PREPARING to take life a little easier - when he is not flying through the air, is 64-year-old grandfather Percy Moss.

After a long and colourful career, which has taken him all over the world, he has decided to retire.

For the past 14 years he has been transport manager for North Yorkshire County Council, where his responsibilities have included running the fleet of vehicles which keep the county's roads clear of snow and ice each winter.

Before that, his many jobs included nine years in the Colonial Police, in Africa, and his time as a National Serviceman saw him in the Middle-East.

However the great passion of his life has been flying and in 1990 he was awarded an MBE for his services to air safety, in particular developing a safety rig for testing the wings of microlites and hang-gliders.

In retirement he is determined to take things a lot easier than he has in the past, but the flying bug has still got him firmly in its grasp.

"I intend to keep flying my microlite for as long as I possibly can - and when I can no longer do that I'll be going back to my childhood hobby which started it all, flying model aircraft," he said.