14-year-old Kael is an aspiring 4th generation pilot (his dad, grandfather, and great-grandfather are all pilots!) who dreams of the day he’ll be in the captain's chair, soaring above the towns and people below.
“To see the landscape when you look out the window, how everything is so small when you’re up in the air, discovering the cities and tall buildings,” is what Kael says he loves most about being in the air.
Flying takes Kael to a place filled only with blue skies, a place where he doesn’t have a blood disorder that requires a lifetime of weekly blood transfusions. His wish was to fly. But how could we grant his when he’s not yet old enough to train for his pilot’s license? Where there’s a wish, there’s a way. In partnership with NetJets and FlightSafety International in Columbus, Ohio, Kael flew from San Francisco International Airport to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in a state-of-the-art flight simulator, the same simulator some of the finest pilots in the world train on. And he got to do it with his dad and grandfather by his side.
“This is your Captain, Kael. We are at 22,000 feet, and we are smooth in flight,” said Kael from the cockpit. “The best part was being able to see inside the plane, and the cockpit, and to control it...everything was so cool. I had my buddy here, dad, flying with me. He gave a lot of tips. I felt like a real pilot.”
After safely landing his aircraft, Kael was surprised with a party complete with a DJ, games, face-painting, plus a gaming computer and Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 to continue his flight training at home.
“Kael misses quite a lot of school and things like parties and events due to his transfusions,” said his mom, Mandy. “To be able to have something so special just for him, not something that he’s missing out on, something he’s able to do because of the challenges in his life, he could be just like everyone else and for a day, live a dream and not have to worry about all the medical things in the background. He really wants to do this when he grows up, he now has this flight simulator at home, and he’s able to fly at home, and it has lit a spark in him.”
Kael’s wish is just the beginning—the sky is the limit!
