Aerobility Flies Veteran Pilot at Duxford

MEMORIES flooded back for Second World War pilot William Hands when he took to the skies above the Imperial War Museum, during our recent flying event at Duxford.

William, 88, who also flew in action during the Korean War, said: “Flying again was great; it was easier to get in and out of the aircraft than I had expected.

“However, I would have liked to have done some aerobatics during the flight!

“The icing on the cake was going around the museum and seeing so many of the planes I had flown in during service.”

During the Roadshow at the Imperial War Museum, William viewed 19 of the 23 aircraft he had piloted including a Sea Fury, a plane he flew during the Korean War.

First Solo of the Year at Blackbushe

Steven "Monty" Monteith made a little bit of Aerobility history when he completed his first solo at Blackbushe recently. Our first this year.

Monty, who is sponsored by Battle Back, is pictured being congratulated by his instructor James Brown. We look forward to the celebrations when he completes his course; a great effort.

Support from Kent Strut

Gary Smith and John Dean from the Kent Strut of the LAA flew into Blackbushe on Tuesday to present us with a cheque for money raised by BBQ's, a Fly-in, Raffle and other fund raising activities

Many thanks to all at the Strut for your support, good to know the LAA community are behind us.

Happy Christmas

The office at Blackbushe will reopen on Tuesday 3rd January 2012.

A very Happy Christmas and Best Wishes for the New Year from all of us at Aerobility.

Aerobility and NATS Fly the Flag Together

Aerobility were recently invited to the NATS (National Air Traffic Service) Corporate & Technical Centre Charity Christmas Fayre.

As NATS chosen charity of the year, this was an opportunity for us to further the Aerobility message to NATS staff. We were most impressed by the level of awareness and enthusiasm shown by everyone, and are really looking forward to next year’s Big Push and other events that our friends at NATS will be holding in support of Aerobility.

Congratulations Simon on completing your PPL

'Wow - I have finally passed my PPL!  Never thought I can pass all the exams. Firstly, I would like to thanks Aerobility to allow my dream to come true.  Also a big thank you to Mike Owen for his guidance and advice throughout the whole course.  Now my next step is to complete my ATPL and hoping one day I will become a commercial pilot.'

Aviators Ball auction prize becomes global news

Sky News

Daily Mail

More Prizes for the Ball Auction

Aerobility supporter Darren Thompson popped in to see us today, and while he was here at Blackbushe donated some more fantastic prizes to be auctioned at the Ball. Darren, who works at Odiham, generously brought along a Flying suit as worn by the Army Apache Display Team, and other Apache memorabilia.

The Aviator’s Ball 2011 targets £100,000 for Aerobility

The event is the fifth Aviator’s Ball, the target is £100,000 for the Aerobility disabled flyer’s charity, and it’s time to book your tickets.

This fabulous fundraising night – this year on Saturday 26^th November - has become the definitive end-of-season event in the aviation social calendar, providing a glorious evening of top class entertainment, dining and dancing.

And the prizes being auctioned at this year’s Ball are finer than ever – including a stunning package of flying experiences for two hosted by Breitling in Switzerland as the showpiece of a range to suit all tastes and wallets.

Guests can bid on a host of flying experiences, goodies from the Red Arrows and others, and aviation days out. Maybe tea at the House of Lords with paralympic champion Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson is more your sort of thing, or a private ladies’ shopping trip at a high-class lingerie shop.

Last year’s Ball, attended by more than 400 people, raised some £82,000 for Aerobility, and the £100,000 target this year would make it realistic for the charity to begin the renewal of its ageing aircraft fleet with a brand new Piper Archer.

Mike Miller-Smith, CEO of Aerobility, says:

“The four second-hand aircraft that we currently operate are becoming more and more expensive to run due to increased maintenance costs in particular. A new aircraft would cut costs and improve reliability.

“The Aviator’s Ball is our biggest single fund-raising exercise each year. It’s a wonderful night for everyone, and both sponsors and guests will know that they have made a serious contribution to keeping disabled fliers in the air.”

Once again the black-tie event is being held at the luxury Sofitel Hotel at Heathrow Terminal 5 where an overnight accommodation package with breakfast is on offer to Ball guests for just £95+VAT.

Ball tickets are £90 and include arrival drinks and canapes, gourmet three-course dinner with wine, coffee/tea and chocolates plus the auction, live band for dancing and additional entertainment. Tables of ten are discounted to £810.

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Press Office: Singleton PR

+44 (0)844 822 1658

info@singletonpr.com

Supporter to run New York Marathon

Aerobility supporter Dale Acton intends to run the New York Marathon on 6th November and seeks further sponsors in his quest to raise funds for us.

Dale says: "As an avid trainee private pilot, choosing to raise money for Aerobility was an easy decision to make. For me there is no greater feeling than being up in amongst the clouds and being able to help give those less fortunate than me the opportunity to experience flying a plane is a privilege"

Please support Dale and Aerobility by registering your support on http://www.justgiving.com/Dale-Acton
Best of luck Dale and thanks for you support.

Jim's Marathon Success!

It was great to hear that Aerobility supporter Jim Pritchard successfully completed the Amsterdam Marathon in 4 hours 24 min. Many congratulations Jim and we hope that you are not to sore today!

Jim's run has a fundraising page on Justgiving – it's not too late to visit http://www.justgiving.com/jim-pritchard and lend your support.

Air traffic controllers’ Big Pull to give disabled flying charity a huge push

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 3^rd 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 and to grow the Aerobility family into an even more effective social project. It’s wonderful to get this kind of support from inside the aviation community, working with both the employer and employees that manage the skies above us. It would be hard to find a more fitting partnership.”

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Press Office: Singleton PR

+44 (0)844 822 1658

info@singletonpr.com