Calling all pilots!
If you love to fly, have access to an airplane (own or rent) and a few hours to spare to make a significant difference in the life of someone facing a life-threatening illness, have we got a deal for you! Angel Flight South Central matches up volunteer pilots with people in need of air transportation, primarily for scheduled medical treatment.
Our volunteer pilots cover all the costs associated with Angel Flights and, in return, are rewarded with one of the most satisfying experiences of a lifetime—unconditional giving to someone truly in need. Once you take your first mission, our pilots report you get hooked! “Being involved with Angel Flight is truly a life-changing experience,” reports volunteer pilot Kirk Bell.
Our passengers come in all shapes and sizes, from infants through our oldest reported traveler at age 99. The typical passenger is a middle-aged person traveling for chemotherapy or specialized surgery not available in his or her hometown. In our region, the majority of people travel to MD Anderson Cancer Treatment Center or the Cancer Research & Therapy Center in San Antonio—but we go anywhere within 1,000 miles.
We are also committed to helping our veterans receive treatment at VA Hospitals. The medical care is free, but the VA only gives 11 cents per mile for travel—less than bus fare! Many vets that travel with us are getting by on disability pay at less than $1,000 per month and are in desperate need of our services.
Most of our pilots love to fly the little ones. Dallas has the country’s leading pediatric craniofacial specialists in the country, and we also bring children to specialty hospitals across the south. In the summer, many of our pilots enjoy taking children to special needs camps such as Camp Sweeney for juvenile diabetes.
We also have special programs for pilots looking for a challenge. AFSC maintains lists of pilots willing to serve on stand-by for people waiting for an organ transplant. Several pilots share the burden of being prepared when that call comes. During 2005, we also implemented a new emergency preparedness program for pilots willing to be called up on short notice in case of a disaster or emergency. Our pilots were quite busy during Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Angel Flight South Central puts YOU in control. You choose when and where you fly. It’s fast and easy to sign up for a mission. When you have some spare time coming up, check our Available Missions web page and click on a mission that interests you. We limit missions to 1,000 nautical miles, but we break those longer flights into three legs. For you pilots with bigger, faster planes, you may wish to sign up for all three legs on a longer flight. We’ll never post a single mission leg longer than 350 miles. From time to time, we may call or E-mail you if we have an unfilled mission in your area, but you're never under any obligation to sign up. As pilot in command, you're in charge of your mission and are ultimately responsible for all the final details regarding the flight.
If you would like to become an Angel Flight South Central volunteer pilot, call a Mission Coordinator at 800-989 2602.
Please feel free to email Jerry Dorré, our Executive Director, to discuss any questions you may have which are not answered on this site. He can also put you in touch with other pilots who are active in the organization to help answer your questions.
