Type of flights we fly

Each geographic region has slightly different flights and qualifications but the list below gives you an idea of our flights. We help everyone… from the unborn (up to five months gestation) to the elderly. Every request is either flown or referred.

Medical

Needs of Patients that are traveling to and from medical appointments might include:

• Medical Evaluation
• Participation in a clinical trial
• Treatment
• Follow-Up Care

Compassion

• Wounded veterans
• Non-medical passengers traveling for compelling reasons such as being a care giver (travel to/from patient), or attending a function that would otherwise be impossible (medical conference for instance)

Transplant

These flights are coordinated in advance and are often flown in the middle of the night.

• Passengers receiving organs
• We do not fly organs
• Non-urgent transplant flights fall under Medical Flights

Domestic Abuse

• Relocating families from one safe haven shelter to another
• Referrals must be coordinated with a Shelter Director or Case Worker

Adoption/Foster Care

• Agency personnel or potential parents must accompany children.
• Travel for monitored visitation
• Travel for placement

Disaster response

Our member organizations are First Responders. Flights support natural or man-made disasters.

• Partnering with Homeland Security
• Flying survivors out of danger
• Flying survivors to/from shelters
• Flying relief personnel into disaster areas
• Flying small supplies into disaster areas (these can be flown by pilots with less than 250 PIC and/or those who only fly experimental aircraft)

In all cases, pilots are required to obtain signed waivers from passengers, file a report after each flight and report personal expenses for purposes of tax write-off.

Flights we don’t fly

Sorry, we can’t help with these:

• If you can afford a commercial ticket (unless there is a medical reason for not flying commercially)
• Funeral flights
• Relocations – transporting patients/passengers to their home or to family members, even when ill
• Flights over 1,000 nautical miles or under 100 (except for over water, or the driving distance is 150 miles or more)
• Flights to distant cities without a physician’s recommendation
• Not enough lead-time for a new patient
• Abuse victims without a shelter sponsor (you must go to a shelter first)
• Weight that exceeds the capacity of the aircraft seat and the aircraft available for the requested flight
• We cannot take a stretcher or adult wheelchairs (child’s wheelchair may be permissible if it will fold and fit in the plane)
• Passengers who can’t step up 18 inches on their own
• Passengers who can not sit upright for the duration of the flight
• Patients whose doctor cannot provide us a medical release or have determined that it is unsafe for their patient to fly
• Passengers who get airsick or have fear of heights
• Patients who needs excessive medical equipment
• Patients who need medical staff during the flight
• Children without a car seat or approved safety restraint
• Passengers who do not have a backup plan. A lot can go wrong. Weather, sick pilots, broken aircraft. We may not be able to take your flight that day. It is imperative that you have a backup plan in case something goes wrong.