AFC Volunteer Spotlight!

ON-BOARD UPDATE with AFC | May 2014
On-Board with AFC is published by the staff and leadership of AFC for the benefit of the
volunteer pilots who give of their time, talent and treasure to assist those in need.
AFC Volunteer Spotlight!
Ginny LaSala, Coordination/Office Volunteer
Virginia "Ginny" LaSala has been volunteering in the AFC office
for nearly four years! Ginny volunteers every Wednesday
morning; graciously giving of her time before she goes to her
job as a Patient Advocate at a local hospital. I look forward to
Ginny's arrival each Wednesday morning! Ginny is a huge help
with mission coordination and she's just a joy to be around.
Her kind and compassionate nature is a wonderful fit here at
AFC and I know that our passengers find comfort and caring in
her gentle voice.
Ginny does so much here at the AFC office on her Wednesday
mornings. She handles the majority of the calls that come in
including screening and qualifying passengers. She calls doctor's offices in
regards to the medical releases that we need for each passenger. She has
recently started learning how to process mission requests in AFIDS, including
routing using AirNav and Flitesoft; and she's doing a fabulous job!
Ginny LaSala, AFC
Volunteer
AFC is lucky to have her as a dedicated and wonderful volunteer - thank you,
Ginny!
With a small staff and many tasks to do each day the AFC staff truly values the
volunteers who help us get the work done at the AFC office. Here are 2 volunteers
that recently helped with digitizing all the pilot records.
TERRY ORR is helping with our Pilot Record Update Project. Terri completed the first
step of our project by scanning all records from each active AFC Volunteer Pilot into
their AFIDS file. (Look for more information in this ONBOARD edition for updating your
AFIDS profile.) Wow what a job that was! Terry is the wife of Brian Orr, General
Manager for Signature Support Services at KMKC. Terry recently retired from a career in
banking. Terri had some help from another AFC volunteer NANCY HARPER until Nancy
was called for duty for a week in the U.S. Reserves. Nancy is the wife of Don Harper,
AFC Volunteer Pilot and State Airport Engineer with the FAA. Both Nancy and Don are in
the Reserves and Nancy has previously worked for the FAA. She is currently looking for
a new position.
SIGNED AFFIRMATION STATEMENTS & PHOTO ID BADGES
You may have talked with Terri recently as she has been making phone calls to pilots
who need a signed AFC Affirmation Statement for their AFIDS file. A signed AFC
Affirmation Statement is required for every AFC applicant or current Command Pilot.
Terri is also calling pilots to update their AFC Photo ID Badges. If you have heard from
Terri by phone or email and do not yet have a photo ID to identify you as a pilot flying
on behalf of Angel Flight Central, please email your clear, headshot .JPG photo to
[email protected]. AFC would like all active Command Pilots to hold an AFC
PHOTO ID BADGE to use for flying missions.
UPDATING YOUR AFIDS FILE
Did you know? Active Command Pilots and AFC Pilot Applicants can upload their updated
credentials to their AFIDS profile by clicking on "Account Settings" in AFIDS. This saves
AFC time and $$. You can also upload your .JPG headshot photo for your ID badge to
AFIDS as well. We still have A BUNCH of PILOTS who do not have an updated PHOTO ID
BADGE. Please update your file NOW with any new or changed credentials. THANKS!
Welcome New AFC Command Pilots
Our newest Heroes from across AFC's 10-State area
and beyond. Aug. 2013-Mar 2014
Thank you for joining AFC to "Give Hope Wings" to those in
need of long distance air travel!
AFC Command
Pilots
City
State
Joseph
Kirby
Cedar Rapids
IA
CID
Steven
Grandfield Council Bluffs
IA
CBF
Gary
Pivar
IL
ENW
Timothy
Applegate Morris
IL
C09
Daniel
Dickinson
Hawthorn Woods
IL
UGN
Bryan
Nielson
Fairview Heights
IL
CPS
Neal
Myers
Middlebury
IN
GSH
Vaughn
DeCoster
Evansville
IN
EVV
Scott
Lauridsen
Baldwin City
KS
IXD
Samuel
Cox
Olathe
KS
IXD
Reuss
Anderson
Overland Park
KS
OJC
Dale
Koch
Beloit
KS
K61
Timothy
Gilk
Redwood Falls
MN
RWF
James
Roberts
Edina
MN
FCM
Phillip
Timmer
Edina
MN
MIC
Joseph "Dick"
Davis
Fulton
MO
JEF
George
Panousis
Kennett
MO
TKX
Ross
Stryker
Lebanon
MO
LBO
Richard
Veach
Liberty
MO
GPH
Joshua
Swafford
Omaha
NE
OFF
Patrick
Burke
Wahoo
NE
AHQ
Kenneth
Green
Omaha
NE
CBF
Craig
Tylski
Valley
NE
FET
Greg
Frost
Lima
OH
5G7
Buffalo Grove
Travis
Lantis
Spearfish
SD
SPF
Jon
Waddell
Sioux Falls
SD
FSD
Walter
Ahern
Madison
SD
MDS
Matthew
Riedl
Franklin
WI
MSN
Anthony
Sobczak
De Forest
WI
MSN
Alexander
Vickroy
Ashland
WI
ASX
IT'S CAMP SEASON!
