Chester County pilot honored transporting people in life-saving flights

WEST CHESTER, Pa. - To many people a local volunteer pilot is like a real-life angel, helping them get the critical medical care they need and he does it all for free.

"This is a Cirrus SR22," said 73-year-old Rob Newman as he pre-flights.

"One of the really cool things about the plane is the way the doors look," he said as he opened them, checking everything ahead of take-off.

"Fuel, oil, turn it on, check the batteries and go around to check the lights," he said. Thursday Newman is taking FOX 29’s Shawnette Wilson and photojournalist Starling Underwood on a drive around Chester County from Brandywine Airport in West Chester.

But he’s usually flying for life-saving reasons. "It’s kind of combining something I really like to do with people who really need some help," he said.

Newman is a volunteer pilot for Angel Flight East. It’s an organization that flies people in need of critical medical care for free.

"A lot of times when we meet people it’s not always the best day of their life. They’re headed for a serious medical procedure, on their way back from one or it’s a chronic condition," said Newman.

He showed a picture of one of his flight patients, a mother and her two young daughters.

"The one little girl had an eye tumor and had her eye removed at Children’s Hospital and I was taking her from Erie, Pennsylvania coming back to CHOP for one of her checkups to be fitted for prosthesis," he said.

Newman has been with Angel Flight since 2018. He’s done 47 missions. They relieve the financial burden on families who have to travel to far away medical procedures and a private flight protects them from further sickness in crowded airports on commercial flights. A team of pilots donate their hours and fuel to make it happen.

"I’ve got to plan a mission to a new airport I’ve never been to. I’ve gotta do the weather and the flight plan," said Newman. "I have a reason to go fly rather than just you and I, ‘Hey it’s a beautiful day let’s go to Cape May and have lunch and fly back.’"

During a benefit gala last weekend Angel Flight East honored Newman as its Pilot of the Year.

"I really encourage everybody to find something that they’re good at, help somebody and it’s all around building a better community," he said.

Newman says Angel Flight East did more than 1,000 flights last year and that they have plenty of pilots. They’re looking for more families in need who they can help.