Boy gets to be pilot for a day

By Doug Warner, NEWS 9

He has been beating the medical odds for his entire life. At just five-days-old, Colton Weathers underwent his first surgery. Now at age 13, Weathers is about to undergo open-heart surgery for what he hopes is the last time.

"Hopefully this will be my last," he said.

Colton suffers from a serious heart defect and this latest surgery is to repair a leaking aortic valve.

"It's the hardest thing we've ever had to do in our lives," his father Jeff Weathers said.

But Colton is already looking towards the future and visited with the Navy just hours before his surgery.  

"I think it's fantastic to open it up, the airplane, to see what we do here," said Cmdr. Dennis Warren of the VQ-7 squadron at Tinker Air Force Base.

Colton, along with two other patients at The Children's Hospital at the OU Medical Center. were picked for "Pilot for a Day" at the Navy facility at Tinker. They were allowed inside a flight simulator to see what it feels like to fly a real Navy aircraft.

"It's awesome. Wish i could do it someday." Colton said.

We'll keep you updated on Colton's condition and his surgery.