It was the stuff dreams are made of. Plane enthusiast Lloyd Coulson, who suffers from a rare form of leukaemia, has his head firmly in the clouds when his dearest wish came true.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation made it possible for Lloyd, 12, of Basildon, to become a pilot for the day during a once-in-a-lifetime visit to RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk.

He was taken to visit the Lancaster Bomber, used by the RAF in the Second World War and was made an honorary lieutenant in the US air force.

Lloyd was accompanied by his parents, sister and brother during the tour of the base.

He said: "I love planes and this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. We had a wonderful day and I am really grateful to the USAF for organising the day for us."

During the morning Lloyd and his family were taken on a tour of several aircraft at RAF Mildenhall and treated to lunch.

The afternoon was spent training on a firearms training simulator and in a flight simulator. While at the base he was also told his wish to appear in Robot Wars will be granted during the summer.

Make-A-Wish trustee Ernita Beasley said: " We were delighted when the USAF at Mildenhall agreed that Lloyd and his family could visit them at the base. As he loves aircraft, it was a super way to treat him while he waits to appear in Robot Wars."

Published Tuesday, June 3, 2003

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