BUDDING pilot Hassan Imtiaz is flying high after taking one step closer to achieving his dream of becoming a commercial pilot.

The 19-year-old, from Brierfield, has an interview later this month which could see him take up a place at Qatar Airways flight school.

MORE TOP STORIES:

The former Nelson and Colne College student became one of the youngest people in Lancashire to obtain a Private Pilot Licence last June - less than a month after turning 18.

Now the teenager, from Sycamore Rise, is preparing for his biggest challenge to date as he gets ready to undergo his class one airline pilot testing.

His father, Zaheer, said: “He’s got an interview with the airline later this month for a cadetship with Qatar. At the moment he is just working with me having finished college.

“If he gets into the pilots’ school he will be based in Southampton but could end up training in the United States or New Zealand. It depends where they send him.

“It’s a very exciting time.”

Currently, the former Nelson and Colne College student can fly a single-engine aircraft privately, on his own, with up to six passengers.

He will take a medical test in February 2015, and from there he should soon take up his place at flight school.