News

On 7th December David Mowat took advantage of the calm clear and crisp conditionds at Newtownards Airfield to undertake his First Solo Flight in Thruster G CGFZ. David recons that as early Christmas presents go a First Solo Flight will be hard to beat. Congratulations David.

Ian Walsh only started leaning to fly in mid September but has taken every opportunity that the weather and his very busy work schedule has provided to make progress in his Flying thereby amassing a total of twelve hours under instruction. On 19th November Ian took the morning off work and the weather gods smiled upon him, so, after a brief session in the circuit with the instructor Ian embarked on his first solo flight. It was a textbook circuit and landing. Congratulations Ian

Retired  electronics engineer Billy Millar has been on the cusp of a first solo for  over a month but strong gusty cross winds always seemed to anticipate and thwart his aspiration. However on Sunday 2nd October there was a relatively mild cross wind which Billy mastered with consummate ease to complete his First Solo flight in Thruster G CGFZ. Billy has already had a look round several group share  aircraft based at Newtownards as he intends  to be up and flying as soon as he passes his GST. Congratulations Billy

Aided by sheer determination,  a pair of swimming shorts and the excellent natural air conditioning system built into every Thruster Sean Devlin overcame the sweltering heat on the hottest day of the year at Newtownards Airfield  to pass his GST on 13th August Sean now plans to buy a share in a local group with a   Skyranger  Swift. Congratulations  Sean.

Darren Harper is a key member of Northern Ireland’s Search and Rescue Organisation and his work has recently been recognised by the award of the Queen’s Jubilee Medal. Darren only started learning to fly in late January this year but by April he had made his mind up  and bought his own Thruster. On 6/8/22 Darren  achieved another major milestone when he undertook his First Solo flight in the school’s Thruster G CGFZ. Congratulations Darren you can now look forward to completing the course in your very own Thruster G CBXG.

Passing his GST in Thruster G CGFZ on 4th July is just part of Paul McBride’s preparation for his move to live and work in America late next year. Paul will be working in America as  a  Specialist Computer  Programmer and intends to relax by flying some of the vast range of Ultralight Aircraft they have over there. In the meantime Paul will be taking a share in one of the Microlight groups based at Newtownards Airfield in order to hone his Flying skills in preparation for his move to America. Congratulations Paul on passing your GST.

On Sunday 26th June Dr Derek Hrabovsky was busy saving lives on emergency call outs in Northern Ireland’s HELIMED 23, and on Monday 27th June he was again gainfully occupied in passing his General Skills Test in Thruster G CGFZ. (Some people just lead very busy and satisfying lives.) Congratulations Derek . We hope you aways continue to enjoy both your work and your chosen hobby.

David Norwood has surely and steadily been working towards gaining a Microlight license over the last couple of years and Friday 3rd June was the final pay day when he passed his GST in Thruster G CGFZ. Congratulations David you can now spend your hard earned cash on that share in the local Skyranger group you fancied. .

Every time Sean Devlin booked a flying lesson the weather would inevitably be horrendous, but on Saturday 7th May the Weather Gods relented and Sean grabbed the opportunity to complete his First Solo flight in Thruster G CGFZ. Congratulations Sean .

Despite a significant crosswind on Saturday 16th April eighteen year old Joshua Davison’s dream job of becoming an Airline Pilot got one step closer when Josh completed his First Solo flight in C CGFZ. Congratulations Josh on a very impressive First Solo

After commencing his Flying Course and completing his First Solo on the school’s black Thruster Dimitar Ivanov decided to buy his own yellow Thruster to complete his training. On 23rd January Dimitar passed his GST in his own Thruster G RAFH which accounts for the beaming smile on his face despite the fact that he is being attacked by an angry looking shark. Congratulations Dimitar on gaining your licence and an interesting looking aircraft.

Derek Hrabovsky is the Consultant Anesthetist at The Ulster Hospital and regularly volunteers his expertise as the Doctor on board the Northern Ireland Air Ambulance (Callsign HELIMED 23). Normally Derek is too busy with the patient to enjoy the flights in HELIMED 23 so he decided to learn to fly himself. On 18th January Derek successfully completed his First Solo flight in Thruster G CGFZ. Congratulations Derek and in recognition of your achievement we have now put a first aid kit under the Thruster’s seat and changed the Callsign to MICROMED 23.

According to the BBC the third Monday in January (Blue Monday) is the most depressing day in the year. Paul McBride totally disagrees with the BBC but that is probably because on Monday 17th January he embarked on his First Solo Flight in Thruster G CGFZ. After his first landing and a well earned coffee Paul again took to the sky and completed a further twelve solo circuits. Congratulations Paul

Mark McGuiness has an Aeronautical Engineering Degree from the University of Carlow and consequently has a detailed knowledge of aerodynamics. On 11th January the weather was perfect for flying and Mark took full advantage to put theory into practice by undertaking his First Solo Flight in Thruster G CGFZ. Congratulations Mark.

Professional Racing Motor Sports engineer Keith Thompson has an almost encyclopedic knowledge of engines and  mechanical systems  so the Microlight Technical exam was a piece of cake for him . On 28th December Keith also proved that he has the skills to operate all the systems on Thruster G CGFZ  to achieve his First Solo  flight after just 10 hours of instruction. Congratulations Keith .