Twitter appeals help find flights for young cancer patients

Air Charter Scotland has added a factory-new Citation CJ2, based at Luton, to its charter fleet and recently performed a life-saving mission when it teamed up with Edinburgh-based Jetlogic, flying 12-year-old cancer patient Vanessa Riddle home safely to Scotland following a stem cell transplant in Germany.

Vanessa is battling relapsed stage four neuroblastoma, a rare and aggressive childhood cancer. A concerted fundraising effort meant that Vanessa was able to go to Tübingen, Germany, for the transplant that is expected to dramatically increase her chance of long-term survival.

Following treatment, Vanessa's low immune system meant that a flight on a commercial airline presented a high infection risk. Following a Twitter appeal, Air Charter Scotland provided a Citation to carry Vanessa home.

Derek Thomson, ops director, says: "After a discussion between our company and Jetlogic, we offered our services to bring Vanessa and her family home. Vanessa is a brave and inspirational young lady who is fighting a very tough battle; I am just pleased that we were able to help make her return home a safe one."

York-based FlyMeNow is another charter company that responded to a plea for assistance via Twitter, flying seven-year-old Jamie Inglis to Germany for medical treatment.

Jamie has a rare childhood cancer that has weakened his immune system and, like Vanessa, a private flight offered Jamie the safest way of getting to Stuttgart for stem cell treatment.

Commercial director Andrew Whitney says: "Jamie is from our backyard and there is hope and a light at the end of the tunnel for him, which is why we are proud to be able to help. We organise a lot of what you might call mercy missions, but this has definitely been our most important mission of the year."