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Wish fulfilled: 93-year-old in Scotland flies Cessna
Betty Buckland aboard the Cessna. photo
© Care Uk/Neil Hanna/PA Media/dpa
An initiative in Scotland grants wishes from residents of old people’s homes. 93-year-old Betty Buckland wanted to fly again herself – and then beamed from ear to ear.
Sitting at the controls one more time: at the age of 93, Betty Buckland’s dream came true. The Edinburgh senior was allowed to fly over Scotland in a Cessna, assisted by pilot Andrew Reid, the PA news agency reported.
The experience of flying at around 150 miles per hour at 2,000 feet was “exciting” and “brought back so many great memories,” Buckland said afterwards. “It was a beautiful day and we had a fantastic view of The Kelpies at Falkirk.” The well-known sculpture shows two water spirits in horse form.
It wasn’t the first time Buckland had piloted an airplane. For many years she used to spend summer vacations with a cousin in the USA who was a pilot and let her pilot his Piper PA-28 on and off.
Now, on March 23, the 93-year-old took off from Kirknewton Air Force Base, south-west of Edinburgh, as part of Care UK’s Wishing Tree initiative, which grants wishes to residents of old people’s homes. The brisk flight seemed to be a success: after landing, Buckland appeared with a beaming smile.