It may be one of the slowest events ever to take place at the historic Goodwood motor racing circuit, but The Big Pull is set to bring rapid rewards to Aerobility, the British charity that facilitates light aviation for disabled and profoundly ill adults and children.
Teams of air traffic controllers and their managers aim to
raise a remarkable £100,000 towards the acquisition of a Piper Archer aircraft
for the charity which would be equipped with specific features to support
disabled fliers.
They will be sponsored to pull a vintage Second World War
aircraft on a course down the main straight at Goodwood after the air traffic
control officers’ branch of the union Prospect and the UK’s leading air traffic
services provider NATS came together to support Aerobility as their adopted
charity.
Aerobility will benefit from a series of fund-raising
projects and events organised by NATS and the controllers in the year ahead,
with The Big Pull on 3rd June 2012 as the highlight. The previous
evening there will be a gala dinner and charity auction at Goodwood House. Prospect
members can also opt to donate as much as an entire working shift’s pay with
tax benefits under a Gift a Shift scheme supported by NATS.
Last year through Aerobility 350 disabled people experienced
trial instructed flights, 15 disabled people went solo and five completed
either PPL or NPPL qualifications. These people had every conceivable disabling
condition from spinal injury, amputation and multiple sclerosis through to
learning and sensory disabilities. They ranged in age from 12 to 92 years old,
and in background from school children to wounded service personnel.
Prospect ATCOs’ branch officer, Mr Chris Edwards said:
“As an absolutely terrific aviation
charity, Aerobility is an obvious choice for us to direct our efforts towards.
The Big Pull will be a great challenge for everyone involved and we look
forward to beating the team of NATS executives who are taking part!
“We’re extremely grateful to the
management at Goodwood Aerodrome for supporting the event.”
NATS CEO Richard Deakin said:
“Aerobility has achieved a fantastic
amount already in getting so many people airborne who would otherwise find it
extremely difficult to experience the pleasures of flying an aircraft. It’s a
great pleasure to direct our fund-raising efforts at NATS towards helping
Aerobility move on to the next stage in its development.”
Aerobility CEO Mike Miller Smith said:
“Growing the organisation to meet
demand has not been easy in recent times. Working with NATS is going to give us
the ability to support more disabled people around the UK
-Ends-
Press
Office: Singleton PR
+44 (0)844 822 1658
info@singletonpr.com
