“Communication is the bridge between confusion and clarity.”
Once a flight has been set up, communication between the volunteer pilot and the passenger is extremely important to the mission. Here are a few tips to keep everyone on the same page.
- Before making any changes on a flight, notify our office first. This includes changing airports, changing planes, changing co-pilot, or anything else that impacts the flight.
- The pilot determines the time of flight and communicates this to the passenger & the Mission Coordinator. If it is a multi-leg flight, then the volunteer pilots will coordinate the time of departure/arrival.
- Verify the airport & FBO names and addresses with the passenger to reduce confusion at the airport. The Mission Coordinators send the passenger an emailed itinerary with the Airport & FBO addresses along with the pilot’s name, cell #, Aircraft model & tail #. We find out airport/FBO information through AirNav.com. If you have any additional information to help the passenger arrive at the correct terminal, please provide this to them. This may be their first time flying through an FBO and may not know what that term means or they may be using an Uber/Taxi driver who is unfamiliar with the FBO.
- All volunteer pilots have the final go/no go say where weather is concerned, and this is never questioned. If you need to cancel a flight because of the weather, contact the passenger as soon as possible and then contact the LifeLine Pilots Mission Coordinators.
- Most of our passengers are easy to contact. If you are having a difficult time contacting a passenger, please let us know and we will help!
The more communication the easier the flight will be. We appreciate our pilots keeping us in-the-loop on all flights.
As always, if you have any questions, our Mission Coordinators are here to help. They can be reached at missions@lifelinepilots.org or 800-822-7972.
Happy Flying from the LifeLine Pilots Team!