A WITCHFORD teenager who developed a love of flying from his computer flight simulator has earned his pilot s licence just days after his 17th birthday. Roger Goetze, of Grunty Fen Road, began flying at the age of only 13 and made his first solo flight on

A WITCHFORD teenager who developed a love of flying from his computer flight simulator has earned his pilot's licence just days after his 17th birthday.

Roger Goetze, of Grunty Fen Road, began flying at the age of only 13 and made his first solo flight on his sixteenth birthday.

Now he wants to become a commercial pilot flying giant 737s.

His ambition to gain his pilot's licence came after he spent hours on his home computer flight simulator.

His father, Roger, asked him jokingly if he wanted a trial lesson and he was hooked.

Now after 45 hours of lessons and 12 hours flying solo, Roger, an A-level student at Hills Road Sixth Form College is planning to take his family on a flight as soon as he receives his new licence.

"Flying gave Roger an interest, and his school lessons such as maths and geography, could suddenly be applied to something," said his father.

"The defining moment was when he was 16 and he flew solo for the first time. It was quite a windy day and it was terrifying. But since then we have got used to it."

During his spare time, Roger, works at Cambridge Airport, where he took his flying lessons with the Mid Anglia School of Flying, and he wants to go to university to study aeronautical engineering."

In the meantime he has another driving ambition - to get his licence to go out on the road.