Teenager's airline faces delays

The 19-year-old has set up airline Alpha One Airways

A teenager who hoped to follow in the footsteps of his hero Richard Branson by launching his own airline has been forced to postpone flights by a month.

The maiden flight for Martin Halstead's Alpha One Airways left Southampton on 7 November, bound for the Isle of Man.

But now "delays in pilot training and administration" mean that scheduled flights will not start until December.

Mr Halstead, 19, from Oxfordshire, had planned to operate between Oxford and Cambridge, but then scrapped the route.

Readying this airline to process bookings has proved to be a far more lengthy and complicated process than first envisioned Martin Halstead

Due to problems with the airline's website, customers will now book flights from a call centre.

The teenager admitted that setting up the airline was much more difficult than he had imagined.

"Readying this airline to process bookings has proved to be a far more lengthy and complicated process than first envisioned," he said.

Trained pilot

"Our finance, backing and AOC (Air Operator Certificate) is firmly in place and I would like to thank everyone for their patience and support. The public response has been overwhelming."

Mr Halstead, who secured an air transport licence at the Oxford Air Training School aged 18, is convinced that, despite the sceptics, he will succeed.

Educated at Abingdon School in Oxfordshire, Mr Halstead gave up his A-levels in 2003 to pursue a pilot's career.

He said scheduled flights will begin on 14 December, initially with twice daily flights from the Isle of Man to Edinburgh, to be followed early in the New Year with services between the Isle of Man, Southampton and Cardiff International.