10 CHILDREN FROM BARNARDO’S AND THE GRANGE RESPITE CENTRE PREPARE FOR TAKE OFF
Date: Saturday 6 September 2008
Time: ( 12:30)
Venue: Barton Aerodrome, Liverpool Road, Eccles, Manchester, M30 7S
Event: Children from Barnardo’s Sure Start Centre and The Grange Respite Centre will be given the opportunity to fly in a plane at Barton Aerodrome.
Children from a Barnardo’s sure start centre and The Grange Respite Centre will have their heads in the clouds this weekend when they get a chance to find out first hand what it’s like to be a pilot.
6 children from Barnardo’s Woodhouse Park Sure Start Centre and 4 children from The Grange Respite Centre have been invited to take part in the Aviation Without Borders (AWB) and the Lancashire Aero Club’s (LAC) ‘Introduction to Aviation Day’ on 6 September 2008 at Barton Aerodrome.
Called Smiling Wings Day, the event will give the children aged between 10-15 years , the chance to experience a half hour flight in an aeroplane. Along with other invited guests, the children will be able to find out how helicopters and different types of aircraft work. They will be given a tour of the hangers, the airport as well as the control tower. There will also be a chance to meet experts from the fire and rescue services as well as the controllers in the tower.
The chairman of the Barton Aerodrome Heritage Society, John Coxon, will also give a guided tour of the Barton Aerodrome Museum.
The day has been organised by Gautam Lewis who is a volunteer for Aviation Without Borders. Gautam is a qualified pilot who has himself overcome significant childhood challenges. Having been abandoned as a baby in India after contracting polio, and cared for by Mother Theresa’s Missionaries of Charity, Gautam grew up with a determination to achieve in the face of adversity, which he is keen to share with the children.
Manager at Woodhouse Park Sure Start Children’s Centre, Deidre Lewis, said:
“It’s fantastic that the children have been given this opportunity to go up in a plane. It will be great fun for them as well as an amazing experience.”
Gautam Lewis from Aviation without Borders, said:
“flying an aeroplane is a great way of sharing the fantastic experiences that you can only see and enjoy through aviation. It’s a privilege to be able to introduce a young person to the freedom of flight and the boundless possibilities it offers up
So far this year, AWB has held events with The Scottish Aero club in Perth in April, Synergy Aviation at Fairoaks in May and Cranfield Flight Training at Cranfield Airport in June. The Smiling Wings tour then goes on with one event each month over the summer to White Waltham, near London, Cumbernauld, near Glasgow and finally to Barton near Manchester in September.
Notes to editors:
Barnardo’s in the North West provides vital services for almost 16,000 children, young people and their families across Merseyside, Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Cumbria. Our 33 community-based North West services provide a practical and positive response to problems like abuse, poverty, homelessness and the challenges of disability. For more information about Barnardo’s visit our website at www.barnardos.org.uk.
We believe in the potential in every child and young person, no matter who they are, what they have done or what they have been through. We will support them, stand up for them and bring out the best in each and every child.
Sign up if you believe in children.
Aviation Without Borders (AWB) is a new, unique and exciting aviation charity. Its primary purpose of Aviation Without Borders is to provide humanitarian services of an aviation nature to the needy, irrespective of politics, religion, race or nationality. For further info see: www.aviationwithoutborders.org
Built in 1928, Barton Aerodrome, now known as City Airport Manchester, was Britain’s first municipal airport. It remains a largely unspoiled example of the airfields of the 1930s. The museum at the front of the visitor centre features many interesting documents and displays that tell the history of the original Manchester Airport. The Bomber Command Association also has a display here. The centre gives good views of movements on the active airfield. Visitors can also go on to the first landing of the control tower to view the aerodrome activity.
Aviation Without Borders is registered as a charity in England and Wales No. 1117373 and in Scotland No. SC 038575
Media contacts:
For more information about Barnardo’s, please contact Barnardo’s Media Manager, Jo Hewitt on 0113 393 3214 jo.hewitt@barnardos.org.uk
For more information about Aviation Without Borders, please contact Gautam Lewis at on 0208 993 0889 airmail@freedomintheair.org
