One can barely describe the feeling that comes when one takes to the sky for a flight in an aeroplane.<\/p>\n
One word to describe it is amazing!<\/p>
And this was the consensus of the 104 senior citizens and 20 caregivers who were treated to a flight as part of the Elderly Flight Event at Rand Airport, last Saturday.<\/p>\n
The day was spearheaded by Felix Gosher and a dedicated team that included Ana Luis, Sue Smit, Sarah Saffy, Michelle Prevot, Nicole Olivier, Caylee Oosthuizen, Menno Parsons, Flippie Vermeulen, Ian Stevens and the Harvard Caf\u00e9.<\/p>
\u201cThe organisers of the Children\u2019s Flight Event came together to start a new project to fly the elderly in a similar manner to how the children were flown in September,\u201d said Gosher.<\/p>\n
When asked what the aim of the event was and why the team had decided to host it he said, \u201cIn the spirit of Ubuntu pilots and sponsors came together to treat underprivileged senior citizens selected to have their first ever flying experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
The elderly, who came from across Gauteng, were selected by the Acorn Foundation, on the criteria that they were older than 60 years old and had either never flown before or were in a life situation where the flight would be a welcome source of upliftment.<\/p>\n
They took to the sky in a selection of classic aircrafts including a Dakota McDonnel Douglas DC3, a Beechcraft 18, a Bell 205 Huey helicopter, a North American P-51 Mustang known as \u201cMustang Sally\u201d, a Tiger Moth, an Alouette II and III, a Robinson R44 and R66, a Cessna 210 and 172, a Cirrus, a Scheiber SF25 motorised glider, a Y018 gyrocopter and three Pitts Specials.<\/p>\n