TEENAGER Alice Clarke might be too young to drive on the roads, but she can now command the skies.

The 16-year-old Wootton Bassett School pupil has qualified as a solo pilot of a light aircraft, months before being allowed to take a driving test on the road.

Alice, who lives with her parents and sister at Broad Town, and is currently taking her GCSE exams, was thrilled to pass her course with flying colours.

When she is 17, in September, she can officially captain the aircraft, and take a passenger aloft.

Her 11-year-old sister Hannah, a Year 7 pupil, is eager to be the first.

Alice set her sights on learning to fly after a holiday pleasure trip in a microlight in 2009.

She said: “I just knew this was something I wanted to do.”

Her parents Bo and Sarah were extremely supportive and Alice embarked on a flying training course at Clench Common, near Marlborough, early in 2010.

After 20 hours’ training, she made her first solo flight in a C42 aircraft in March this year.

“I didn’t know I was going solo that day.

“I knew I was close, but I thought it would be a normal lesson.

“After 50 minutes we landed, and my instructor, Dave Cox, got out and said ‘Right – you are off on your own now – I’m on the end of the radio.’ “So I went through the take-off checks and flew the aircraft round the circuit.”

Recently, she was thrilled to fly over Broad Town, on the day when her dad Bob, an archaeologist and historian, led a team of volunteers in restoring the village’s White Horse.

Her mother organised refreshments, and Alice enjoyed a wonderful bird’s eye view of the well known landmark.

The family is very proud of her achievements.

“The whole experience has been very confidence-building, and rewarding for us all,” her father said.

Alice, who aims to join Wootton Bassett Sixth Form this autumn, hopes to go on to university and is keen to have a flying career in the Royal Navy.