Flights for Special Needs Campers are just around the corner in June, July & August.
AFC Volunteer Pilots can get ready NOW! HERE'S HOW. (click on each item to view the
document)
1. REVIEW the 2014 Camp Flight Dates and each Camp's "Profile" including contact
phone numbers, designated airports, arrival and departure times.
2. READ, SIGN and RETURN the 2014 Pilot Affirmation for Camp Flights. NEW Pilot
Instructions for Camp Flights are included.
3. SEND your affirmation to [email protected]. (You can also fax or snail
mail.)
4. Five AFC Honorary Pilot Wings for Kids will be sent to you when we receive
your Affirmation for Camp Flights. If you need more for campers or other kids you
fly; let us know.
NEW for 2014! Many thanks to Joe Ratterman for donating the AFC Honorary Pilot
Wings for Kids.
Pilot Bryan Hawkins and
AFC Wings for Kids
Nathaniel to Burn Camp
REMEMBER! The camp
affirmation & instructions are to keep YOU and the CAMPERS safe. Read thoroughly and
make EARLY GO - NO GO DECISIONS on camp flights. Contact the Camp's Coordinator
and AFC Coordinator should weather or unforeseen circumstances delay or cancel your
camp flight.
Thank you for "Giving Hope Wings" for a safe flight experience for special needs
campers.
PAY-IT-FORWARD CAMP FLIGHT FUND
Over the past several years, the Pay-It-Forward Camp Flight
Fund has made a huge difference to AFC volunteer pilots by
supporting safe NO GO decisions when the weather has turned
sour or a mechanical issue prevents a camp flight from flying.
The fund pays for commercial airline tickets for campers when
GA aircraft aren't able to fly. A grant from Royals Charities
(think Kansas City Baseball) has been the foundation of this
camp flight fund. But additional dollars are needed if we have
a lot of weather on flight days and to restore the fund as it
depletes. The fund is designated ONLY for camper flights.
All camps assisted by AFC flights are for kids with no income for a camp experience in a
safe environment for their condition. The camps raise their own funds for the cost of
housing, food, programming and staffing and qualify the campers who apply to their
camps.
If a camper is unable to get to camp, the camp experience is lost for the camper.
Thanks to generous AFC Volunteer Pilots who make camp accessible to special needs
campers! And thanks to AFC Donors who fund the Pay-It-Forward Camp Flight Fund
backs up the AFC Volunteer Pilots! It's a win-win situation for all.
AFC missions DOUBLE in the summer with special needs camp flights. Your support to
AFC and to the Pay-It-Forward Camp Fund makes all the difference! CAMP CAN'T BE
RESCHEDULED! We need to be sure campers can get to camp and home safely. Please
consider a donation today! Thank you!
Pilot Refresher & Orientations!
Has it been a long time since you participated in a
Volunteer Pilot Orientation?
Need a refresher? Outcomes for the AFC Volunteer Pilot
Conference calls are listed on page 2.1 of the AFC Volunteer
Pilot Handbook.
Any pilot may join a call for a refresher or to become active
again. Contact Brenda to sign up for one of the calls listed. If the following dates/times
don't meet with your schedule, talk with Brenda about an alternative so you can start
flying AFC passengers!
June 19, (Thurs) 8:00-9:00 AM CT
July 17, (Thurs) 8:00-9:00 AM CT
Additional events and activities can be seen in the "Events" section of the AFC Website
Auto Pilot "Kickstarter" Campaign
Want to "Kickstart" a New Program?
Want to help "kickstart" a new feature in AFIDS? Many AFC
pilots will remember when AFC helped passengers from home to
airport or treatment with the Earth Angel Program. We still
have a few wonderful volunteers throughout the Mid and Upper
Midwest who are willing to drive AFC passengers from and to
airports; particularly in cities they are not familiar with.
Unfortunately the old EA system was inefficient and labor intensive.
To raise the funds needed to develop the NEW AUTO PILOT features in AFIDS, Stephan
Fopeano, our AIFDS guru on the west coast, has crafted a proposal to support this
campaign. Kickstarter.com is interested in projects that help support technology
projects for non-profits. Volunteer Pilot Organization Information Database system
(VPOIDS) is the correct name for the Mission Coordination system used at Angel Flight
Central. We just add the AF for Angel Flight to make it AFIDS (something you always
wanted to know).
