ‘The other day my plane pulled up alongside his and he gave me a thumbs-up from the cockpit. I had a little chuckle to myself that there was an Elsworth in each plane.’