The North Carolina National Guard said it had deployed more than 200 vehicles and aircraft, “including hoist and emergency aviation assets,” along with more than 500 soldiers and airmen in the state.

“NC Air National Guard is hauling over 100,000 pounds of supplies from the Federal Emergency Management Agency in a C17 to Western North Carolina as part of Helene support,” it said in a post on X Monday afternoon.

According to the National Guard, some 5,500 national guardsmen have been deployed as part of the Hurricane Helene relief efforts in 11 states.

In areas where roads are impassable, helicopters are being used to airlift in supplies and rescue trapped people. Photographs from the region show people climbing aboard military helicopters carrying bundles of clothing, house pets, and meager belongings they were able to save from the rising waters.

Many of the flood-ravaged areas are only reachable by air as the roads are blocked by flood debris, downed power lines, mud, and flooded-out cars.

NC Air National Guard is hauling over 100,000 pounds of supplies from the Federal Emergency Management Agency in a C17 to Western #NorthCarolina as part of #Helene support.

: Maj. Monica Ebert pic.twitter.com/cAY4ndpVKE

— NC National Guard (@NCNationalGuard) September 30, 2024

• READ MORE: Volunteer Owner-Pilots Needed For Helene Relief 

In Asheville, one of the hardest hit areas, officials struggled to provide drinking water, food, and other necessary supplies to the residents of the mountain town where at least 35 people are believed to have died. Communication in the area is spotty at best as internet and phone lines are down.

Operation Airdrop

In North Carolina relief is also coming from civilian organization Operation Airdrop, which as of noon EST Monday had approximately 2,000 volunteers flying civilian aircraft to bring supplies to the area.

The nonprofit organization was created in 2017 to help in times of disaster.

Early Monday morning, Operation Airdrop flights began launching from Concord-Padgett Regional Airport (KJQF), transporting supplies to Hickory Regional Airport (KHKY) and Statesville Regional Airport (KSVH), where they will be further distributed. Pilots are encouraged to bring supplies with them. Pilots operating out of KJQF will receive a 75 cent per gallon discount on fuel purchased from the FBO.

At this time, Operation Airdrop is accepting the following items for disbursement:

• Sports drinks (powdered packets)
• Hydration packs (powder form)
• Baby wipes
• Diapers (children and adults)
• Baby formula
• Bug spray
• Sunscreen
• Plastic utensils
• Manual can openers
• Trash bags (13 gallon or contractor bags)
• Nonperishable foods
• Cleaning supplies
• Plastic sheeting/tarps
• Toothbrushes
• Toothpaste
• Toiletries/sanitation items
• Pet food (dog and cat)
• Hand sanitizer
• Sanitizer wipes
• Feminine hygiene products
• Heavy duty work gloves
• Socks (all sizes, unopened)

The organization cannot accept donations of water due to the weight or hazardous substances including fuel, flammable items, used clothing, or bleach.

Operation Airdrop notes that volunteers are essential to the mission as they are needed for organizing, unloading, sorting, and loading supplies.

Relief operations are expected to last throughout the week. 

Meanwhile in south Georgia, the community of Valdosta and Wings of Rescue are asking for help to move dogs and cats from the city’s animal shelters prior to the storm to safety. Many of the animals were placed in the shelters by their owners who were facing flooding. 

Ryan Spellman, Director of Operations at Airdrop, Discusses Helene Efforts: 

The post National Guard Deploys Air Assets in North Carolina Helene Response appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

Operation Airdrop has established a base at Concord-Padgett Regional Airport (KJQF) in North Carolina and is inviting owner-pilots to volunteer to operate supply flights to the storm-ravaged area. Pilots without their own aircraft and ground volunteers are also welcome to apply.

Most roads remain impassable and whole towns have been virtually obliterated by the massive storm.

“Flight operations will begin on Monday, September 30, 2024,” the group said in a Facebook post. “We’re calling on volunteer pilots to get ready to deploy! Multiple destinations are set, with Asheville Regional Airport (KAVL) being our largest, and other locations (with and without airport access) that are in need.”

Volunteers will get a 75-cent-a-gallon discount on fuel at the Concord FBO. Details for pilot participation can be found on the organization’s website.

Ryan Spellman, Director of Operations at Airdrop, Discusses Helene Efforts: 

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared on AVweb.

The post Volunteer Owner-Pilots Needed for Helene Relief appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

We’ve all seen the reports of the devastation that’s being caused by Hurricane Ida. Homes are devastated, hundreds of thousands are without power, and worse. As so often happens during these types of disasters, members of the aviation community have already started to pitch in or stand by at the ready, doing whatever they can do to help victims of this natural disaster.

“Lots of people are hurting. We’re on our way,” said Trevor Norman, the national chapter coordinator for Aerobridge, one of a few organizations around the country that use donated aircraft to send vital supplies to areas affected by disaster.

For Norman’s group, what that means right now is setting up and staging supplies in Pensacola, Florida. Then, once it’s safe to fly there, sending supplies to three areas hit very hard by Ida:

• Hammond, Louisiana
• Houma, Louisiana
• Golden Meadow, Louisiana

However, the path of the storm is making things move a little bit slower than they’d like.

“We’re not flying [Monday] and we’re probably not flying [Tuesday] because the storm has slowed down,” Norman said.

