High Flying Councillor a step closer to full license!

Kingsway Councillor Mark Birkett is closer to achieving his personal ambition of a full Commercial Pilot's License after completing a 'Night Flying Course" Mark, who spends most of his time on his crusade to clean up Buersil, Newbold and Kingsway has been keeping his high flying ambitions to himself but is aiming to achieve his full commercial pilot's license later this year. The rating he received has moved this ambition on even further and he is delighted with the outcome now being able to fly a single-engine aircraft at night.

Mark said, ""Flying at night really is a very magical experience. And it's surprisingly easy and inexpensive to learn to fly a light aircraft; I'd recommend it to anyone. It certainly helps to put the day-to-day stresses of councillor work into some perspective! This is an ambition I have pursuing for a number of years and I am delighted to have passed another step along the way. I have been studying for a while now and it's a fascinating experience. I've been working hard with local residents in Buersil, Kingsway and Newbold for some time and look forward to the day I can take to the sky to see the environmental improvements we are achieving."

Mark has done much of his training at the Stapleford Flight Centre in London but has also been busy in his role as a Councillor in Rochdale. He said, "Since being elected in May, I have been busy on the Council and flying front. I enjoy my role alongside Councillor David Clayton whose experience has been invaluable. I have helped set up a number of community groups in the Kingsway Ward and I am aiming to set up more so that local people can have more of a say in their local community. I have also been inundated with complaints over crime, anti-social behaviour, the cuts at our Infirmary and much, much more. In fact I was studying for my last set of pilot exams last month when a resident called about rubbish being dumped in the ward. I got straight onto the Council and the problem was sorted within 24 hours. Now if that's not what you call FLY-tipping I don't know what is!"