From escorting sick African children to Europe for medical treatment to transporting doctors in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Aviation Sans Frontiers has been providing wings to non-government organisations and other charities on the ground for 27 years.
The Paris-based organisation, founded by Air France pilots Andre Greard, Gerald Similowski and Alain Yout, has spawned several sister charities - in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and, since earlier this year, the UK, where the group is known as Aviation Without Borders. ASF is run by some 80 volunteers and five paid staff and supported by 3,000 members and about 11,000 individual and corporate donors, including Aeroports de Paris, Air France, Dassault Aviation and EADS. Last year the organisation raised over c1.83 million ($2.69 million), double the amount of three years earlier.
Almost all its members work in aviation, including pilots, cabin crew and airport staff, as well as in maintenance and manufacturing, according to vice-president Andre Fournerat, himself a former pilot. Thanks to an ongoing publicity drive - among many recent honours, the French post office issued an ASF stamp last year - the organisation is becoming better known and membership has been growing by about 1,500 a month.
It is involved in five main activities:
A powdered milk delivery service to African countries, known as the "milk round". With space made available on airline flights, ASF has this year sent 11t of milk, provided by French producers, to charitable organisations in Benin, Cameroon and Togo, as well as 17t to Madagascar (one tonne of powder gives 250 children a daily glass of milk for a year).
Delivery of medical supplies. Last year, ASF sent 7,600 parcels of medicine and surgical items to 50 destinations. These packages are carried by flight crew as part of their personal baggage allowance and the scheme - which has been running since before 9/11 - has the blessing of the French security authorities. Consignments are sorted at ASF's headquarters, a cargo store at Paris's Orly airport.
Child escort. Working with some 15 humanitarian organisations, ASF volunteers - mostly off-duty cabin crew flying on employee fares - accompany children in need of urgent medical treatment from developing countries to Europe. Since 2001, more than 7,000 children have benefited.
Aircraft missions. ASF operates two Cessna Caravans (one joining last month) and a Cessna 182, supporting charities and humanitarian organisations in developing countries. Using volunteer pilots and mechanics, the aircraft are currently based in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Niger, and have in the past been involved in missions to countries including Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ethiopia and Honduras, as well as in Kosovo. Last year, its then-two aircraft completed 1,700 flight hours.
Aviation discovery days. Known as "Smiling Wings" and working with flying clubs around France, ASF organises flying trips for eight to 10 handicapped and terminally ill children at a time. The events are one of the most rewarding for ASF volunteers, says Fournerat: "It makes it all worthwhile when you see the faces of the children."
In the UK, Aviation Without Borders has yet to match its French counterpart's success, but founder Stan Stewart, a retired British Airways captain, is determined to make it a major force for good. The organisation completed its first escort mission earlier this year - taking a Kenyan boy called Fredrick with rheumatic heart disease on a BA flight from Nairobi to London. Fredrick's ticket and treatment were funded by the charity Chain of Hope - founded by the famous heart specialist Sir Magdi Yacoub. Chain of Hope has since then arranged for four other children to fly with AWB escorts, from Nairobi with BA again and Addis Ababa on BMed.
Ultimate goal
Like its French sister charity, AWB is also organising flight days for disabled children but its "ultimate goal" is to operate its own light aircraft, with volunteer crews and ground personnel, on humanitarian missions in Africa.
Stewart - who says AWB is "unique in utilising the talents and skills of the aviation community" in the UK - admits that the charity has a long way to go. "We still have much to do and need people willing to use their skills to help, including airline people who can use their staff travel concessions to escort sick children," he says. "We also need help in opening doors to airlines and organisations such as [airport operator] BAA. The more people involved, the more successful the organisation will be."
Of course, the very nature of international charity work means that success is never enough, and despite its impressive record over almost three decades, ASF's Andre Fournerat is aware of the scale of what needs to be done. "Our aim is to try and combat misfortune and poverty in the world," he says. "But sometimes it feels like we are fighting the 100-years war."
ASF's Censsa Caravans are currently supporting charities and NGOs in DR Congo and Niger
Source: Flight International
