By Tim Saunders on
Harrison Ford is the latest star to put his pilot skills to work for Haiti.
Following John Travolta and Ludacris' mercy missions to fly supplies to the country following the earthquake on January 12, Ford has now used his own Cessna to fly in volunteers and and medical supplies for Operation Smile.
“This is not about me, it is just about doing what I can to help Operation Smile and the people of Haiti,” said the Indiana Jones star.
“We are truly thankful that we were able to get here so quickly, in order to begin treatment of patients who are suffering from infections, open wounds, and untreated fractures from the recent earthquake,” added Operation Smile team leader and plastic surgeon Dr Craig Merrell.
Flying is a passion for the actor. In 2004, Ford became the Honorary Chairman of Young Eagles, a program designed to give children a chance to fly in an aircraft for free. The initiative was launched in 1992, and has since flown over 1.3 million children, with volunteer pilots covering all of the costs. Ford has flown over 280 children in his own time, showing them the wide-open plains and rugged mountain areas of America. He says it is the best way to educate young people about nature, and about themselves.
“One of the wonderful things about aviation is that freedom and responsibility are great things for kids to be exposed to,” he told Airport Journals. “To be able to see the world in a three-dimensional way, and to give them a sense of the possibility that they might enjoy that freedom themselves, if they work for it.”
To read more about Harrison Ford’s charity history, click here.
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