Hucknall vet achieves his dream of first solo Spitfire flight
The sky's the limit for retired Hucknall vet Graham Oliver, who has now achieved a long-standing ambition.
Graham, aged 61, has just completed his first solo flight in the World War Two Spitfire, which he owns.
After a small circuit flight, he piloted the aircraft from Leeds to Nottinghamshire and then back again.
The Spitfire, which Graham now keeps at Royal Air Force Church Fenton in North Yorkshire, completed 65 missions during WWII before crash-landing on a field.
It has now been painstakingly restored to peak condition.
Graham said the milestone solo flight was an exhilarating experience, adding it felt ‘strange to be alone in the cockpit without hearing his instructor's voice’ but he 'enjoyed the peace and quiet.'
He continued that the most testing parts of the flight were taking off and landing, when he had to rely on peripheral vision to judge where he was going.
Reducing his speed for the landing was also challenging.
Two months ago Graham and his co-pilot, Matt Jones, took part with the Spitfire in display flights to mark the 80th anniversary commemoration of D-Day on the Normandy coast.
Graham's aircraft was one of two Spitfires which crossed the English Channel from the south coast to Cherbourg, together with two US Mustangs and a Hurricane, where they joined up with numerous other wartime military aircraft to take off in formations for the special flights over Normandy.
Earlier this year Graham retired from his Hucknall veterinary practices, East Midlands Referrals and Buckley House.
The two establishments are now owned by international veterinary care providers Medivet.