Angel Flight East Kootenay is alive and is looking for support from local business and professional pilots who can help establish the service. Angel Flight will fly fully ambulatory cancer patients, children and their parents to treatment centres in Kelowna and Vancouver. They will fly in light aircraft with volunteer pilots from Sparwood, Elk Valley Airport and Cranbrook International Airport. This service will provide some needed relief from Alberta’s medial services not being readily available to BC patients
Angel Flight East Kootenay is approved by both Transport Canada and the Canadian Transportation Agency and will operate within the current aviation regulations. They are an entirely volunteer-led organization with no paid employees. Their pilots are experienced and volunteer their time away from work and their families.
Each flight is planned based on the individual requirements of the patient, their appointment times and the time necessary to get to the treatment facility. They usually require a minimum of 72 hrs notice to arrange for the flight. Weather conditions such as fog and high winds can delay or ground flights. Therefore you are requested to have a back-up plan to get yourself to your appointment should they be unable to fly.
As their aircraft are small, passengers must be able to climb onto the wing of the plane and then down into the cockpit with little or no assistance. They do not provide flights for any person who is wheelchair dependent, has a communicable illness or who requires medical assistance in flight. Passengers must limit the amount/weight of their luggage and are asked to use soft “duffle like” bags. In most cases walkers and stroller will not fit into our planes. Passengers must wear closed-toe shoes (no sandals) and are requested to wear pants.
Moving forward they hope to have flights operated from other airports in the Kootenays and more volunteer professional pilots will be recruited as demand for flights increases.
To help support Angel Service East Kootenay contact AngelFlightEK@gmail.com.
