Young people from Acorns Children’s Hospice enjoy a pre-Christmas treat with families.
This is the time of year when magical memories are made and Tuesday was no exception. Flybe, together with its partners at Birmingham Airport, hosted a very special group of young people from Acorns Hospice on a festive flight during which a very special guest arrived on board.
Having first enjoyed taking pictures with the airport’s well-known mascots, Zoom and Skylar, 21 excited children and their families took off on the specially chartered flight BE8888.
The hour-long flight, which travelled as far as Wales, was joined by Santa along the way who handed out Flybe teddy bears and a goody bag courtesy of World Duty Free to each child and their carer.
Flybe Chief Operations Officer, Chris Hope, said: “It has been a real pleasure to give something back to the community at this special time of the year. We hope our Santa flight was a memorable experience for this deserving group of very brave young children.
“We were thrilled that Santa was able to take a moment out of his busy Christmas preparations to join us on board and meet the children!
We would especially like to thank all our partners who contributed so generously in making this flight possible including World Duty Free and Costa Coffee as well, of course, as the amazing team at Birmingham Airport.”
Toby Porter, Acorns Chief Executive added: “What a truly magical day this has been for all the families, and what an extra special festive treat to meet Father Christmas himself! My sincere thanks to Flybe, Birmingham Airport and all the partners whose time and generosity came together wonderfully in the creation of this fabulous event.
“At Acorns we know how important it is for the families we support to make the most of every day, particularly when they are faced with a future that can seem very uncertain. I know there will be precious memories created today that will last for many Christmases to come.”
Tom Screen, Aviation Director at Birmingham Airport said: “It was a privilege on behalf of Birmingham Airport to take part in this incredible flight today. Acorns has been our nominated charity for ten years, and we are delighted that Flybe has given this amazing organisation the opportunity to take some of the children to meet Santa in the sky at this very special time of year.
“I know that all the children and carers had a great time, meeting our mascots – Zoom and Skylar – topped off by Santa arriving on board to meet the children. It really was a magical experience for all.”
The airline’s 2019 Santa Flight reflects similar flights the airline has undertaken in previous years for children across its regional network including those from Belfast City, Southampton, Exeter, Inverness, Jersey and Manchester.
