Care home resident takes to the air 20 years after last flying a plane
EXCLUSIVE: Widower Chris Riggs has not flown a plane in 20 years but now he's relived his youth with an aerial jaunt over Gloucestershire.
An 80-year-old care home patient 'reached for the skies' to relive his youth as a pilot, 20 years after last flying a plane. Widower Chris Riggs, 80, spent his career working as a finance director. At the age of just 40, he decided to pursue his love of flying and, in the 1980s, secured a pilot licence at Bristol University Flying School.
This sparked a love for the skies, and for many years, he flew a single-engine plane, with his favourite destination being around the Severn Bridge. But he last flew a plane 20 years ago in 2005, and now a resident at Care UK’s Ladden View in Yate, near Bristol, he told staff of his one-time hobby in the clouds.
READ MORE: Bride's incredible gesture after grandad was too frail to make it to her wedding
READ MORE: Care home friends celebrating combined 204th birthday share secret to long life
With the help of Gloucestershire Airport, the Care UK staff took him on a day out, where he got behind the controls of a Robin DR400 plane and soared into the skies once more.
Upon landing, Chris was thrilled and told us, "It was completely breathtaking, memorable and felt like utter freedom!"
He added: "It really was magical. For those few brief moments, I felt on top of the world! This feeling will stick with me for the rest of my life, it was one unforgettable memory."
The widower - married to his late wife Julie for 20 years after they wed in the 1960s - has one daughter, Louise, and three stepchildren, Pauline, Caroline and David. He is also the proud grandfather of Annabelle and Emily.
He currently has a partner, Theresa, and they have been together for 30 years, with friends and family on the ground watching with excitement as he soared over their heads.
After his trip into the air, Sarah Daly, home manager at Ladden View, said: "We’re passionate about helping residents lead rewarding lives.
"So when Chris expressed his desire to fly a plane again, we knew we had to make his dream a reality.
"It was lovely to see Chris reconnect with something he enjoys and has such fond memories of. He was truly in his element.
"We’d like to say a massive thank you to the team at Cotswold Aero Club for making Chris’s wish come true."
