Sean, 16, on cloud nine after solo flight

HE’S not old enough to drive a car but the sky has no limits for this Junior Cert student – having just completed his first solo flight.

Sixteen-year-old Sean Hegarty fell in love with the freedom of the skies when he accompanied his dad on an hour-long flying lesson that he and his siblings had bought him for Christmas.

That was three years ago and, since then, Shane has got his student pilot licence (SPL) and clocked up 14 hours of flying from Cork Airport.