Meanwhile, Steve Purello, the executive director of Angel Flights Southeast, says that once it’s safe to do so, they’ll be heading to Houma with Steve Ewing, the president of another rescue organization, Crossroads Alliance and Ministries, to do some recon work so that Ewing’s group knows what they need to do to be effective.

In the meantime, Angel Flights and Crossroads have a staging area in Ocala, Florida where they’re getting supplies ready to send to Louisiana.

‘We Just Do Our Job’

In all, Purello says Angel Flights Southeast has done about 1,500 missions of varying intensities and complications.

“Our most challenging one was Puerto Rico after a hurricane there,” Purello said. “It was just so hard to get people the things they needed because things weren’t set up very well.”

He said there were similar challenges during Hurricane Katrina back in 2005. But even though reports were that Ida may have been a stronger storm than Katrina, Purello didn’t expect things to be quite as difficult this time around.

“Even if the storm was as bad as Katrina, it won’t be as bad because they’ve got the levees figured out,” he said.

Whatever the obstacles, Purello says when the bell rings, his group as well as the many they partner with are ready to answer the call.

“We just do our job,” he said. “Whatever comes up. We just do our job.”

How You Can Help

There are a few ways that you can help the many people affected by Hurricane Ida.

You can send supplies to the staging areas in Pensacola and Ocala. Items in great need include:

• Sports drinks
• Bottled water
• Baby supplies (diapers, formula, baby food, baby clothing)
• Non-perishable food (canned, boxed cereal Mac n cheese, canned meats & vegetables
• Generators
• Tarps
• Hygiene Kits
• Hand soap
• Shampoo
• Toilet paper
• Toothbrush toothpaste
• Deodorant
• Wash Cloth
• Towels
• Bedsheets, pillows
• Bleach
• Disaster buckets that include: trash bags, Pine Sol, sponges, gloves, bleach, zip lock gallon bags, flashlights, batteries
• Chain Saws

In Pensacola, you can ship to:

Pensacola Aviation Center

C/o Aerobridge

4145 Jerry L. Maygarden Rd.

Pensacola, Florida 32504

In Ocala, the address is:

5580 SE 37th Place

Ocala, Florida 34480

Many organizations are also always on the lookout for pilots to volunteer their time to fly missions.

Contact one of the local or national aviation relief organizations to find out how you can be of service. Organizations include:

• AeroBridge
• Air Care Alliance
• Air Charity Network
• AirServ International
• Angel Flight Southeast
• Emergency Volunteer Air Corps
• Operation Airdrop
• Samaritan’s Purse

The post Aviation Community Helping Victims of Hurricane Ida appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

The scene is brutal: Miles of devastated houses, beaches, and businesses on the main island of Abaco in the Bahamas. Waves lash over the flooded runway at Marsh Harbour airport, clearly closing off the normal means by which people travel here from across the ocean. No ferries, even. Hurricane Dorian churned its way through these islands just a couple of days ago, taking its own awful time.

Pilots who have flown here for vacations and relaxation, for business and pleasure—all watch now in frustration as they wait for a way to help, feeling viscerally the pain of the people stranded on the islands they love without power, fuel, or electricity. A handful have flown over to witness the destruction and contemplate how they can return with supplies, or evacuate more people who need the lift. Flying spoke with one Miami-based pilot who has visited the area countless times in his Cessna 210, and he described the gut-wrenching emotions he felt—and the helplessness he hopes will turn soon into action.

Various aviation rescue and relief organizations stand ready to mobilize. We spoke earlier this week with Allison Hoyt, communications director for Operation Airdrop, based in Texas. “[The logistics] change with every hurricane,” said Hoyt, in terms of from where the relief effort is staged, and how many aircraft and pilots are needed. The organization seeks aircraft owners willing to fly their airplanes from a given geographical area, but those without airplanes can help out too. “Those [who don’t have aircraft] but are pilots can help out well on the ground,” said Hoyt. Pilots are assigned tasks such as loading and servicing, because their skills (knowing how to run a weight-and-balance calculation) and awareness (staying out of prop arcs) come in handy.

Operation Airdrop stages from a single airport, typically, to help it keep tabs on all aspects of the effort and maximize its small budget. Because of the scale of the projected Bahamas effort, as of Wednesday, September 4, the organization has requested that only pilots with high performance singles or twins, or turbine aircraft register for this specific mission. Extensive Bahamas flight experience is also required. In fact, for this effort, Operation Airdrop projects that much of the relief will come by water, given that the islands lay only four to five hours away by boat.

Other rescue/relief organizations, such as AeroBridge and Mercy Flight Southeast, coordinate similar missions too. All seek donations and volunteers year-round; more information can be found on their respective websites.

One thing that will be critical to the success of the relief effort for the Bahamas, however, was still not solidified at press time: how to coordinate all of the separate but related efforts through bureaucratic processes—chiefly customs and immigration, given the clear fact the Bahamas are not part of the United States. On the Bahamas Customs Department site, only a registration form for EMTs (emergency medical technicians) was active as of Wednesday. With only certain airports in south Florida housing customs on site, coordination with U.S. Customs upon return will be required—just one of many logistical hurdles that any relief effort must surmount before real assistance can be delivered.

For now, with most of the infrastructure damaged—or simply disappeared—the focus remains on evacuation and medical attention. A long road to rebuilding lies ahead.

The post Rescue Organizations Get Ready for Bahamas Relief appeared first on FLYING Magazine.