Angel flight in a Mooney

[steingar]

Once I get the IR (Odin willing) I'd LOVE to do this.  That said, no way would I do it hereabouts without the IR.  Too damn much wx pops up too damned unpredictably.

[MIm20c]

For me this structured flight for non family or friends is going to have to wait until 500 hrs / IR / smooth coverage which is probably 2 years out.  I’ll have many years to help out in the future and I see no advantage in having newer/low time pilots take on these responsibilities. However, helping as a copilot would be a great idea but I’m not sure how many do that or if UL would allow. 

[peevee]

Just now, bluehighwayflyer said:

It is hard to disclaim tort liability with a waiver. I would not place a whole lot of faith in that.  Smooth coverage is by far the best protection. 

Jim

I wouldn't and don't either.

[Amelia]

I’ve flown for several Angel Flight organizations as well as Veterans Airlift Command. Good, professional mission coordinators who understand GA constraints. Last weekend I confessed to the coordinator that, gee, I’d love to help, the weather looks perfect, but I’m not IFR current in this airplane. She promptly waived that requirement, and the ride was glorious. 

There are mobility rules by the Angel Flight orgs. I’ve overlooked them when I thought we could manage,, but in general, the patient must be able to step up onto the wing, step down into seat, and do that process in reverse. Line help may or may not be available to assist. 

About Weight, the rules say 30 pound max softside luggage. So do I. I made one entitled couple repack, right there on the ramp, and leave most of their matched luggage in their SUV. Another coordinator said there’d be one small parent, small duffle, and baby. Showed up to find two parents, very airsick and badly-handicapped toddler, and a cartload of special, heavy medical equipment. “We didn’t think medical stuff counted.” Duh. Fortunately, the linking pilot gave me a heads-up on the load, and I hadn’t topped off. It was a near thing.These are the exceptions.

Most passengers are scrupulously careful, weight-wise, and all are very appreciative. Some stories are heartbreaking, others heartwarming. They often can’t afford the commercial fare for repeat treatment, some are immunosuppressed, some live hours from commercial airports. It is a privilege to be able to help. And a tax write off for that flight. And great publicity for GA. And personal warm-fuzzies. And a fine excuse to burn 100LL.

How often, how far, in what conditions, are up to the pilot and her plane. In the final analysis, whether to accept the mission, or call it off at any point, is my decision, like every other flight I’m PIC of. If the weather is poor, the patient and companion need special accommodations, are overweight or not mobile, it’s a no-go. 

[mike_elliott]

I was fortunate to be involved in one angel flight, although it wasn't with the Angel Flight organization. Oh, did I mention I was the patient? The cool part was a former Mooney pilot flew me and my bride home from recovery after getting medical clearance to be at an 8K cabin pressure in his TBM 850...as we pull out on the runway, he says "your airplane"....and thats how it stayed until we touched down at KPIE, with a short stop at KNEW. I love logging TBM time! Thanks Chuck!

[peevee]

Amelia's experiences are better than mine. I enjoy the flights and choose missions carefully but I find quite a few of the entitled types and fewer of the grateful. The good ones more than make up for it.

I choose my questions carefully to weed out the ones that aren't going to work. One guy I asked my usual questions and each one drew a 5 minute lecture about how he had been there and done that. I noped out on that one quick.

 

Lots of big people around here it seems. Always seems like they want to take 3 200 pounders along

 

The angelflights west coordination is pretty good but they always choose the least convenient airport and never change it when asked then it's a hassle because whoever picked up the ground leg can't do it. More often than not I just get them an Uber at my expense.

 

I was working 6 days a week most of the year and it's a big deal to me to devote my only day off to a mission. To have that mission cancel a day before and not even get a call kind of irked me a couple times 

[JohnB]

My hat is off to Angel flight pilots, charity flights are the best!! And Angel flights are a great thing to do when all goes well. Your own very good insurance is probably a good idea. I would love to do Angel flights, but got scared out of doing Angel flights by some negative things Ive heard (like patients showing up hours late, treating us like their personal pilots, mobility issues getting into and out of my Mooney) and the incident that was posted on Beechtalk a while back

https://www.beechtalk.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=50258

Username Protected wrote:

I know this because my father did hundreds of Angel Flight missions and in fact was killed doing one just a short time ago. His Bonanza crashed on takeoff out of Tampa with two Angel Flight passengers on board. I was left settling the lawsuits from the passengers, the state, the city and the FAA.

[Jerry 5TJ]

A Bonanza or Mooney or any single engine piston aircraft may not be suitable for carrying charity flight passengers because the maximum available insurance ($2M was the most offered for my Ovation) is too low.  

[peevee]

I think I'll stop doing them.

[MIm20c]

6 hours ago, JohnB said:

My hat is off to Angel flight pilots, charity flights are the best!! And Angel flights are a great thing to do when all goes well. Your own very good insurance is probably a good idea. I would love to do Angel flights, but got scared out of doing Angel flights by some negative things Ive heard (like patients showing up hours late, treating us like their personal pilots, mobility issues getting into and out of my Mooney) and the incident that was posted on Beechtalk a while back

https://www.beechtalk.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=50258

Username Protected wrote:

I know this because my father did hundreds of Angel Flight missions and in fact was killed doing one just a short time ago. His Bonanza crashed on takeoff out of Tampa with two Angel Flight passengers on board. I was left settling the lawsuits from the passengers, the state, the city and the FAA.

That thread was eye opening!  The FAA, FBO, and family members each suing separately?!!

All the legal paperwork used to direct 100% of the liability to the pilot or more importantly to his/her surviving family members. 

[Jerry 5TJ]

The organizations might be able to secure insurance for its volunteers but I expect it would be very expensive & limited.  Angel Flight Central (to pick one of several such organizations) isn't rich but it is not on a shoestring budget, either.

Here is their IRS Form 990 tax return for 2016:  Form 990

 

[MIm20c]

10 minutes ago, Jerry 5TJ said:

The organizations might be able to secure insurance for its volunteers but I expect it would be very expensive & limited.  Angel Flight Central (to pick one of several such organizations) isn't rich but it is not on a shoestring budget, either.

Here is their IRS Form 990 tax return for 2016:  Form 990

 

I think you may be correct. The insurance would probably be higher than the 2% they are paying now and might eat into the 68% of this non profit income used for compensation and salaries.

[Tommy]

Hmmm. Lots of interesting points.

The litigations side of things scares as well as saddens me. 

It is also troubling to see how AF can be seen as "care less" sometimes but I can understand that it probably wouldn't be a viable organization if it starts to take on expensive insurances and training / certification of its pilots.