In buying a ticket and attending the event you are already supporting the charity, helping us raise vital funds.

In addition to this there will be plenty of opportunity on the night to not only support Aerobility further, but also to become the proud winner of a number of 'once in a lifetime' experiences and flying memorabilia through our live and silent auctions (LINK). Should you be in a position to donate an auction prize, we would love to hear from you.

Aviator's Ball 2011 is the 3rd time we have held such an event and, so far, the generosity of those attending the event has been even greater than the previous year - a trend we hope to continue. £82,000 was raised in 2010 and our target this year is £100,000. Only through your generous participation will this be possible.

So what will £100,000 do for Aerobility?
Mike Miller-Smith, CEO of Aerobility, explains:

"320 disabled adults and young people flew Aerobility's aircraft last year 12 of them went solo and five of them gained their pilot's license. We flew over 1000 times. Our aeroplanes see a lot of action! We have three second-hand aircraft; the oldest is 32 years old and the newest is 25 years old. Unfortunately the older the aircraft get, the higher the maintenance bill is each year; for example last year 'old age' related maintenance cost the charity over £18,000. We need to raise the money to replace our aircraft.

There are many advantages to new aircraft - decreased running and maintenance costs, manufacturer's warranty, improved reliability, more modern equipment, reassuring to users and the learning environment is more effective, sponsors will associate more readily with modern equipment, and finally the sale of our existing aircraft will release fund for further investment in new equipment.

We would like to purchase a new Piper Archer, which is effectively a modern and updated version of our existing tried and tested design of aircraft.

And if we can raise even more...
A place to call home

The success of Aerobility over the last 5 years means that us 'hotdesking' between a makeshift shed, the meeting rooms at Lasham Airfield and our home offices just isn't ideal. Having a place to call our own is now a necessity rather than a 'nice to have'.

It would also be hugely beneficial to be able to offer accessible accommodation to those people travelling long distances for their flight experiences and would enable us to expand the scope of our offer.

Flight Simulator
To offer a cost-effective land-based flying experience, we are keen to acquire a Flight Simulator. This is also something we could take to exhibitions to help build awareness and raise the profile of Aerobility among potential members and donors.