Andrew Hamm started flying lessons at 13, flew solo at 17 and remains unwavering in his quest for a career in the skies.

Hamm, a Rochester native, is a junior at the Daytona Beach, Fla. campus of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world’s largest university specializing in aviation and aerospace.

He’s dreamed of becoming a pilot since kindergarten. He had to rely, however, on computer simulators to give him the experience of flying until he took his first piloting lesson at age 13 at Capital Aircraft in Springfield.

He also volunteered at the Air Combat Museum at Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport, where he cleaned fighter planes. He was a cadet member of the Civil Air Patrol, and is now a senior member of that organization.

At age 15, Hamm flew solo in a glider plane. He topped 3,000 feet and flew for about 18 minutes. The next week, he soloed twice more.

He began concentrating solely on powered aircraft between his junior and senior years at Rochester High School and obtained his pilot’s license that summer. He graduated from Rochester in 2005.

Flight was his life.

“It’s a passion,” he said.

Embry-Riddle has residential campuses in Daytona Beach and Prescott, Ariz., and more than 130 other centers worldwide.

“It’s informally called the Harvard of the aviation community,” said Andrew’s father, John Hamm. “We visited several programs, but he decided on Embry-Riddle as soon as we went there. They’re very good at what they do.”

One of every four airline pilots is from Embry-Riddle, the elder Hamm said.

Andrew recently completed his multi-engine rating check ride and also has instrument and commercial ratings. He is working on his certified flight instructor rating, and may become an instructor at the school during his senior year. Embry-Riddle is known for using qualified senior students as instructors, John Hamm said.

Andrew also has been selected to be among three students who will take part in special simulator research to help determine how well the new Diamond DA-42 twin-engine aircraft performs in training compared to older twin engines.

“We’ve started to do some of the work, and I’m in that group for right now,” Andrew said. “But they want people in that before they complete their multi-engine rating, and I’ve already got that,” he said.

As for his future, Andrew knows only that it will involve aircraft and flying. When he graduates, he’ll have a degree in aeronautical science with a specialty toward being an airline pilot.

“I’m keeping it open,” he said. “I’m looking into the airlines. Embry-Riddle has a lot of classes aimed at that.”

Chris Dettro can be reached at 788-1510.