SUBSEQUENT TRIP REQUEST; 6th Angel flight.

Thirteen year old Idonette has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL), and requires frequent transport to attend regular outpatient appointments at RCH in Melbourne, as she is currently in the intensive phase of her treatment. With five children, the family have limited income and need to ensure the health needs of Idonette are also met. It is important the family live in Casterton as often as possible to receive support from family and friends to maintain some normality and for Idonette's mother Laura to be able to work if possible.

This Angel flight was for one of Idonette's appointments.

Read about a previous mission for Idonette (M769)

Stephen Gale - Pilot

Tori Harris - Earth Angel
(Tori's 1st Angel flight)

Angel flight 1 by Stephen Gale
This is Stephen's 4th Angel flight
Previous mission for Stephen - M728 AF1.

"Our mission started earlier than usual, since young Idonette had taken a turn for the worst, and needed to get to a comfy hospital bed as soon as practical. After a little negotiation with the Air Ambulance, we decided to proceed the mission, and I headed off to Moorabbin to get my little Mooney underway.

Getting to Casterton was a little tricky, due to the low cloud base of the day. To get below the clouds safely I used the NDB let down at Hamilton. I was lucky, since the clouds were just above the published minima, meaning I did not need to divert to another airfield to try again. Unfortunately all of my troubles were not over since for some reason my GPS acted a little crazy, and was telling me to head back to Melbourne rather than the other way! I re-checked the coordinates but still no sense! As anyone who has messed up a Navigation exercise will agree, finding your way when you are only 1000 feet above the ground is a little tricky, but after a bit of slightly anxious circling around, I found the gravel strip between the pines.

By now Idonette was feeling pretty poorly and we needed to get to the hospital quickly. Fortunately the winds, the weather and ATC were kind to us and we had a fast smooth ride home. I know it's just my natural envy of the big fellas (or something), but it's always fun to see 190 knots on the GPS! All of this time Idonette sat in the back seat while big sister Louise comforted her from the front seat.

When we landed at Essendon, Earth Angel Tori collected everyone, and we all ventured to the Parkville Children Hospital (I needed a ride into town myself). It was great to meet Tori, and it gave me a sense of the whole journey.

I was certainly touched by the courage of Idonette, the kindness of her Mum Laura, and the bravery of big sister Louise. I wish Idonette the best and hope her treatments are effective and not too painful."