If you don't have the time or interest to read the whole proposal; at least take a
gander at the video clip. You'll meet Josh Olson, AF West Missions Director (new AFW
Executive Director as of May 3rd!) and get an idea of how the Auto Pilot (aka Earth
Angel) Program can help you as a pilot to meet the needs of the passengers we serve.
Direct donations to this project through Kickstarter will move up the release of this new
feature to AFIDS.
Click here for a preview
A Word from the AFC Safety Committee
What's Different When Flying "angel flights"?
A month or so ago, I asked our volunteer pilots if there were any
things that they did for an Angel Flight Central mission that they did
not do on a regular local or cross-country flight. I was wondering
about flight planning, or if our volunteer pilots might have a specific
checklist that they use for AFC flights. The responses were many
and interesting.
Chris Hope, AFC
Several pilots stated that they did not act much differently - They Safety Committee
treat every passenger with TLC, always file an IFR flight plan or use
Chair
flight following, and try always to be cognizant of their passengers'
needs. A lot of pilots mentioned that they communicate a lot more,
both with the passenger and with the connecting-flight pilots. (AND - I would like to
add that if these conversations pertain to changes in aircraft or destinations, both
enroute and final, please keep AFC in the loop.)
AFC Pilot, Kamala Krishnan, had a couple of interesting comments regarding Flight
Aware:
1. On personal flights, I monitor the route weather only a day or two ahead though I
am always aware of the general pattern. For Angel flights, I start monitoring the
weather a week ahead, since there may be other pilots involved besides the
patient/pax and try to stay in touch with them to build a consensus about the final
go/no go decision.
2. On the day of the flight, I call the pax when I leave for the airport and the next leg
pilot just before takeoff. I usually end up leaving a message since the next leg pilot
may be in the air.
3. I also call the FBO where we are expected to meet prior to take-off and remind
them of my call sign (N287BW or NGF7BW with pax - SIX characters needed). At least
once, an impatient next-leg pilot took off early since he did not see the call number he
expected on "Flight Aware", leaving the pax stranded, till I decided to fly the final leg
as well.
4. It may be a good thing to follow the flights on "Flight Aware" in case of crossed
signals, with the caveat about the call signs. "Flight aware" also provides time, route
and track data as well for pilots.
Other pilots said that they make cancellation decisions earlier than they would
otherwise do, to allow our passengers the opportunity to make other arrangements.
AFC Pilot, Roger Brining, mentioned that he always tries to have bottled water and
some granola bars available. Warm blankets are often nice to have, especially in winter
(but it can be cool at altitude in the summer as well, and some of our passengers are
very sensitive to that lower temperature.) And as he has oxygen available in his plane,
he always ensures that he has clean cannulas. He finds that often passengers feel
better with supplemental oxygen at 9,000 feet or so even though that is not required
by regulation.
And finally, several pilots stressed the need to talk to our passengers just before
takeoff. They stressed that they go beyond the standard FAA-mandated passenger
briefing. After determining the passengers' experience with smaller aircraft, they made
sure that the passengers knew how the flight was going to develop and what they
should expect.
Thanks to all who shared their experience and thanks to all of you help our passengers
every day.
Chris Hope, Angel Flight Central Safety Committee Chair
OSHKOSH TFR ANNOUNCED
The TSA has proclaimed a 50nm Temporary Flight Restriction
(TFR) centered over Wittman Field at Oshkosh (WI), for the last
two weeks of July, and the first week of August. No aerial
activities whatsoever will be permitted in that area, below FL
400.
The rationale was explained by Richard Johnson, the TSA's top
communicator: "We saw a crucial need to protect all those
people and all those aircraft, from all those people and all those
aircraft, so we invoked our unbridled powers to protect all those
people and all those aircraft on the ground."
When we pointed out that "all those people and all those aircraft" wouldn't be there in
the first place, if they were not flying, he replied simply, "See?"
BUT SERIOUSLY FOLKS --- If you ARE going to Oshkosh this year, please consider
WEARING YOUR AFC GEAR to represent Angel Flight Central. We thank you for your
service to AFC. Have Fun!
Where to purchase AFC Gear??
For AFC Volunteer Pilots, Donors, and their families we have 2 --YES, 2 ways to get your AFC gear.
Option 1 - Go to the AFC website and visit the AFC STORE
Option 2 - Go to Land's End Business Outfitters
Browse the catalog, and request the AFC logo on your
purchases. Click here for instructions for adding AFC Logo to
LAND'S END purchases.
Your AFC Staff,
Don Sumple, Executive Director/CEO
Brenda Champagne, Operations Director
Brendan Sneegas, Director of Outreach & Development
Michelle Kane, Flight Coordinator
Glenda Simpson, Administrative Specialist
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