When Lichfield Mercury reporter Phil Barnett was offered the chance to take his career to new heights and try microlighting, he jumped at the chance.

And with the help of Lichfield’s Microlight School, he was soon flying one thousand feet in the air gazing down on the cathedral city.

Phil took to the skies in two different aircrafts, whetting his appetite in a small aeroplane, with ‘fixed’ wings before trying out a kind of hang glider with ‘flexible’ wings.

He said: “Surprisingly, I wasn’t nervous as I headed towards the small plane for our first flight.

“The fixed wing trip was both pleasant and enjoyable, and I was able to survey the vast fields and quaint city below.

“My second flight, however, was amazing.”

“As we ascended towards the sunshine and over the A38 towards Lichfield in the ‘flimsy’ flex-wing it was a completely different experience.

“It was more exhilarating, being out in the open, with only two metal bars and a piece of canvass with a small seatbelt holding me in place, as opposed to being ‘securely’ inside a cockpit in a fixed wing craft.”

Skimming past the clouds and flying high, Phil was able to watch the world go by.

He said: “The view of Lichfield with the sun shining was breathtaking, as were the miles and miles of fields stretching into the distance towards Cannock Chase.

“Microlighting was a fantastic and thoroughly enjoyable experience, but until toll roads become common practice, I think I’ll stick to driving.”

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