Paralysed Devon pilot becomes flying instructor

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Paralysed man is plane instructor

A man from Devon who has been paralysed from the waist down since the age of two has qualified as a microlight flying instructor.

Ben Goodridge, 32, from Totnes, was paralysed when he was hit by a car.

He said his condition had inspired him to challenge himself and now wants to encourage and teach other people with disabilities to fly.

He gained his private pilot's licence when he was 18 and wants to build a career using his latest achievement.

'Absolute dream'

Ben said he could not have done it without the support of his family and his instructors, but those involved in his training said it was mainly him just motivating himself.

Jim Greenshields, of Somerset Microlights, said: "All we've done is push him in the right direction as and when needed. He did all the work."

Ben now hopes to build a career teaching other people with disabilities to fly because "if anything, that [his condition] is what inspired me to want to do more".

He said: "It gets me out of the chair and into the sky".

"Life's short and flying, to me, is a passion.

"To teach is the cherry on the cake and to potentially share that with other disabled people is an absolute dream."