11/02/12, 22:15:50 EST

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oneworld Airline Staff in Humanitarian Mission to South Africa

eTN

More than 50 volunteer staff from oneworld member airlines and the alliance's central team are due to land in South Africa today on what is believed to be the first mission of its kind carried out by any of the global airline alliances anywhere worldwide.

They will be spending the week to work with a range of projects with charities in the Johannesburg area in a program they are calling "oneworld against poverty."


Among the group this week will be some 25 representatives from Airline Ambassadors, a group that works in association with American Airlines. The group will be led by William Dise, its Regional Director and a crew chief at American, along with others from across the alliance including its central team at the oneworld Management Company.


The South African assignment is being headed up by the Qantas Cabin Crew Team, an organization led by flight attendants at the Australian airline which supports charities around the worldwide network served by the carrier. Around 35 of its members will be taking part in this week's operation, led by the team's President Glenn Price.


The Qantas group has been helping the Johannesburg projects in various ways for several years, but this will be the first time they have been joined by colleagues from other part of the oneworld alliance.


The overall team includes representatives from Australia, United States, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Spain, and the UK.


While they will be personally delivering the proceeds of fund-raising they have been carrying out for much of the past year, their biggest donations will be in the form of "muscle power." Qantas is supporting the exercise by providing ground transport, flying in 1 ton of donated items and providing some logistical support.


The volunteers are taking the time for the trip from their annual vacation allowances, away from their regular duties at their respective airlines.


The team is drawn from across the air transport career ladder -- from flight attendants and pilots to managers. They are united in a desire to help those less fortunate than themselves.


While in Johannesburg, they will focus their attention on three projects, working with:


-- Nkosi's Haven, a center for women, babies, children and young people
suffering from HIV, where they will help renovate 16 cottages and a
cricket pitch and basketball court.
-- MES (Methodist Evangelical Services) New Haven for Life, which provides
a home for street kids who are starting to go to school, where they
will renovate the building and courtyard and install 50 beds, costing
US$7,000, purchased through their fund-raising.
-- FLOC (For the Love of Children), an inner city pre-school where 40
places are sponsored by the Qantas Cabin Crew Team. The volunteers
will give all the children at the school an educational day out and
party.

 Printable Version  | published Oct 29, 2007