A PILOT from Padgate who was made redundant twice in 15 months admits the heartache of losing his jobs left him 'grieving'.

Matt McKay, 36, first lost his job as a senior first officer with Thomas Cook when the airline went bust in September last year.

He was lucky enough to secure work with Greek carrier Aegean Airlines – only for that job to disappear after just three days when the coronavirus crisis hit.

The dad-of-one has since turned to the security industry to pay the bills, and predicts his former industry won’t return to 'normal' for at least three years.

Talking about losing his piloting job, Matt recalled: "You go through this bereavement stage, that’s the only way I can explain it.

"Talking to ex-colleagues, many of them have taken driving and delivery jobs – work that is completely irrelevant to their skill set.

"Everybody is looking at the huge number of aircraft parked up and not flying, thinking it will come back at some point.

"But that could take a while.

"I think pilots will possibly have to operate on a part-time basis for the next few years and have other jobs on the side to make up the shortfall.

"The lockdowns we’ve all experienced this year, and the working from home situation that has come as a result, has made people realise they don’t need quite as much as they thought.

"We have to learn a new way of working in this new normal and be ever more considerate of people and the environment."

While Matt hopes one day to get back to the skies, he’s now developing a security business using thermal imaging drones, drawing on his security experience during his time at university.

He now wants to offer his services to numerous sectors, including construction, surveillance and search and rescue.

Matt booked a three-day course in Closed-circuit Television (CCTV) with Get Licensed, a booking agency for security training and staffing.

"I wanted to make sure I can tick all the boxes when it comes to surveillance so I can say, ‘Here’s my certificate for this, here’s my certificate for that’ – to prove I’m competent in what I’m doing," Matt explained.

"I’m a category one thermographer now, so I can utilise a thermal imaging camera.

"I have the CCTV qualification which allows me to do public area surveillance."

Shahzad Ali, chief executive of Get Licensed, said Matt is just one of a growing number of people who have left careers in industries such as hospitality, airlines and marketing to pursue opportunities in security.

He said: "Demand for security and safety provision is surging at an ever-increasing rate.

"Since we first launched we have seen a phenomenal increase in demand for properly trained staff – and since the start of the pandemic, enquiries have gone through the roof.

"We’ve had pilots retrain and even small business owners, who’ve seen their livelihoods disappear due to the tough restrictions in place for most of the year, take up a new career.

"You can understand why - just look at the extra security staff in shops and supermarkets, for example.

"There is a real need for their presence to ensure the public are keeping each other safe by adhering to social distancing and mask wearing.

"There has never been a time where security personnel have been needed as much as they are now."

For more information, visit get-licensed.co.uk.