During my pilot training days, I felt alive and felt a sense of freedom, of being liberated. I started to have new dreams and visualise my future where I wanted to help change peoples lives, if not try and change the world. After reading about Freedom in the Air, Vivian Fiore from Rotary International’s office in Chicago found me and gave me the leadership that I was looking for in polio eradication. Using my skills, contacts and drive instilled from the music industry, I volunteered to support Rotary International’s campaign to eradicate Polio from India.
I was invited to go to India and take part in a National Immunization Day with Rotarians. This was going to be very special for me. Before leaving for India, I did as much research as possible as to what I should expect. For 20 years so many people have worked tirelessly behind the scenes to develop the immunization campaign. I would spend the time I had in India in Moradabad. This was where I took part in the eradication programme in Moradabad in Utter Pradesh, both on the static booth day and the house-to-house day. The following film captures my first experience in the world largest public health campaign.
I met with UNICEF, WHO, and the local government. It was completely overwhelming to understand the amazing work of the partner organizations. UNICEF who Continue reading ‘Thanks for Life : World largest Public health campaign’
On May 9th 2010, I will be doing a wing walk to help raise awareness for Freedom in the Air, in particular for the Freedom Wings project. Freedom Wings is a wonderful opportunity to introduce disadvantaged or disabled youngsters to the freedom experienced in the air. A day in a light aircraft, safely taking control of the plane for a short time is a life-changing experience and enables young people to feel that they can reach for the skies and achieve virtually anything.
“Freedom in the Air allows people with disabilities to push back boundaries and experiences something that they could never have imagined. The freedom of flight has really transformed people’s thoughts and opinions and changed attitudes towards those with a disability”
Mick Dhillon, Chief Executive, The Disability Resource Centre.
Flying is one of the few activities where disabled people can participate to the same degree as an able-bodied person. The exhilarating experience rebuilds confidence and restores self-esteem. This, in turn, empowers people to explore their potential by extending their personal boundaries. In the air, we all fly at the same speed; nobody is disadvantaged or disabled.
The ten young participants, come from a variety of organizations (such as PHAB club, the Autistic Society, Barnardos, the Disability Resource Centre, the Young Carers Association and so on) will learn all about being a pilot, before having their own private 20 minute experience flight in a light aircraft with family members, where – if they wish – they can take control of the aircraft. Continue reading ‘Freedom Wing walk: May 9th 2010 at Damyns Hall Aerodrome, Essex’
Vikramshila Education Resource Society is a non profit non governmental organization working in the area of education with the mission of “making quality education a reality for all children”.
They asked me if I would visit schools project that they run whilst I was in Kolkata during Full Circle photographic show that UNICEF hosted. Those few days were some of my most brilliant days. Meeting fresh face youngsters and giving them the gift of imagination. We showed the groups a video show reel of the different activities that I get up to, from photography to polio eradication, flying to rock n roll, to sky diving and so on. At the end of the film, they asked me lots of questions.
Tess Burrows is one of the most remarkable people in the World. She is a Author, Mountaineer, campaigner for Peace and runs Climb for Tibet. The main focus of ‘Climb For Tibet’ is to assist the harmony of the world by collecting pledges for the environment and messages of peace plus raising money to build much needed schools in Tibet. Tess Burrows has become the first Grandmother in the World to complete and finish the Amundsen Omega 3 race to the south pole. We spoke to her about her amazing journey across the South Pole. Her 2 books are available to buy from her website.
The South Pole Race (www.thesouthpolerace.com) is a race to the Geographic South Pole in Continue reading ‘Questions in the Air: Tess Burrows, Climb for Tibet’
filmed February 21, 2010 at BBC Centre, Wood Land, London.
I have learnt so much this week that my head hurts. I have had a master of a tutor.
I took my ground exam and passed with 92%. I have flown through heavy rain, strong winds, heavy cross winds and feel so much better for the learnership. I know the training has helped to make me a much safer and better pilot. Here are some video i found on utube that help to explain some of the things i have had to master. Then put them all together to fly a standard instrument departure (SID), an enroute section in IMC conditions, through controlled airspace, do all the radio work, then descent from altitude, then go into a hold procedure, and then fly a Instrument arrival procedure (IAF) and land off it to minimums..wow….
IMC flying
Shri Kanti Ganguly, Minister in Charge Department of Sundarban Affairs, Sports and Youth Services Government of West Bengal has set up Prantibhandi Village. It is a small village of education facilities, nursing training, a garment factory – all to support and help young people and their families who have a wide range of disabilities. I was very proud to have been invited to speak at a rally to 15,000 people on 3rd December, the UN day to promote rights for people with disabilities. The event was organised by Shri Kanti Ganguly. It was one of the very few NGO’s in Kolkata that is run mostly by people who have disabilities.
Various news footage of Full Circle Photographic show, Kolkata, India Nov-Dec 2009
A 30 mins current affairs discussion show with Moupia interviewing Gautam Lewis in West Bengal called Spotlight. The show is broadcast on 24 Ghanta – a 24 hour news channel. The areas of discussion include Full Circle exhibition to raise awareness for polio eradication and flying.
The team at Cranfield University have prototyped their designs of hand controllers for the PA28 and the C172 for pilots with lower limb disabilities. I took one of the designers flying in the C172 so that he could experience, how the Union Aviation hand controller works. Along with the Union, the Vision air and the Blackwood are approved for the PA28 in the UK. This video shows installation, taxi, and a few touch and go’s with a crosswind from the right before going for a local flight around Bedfordshire.
click below image for a larger view of the Union controller. To see how the Vision air controller works for the PA28, follow this link….Vision Air hand control – PA28
Part 1
Part 2
PASSPORT FROM POLIO has been scheduled to TX on Al Jazeera English on February 3rd 2009
With the global repeat pattern, actual times in GMT are:
TUE 03 Feb 10:00, 19:00; WED 04 Feb 06:00, 14:00; THU 05 Feb 03:00
23 years ago British Music manager, photographer, pilot and polio survivor Gautam Lewis was adopted by a young dual national ( British / Irish ) volunteer worker from Mother Teresa’s orphanage in Kolkata and brought back to an affluent life in London.
‘Passport From Polio’ tells his extraordinary story and follows his emotional journey back to Kolkata to take part in India’s epic polio immunisation campaign and find out what his life would’ve been like had he stayed.
“Part of me thinks it’s brilliant that I had polio because the rest of my life wouldn’t have happened.”
Still dependent on crutches from his own battle with polio, Gautam Lewis is now an ambassador on behalf of Rotary International for the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. The battle to wipe polio from the face of the earth is the largest public health initiative the world has ever seen. If it fails, more than 10 million children will be paralyzed in the next 40 years.
Polio is a devastating disease that still exists in some parts of the world, despite an unprecedented global health campaign to get rid of it.
Children are particularly at risk and Indian-born Gautam Lewis was just one among many millions to contract the virus. Raised by Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity orphanage in Kolkata, his life might have remained one of grinding poverty – had he not been adopted at the age of seven and taken to live in privilege and comfort in Britain.
Twenty three years on, Gautam leaves his London home and returns to the country of his birth.
( if the more button below is not working, please click on the post title left of the video )
Continue reading ‘Passport from Polio; Al Jazeera English; Witness with Rageh Omaar’
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