As with some of the earlier posts, most memorable doesn't have to be most famous and, while there were a few "names" along the way, two flights involving quite ordinary people stand out clearly in my memory.
One involved a lad of about 7, terminally ill, who was taken on a trip with his mother in 1996. Of course, there were a couple of adult hangers on came as well! So, I picked up the 206 into the hover and the little lad, seated in the middle between his mum and his aunt, got quite excited by it all as I manoeuvred around the ramp and taxied out for take-off. However, as we got airborne he couldn't see anything out of the windows and lost interest. As we got overhead where he lived, it turned into an adults-only enjoying the view trip while he concentrated on eating some sweets he had. So, on a hunch, I cut it short and went back to hangar.
However, instead of landing straight on, I went to the open grass area adjoining the ramp from where the lad could still see all the buildings and the hangars and proceeeded to do spot turns, sidewards and backwards and 360 turns while taxiing slowy along. With the adults now reduced to holding on to their seats, the little lad was thrilled and whooped with delight until I set it down.
He passed away a few weeks later.
The other involved a seriously ill woman who couldn't travel by road to her daughter's wedding in September, 1997. Doctors agreed to the helicopter transfer which would take about an hour and a half with a stop en route. We got to the hotel and landed on a thru'penny bit of clear area out front to be greeted by over a hundred assembled family members and other guests who cheered loudly and applauded as we took her out of the aircraft. The heli was used to bring her to a neighbouring vilage for the wedding the next day and then back to the hospital. To my embarrassment, I was treated like some kind of conquering hero and invited to all the festivities the following day.
She died a few days after getting back to the hospital.
All very sad, of course, but they stand out in memory and reminders, if they were needed, that we are all invariably far better off than we think we are and our troubles few compared to what they could be.
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