Children take to the skies in Little Annie
On Saturday, Little Annie, an Antonov AN-2 aeroplane, and the Just Love Mission (JLM) family visited Springs Airfield to share the joy of flying with a group of youngsters from Kids Haven, in Benoni.
The 42 children and their supervisors took to the skies above Springs for their first flight experience.
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Celebrating his birthday that day, Jon-Mark Hill, the pilot, says excitement was running high.
“The reaction during the flight was amazing, ranging from nervousness, which can probably be attributed to the fear of the unknown, to sheer exhilaration.
“The children viewed the earth from above and felt the turbulence as Little Annie completed a wide circuit,” he says.
Safely back on terra firma, the children were treated to refreshments, donated by a local businessman, and each received a frisbee as a gift.
JLM would like to thank Raymond Ayre, of Springs Airfield, for accommodating the outreach and making it possible for the children to enjoy the lovely facilities.
They also thank the staff and organisers of Kids Haven for the sterling job they are doing under extremely difficult circumstances, with limited support.
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The JLM’s vision is to change people’s lives positively through neighbourly love (Ubuntu) by means of aviation awareness in the Little Annie Antonov AN-2 aircraft.
“The aircraft was donated out of love and flown all the way from Siberia, Russia, to South Africa for this specific purpose,” says Hill.
He explains that the aircraft’s name was inspired by the classic comic strip and subsequent film, Annie.
“The movie is about a young orphan who, through her positive outlook and undying hope of being reunited with her family, impacted the lives of those around her in a meaningful way. It was only natural that the aircraft registration, ZU-JLM, should assume the name Little Annie.”
JLM believes that the foundation of love is to “treat others as you would want them to treat you”. This, if infused with a positive attitude, is paid forward to others, within the scope of one’s natural talent, so that then peace and harmony will prevail, smothering hatred and greed.
Hill says people can follow the adventures of Little Annie and how she navigates the realities of life, through aviation.
JLM can be contacted on 081 777 0444 or info@littleannie.co.za.
