Just two days after hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast‚ the Homeland Security Emergency Air Transportation System‚ or HEATS‚ went live. Rusnak credits this newly–launched communications network with Angel Flight’s ability to fly so many airplanes into the Gulf region and help so many people.

HEATS is an automated communication system that can notify each of Angel Flight’s six regions in the event of an emergency. Each region has 100 volunteer pilots who have agreed to be airborne within one hour of being contacted by the HEATS network. There are also another 100 volunteer pilots in each region who have agreed to be airborne within six hours of being contacted.

In addition to pilots‚ Angel Flight is looking for drivers to help transport patients once they land. Rusnak said most FBOs will give the patient a ride home or to the hospital‚ but the group is actively recruiting drivers in some of the larger metropolitan areas to meet an angel flight and take the passengers either home or to the hospital‚ depending on which part of the trip they are on.

"It’s one of those things where I guess you'd have to say that as the need grows‚ we seem to get pushed into finding links and ways to do these things‚" Rusnak said.

Angel Flights get a special designation when filing a flight plan and often are given priority by ATC. But the most important part of each flight is the thanks pilots get from patients and family members.

Volunteering Locally
If setting out cross–country to help a cancer patient get medical treatment is too much for you‚ you might consider volunteering for EAA's Young Eagles program.

The program has flown more than one million children ages 8 through 17 on introductory flights in volunteer aircraft. Each child receives a certificate at the end of his or her flight and is entered in the "worlds largest logbook" on EAA’s Young Eagles Web site.

Volunteers need minimal flight requirements: they must be current in the make and model‚ be legal to fly passengers‚ and must be willing to share a love of flying with someone who may have never flown before.

Volunteers are encouraged to take child through the pre–flight‚ explain the dynamics of flight‚ and then take local flight lasting less than a half hour to introduce the Young Eagle to the joys of aviation.

This year’s honorary Young Eagles chairman is actor Harrison Ford.

But you don’t need to be Harrison Ford to use your pilot skills to make the world a better place. Whether it’s flying people or animals in need‚ or expanding the horizons of an inner–city teen‚ there is an opportunity for nearly every pilot to give something back. While we talk about using your airplane to travel and enjoy life‚ Subach said aerial volunteers are people who‚ "use an airplane to do good."
We couldn’t agree more.

—Sean Fulton