Fernie – Cranbrook – Creston – Golden – Invermere – Nelson – Sparwood
We will not be flying December 26 – 28, 2023 for the winter holidays. See you in 2024!
Angel Flight East Kootenay was founded in April 2019 by Brent Bidston (Ret. Airline Captain), and is an entirely volunteer-led charitable organization with no paid employees. Our mission is to fly residents of the East Kootenays to treatment centres in Kelowna, for free!
As a registered charity we are currently accepting donations to be able to continue offering free flights. Every donation goes a long way, and you can choose to have a tax receipt for your donation if you would like.
Each flight’s departure and arrival times are planned around the appointment times of the passengers. Actual arrival and departure times will be communicated to the passengers two days prior to departure. We do drop offs, same day returns and pick ups. Our flight days are Tuesday – Wednesday – Thursday.
We fly our pressurized twin Cessna 414A out of the Bid Air Terminal at the Cranbrook International Airport. This is the red hanger on your right hand side, as you approach the main terminal. Parking is available in front of the hanger. In Kelowna, we land at the Shell Aerocentre, 6197 Airport Way. Taxis can be arranged prior to arrival.
WE DO HAVE SOME BASIC LIMITIATIONS:
– Passengers must be able to walk to, and board a small light aircraft. Our plane has three steps to get inside, with a rope handrail.
– Due to limited space, we cannot take wheelchairs or walking frames.
– No medical assistance is available during flight.
– We cannot take people with a communicable illness.
– There are no washroom facilities on the aircraft.
Our flight days are Tuesday – Wednesday – Thursday. Appointments starting before 10 am PST (Kelowna time) or after 12 noon are not able to be serviced for a same day travel to and from Kelowna, and will require an overnight stay. Some exceptions apply.
Note: We will note be flying December 26-28, 2023 for the winter holidays. See you in 2024!
Flights are booked on a first come, first serve basis, so it is important to request your flight as soon as you have an appointment date! There are five seats available per flight.
Requesting a flight is simple, and can be completed in the following two steps:
1. Fill out the FLIGHT REQUEST FORM. We will use this to confirm your eligibility for the flight.
2. Download, print, and fill out both pages of the WAIVER, and in the case of a minor, the INDEMNITY form. These MUST be completed and signed by your doctor prior to your flight. Consider them your airplane ticket. You MUST get them back to us by email, or text photos of each full page to 250-430-1188. Escorts must also fill out a waiver, however they do not need a medical signature.
Angel Flight East Kootenay is expanding its fleet with a 1979 twin-engined, seven-seat airplane. Brent Bidston, Angel Flight EK founder, said the aircraft will let them fly in worse weather as the plane is fully de-iced. “Our area is very challenging because the mountains are so high. If we’re operating in cloud even in the […]
Organization ferried 11 patients to and from Kelowna in a single day at the end of January TREVOR CRAWLEY Angel Flight East Kootenay recently hit a milestone 600 flights at the end of January, including a return trip to the region with a completely full airplane. It was also a significant day in that […]
Thank you to Angel Flights from Creston! You gave me a safe and smooth flight home from Kelowna after my heart surgery. You took away the worry about how I was going to get home. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!!
Brent Bidston – President and lead pilot
We immigrated from the UK to Canada in 2005 and have been living in Fernie ever since. I was an Airline Captain for my 30 year career. When we immigrated I was working for Korean Air as a Captain on their A330 fleet but took early retirement in 2009 to live full time in the Elk Valley.
My Wife and I joined BC Ambulance and served 10 years at the Fernie station. During that time I started the Elk Valley Air Search and Rescue Association, a unit of CASARA, and have been operating in the Rocky Mountains since 2012.
I now look forward to getting Angel Flight East Kootenay up and running while also running and Air Search and Rescue.
Rob McInnis – Director and pilot
Rob is a retired airline pilot who continues to enjoy aviation in retirement whether teaching his wife Deb to fly in their own aircraft, flying corporate charters, flight instructing, soaring, or pretty much anything that gets him into the air.
Rob is especially enthusiastic about Angel Flights as it is a way to help those in need while doing something he loves.
During the summer months, Cristalle can be found flying tanker planes to fight wildfires! During the winter months, we are lucky to have her as one of our volunteer pilots.
A longtime pilot in the commercial aviation industry, Neil has recently joined our Angel Flight team. We are so pleased to have him!
Colin has been flying for over 25 years and is currently flying with West Jet Airlines. He recently joined our Angel Flight team, and we are happy to have him!
Angel Pilot Ben has been a professional pilot for almost 30 years, and has flown charter, medivac, cargo, and Boeing 737, 757, 767, 777 and Airbus 330/340 aircraft all around the world for different airlines. If you can’t find Ben in the sky, you’ll find him teaching the next generation of ski instructors in the Rocky Mountains or rolling around a bowl on his skateboard.
Janet is the behind the scenes magic for Angel Flight East Kootenay. When you book a flight, Janet will be the friendly voice on the phone.
As Angel Flight has grown, so has the need for additional ground crew! As a long time user of Angel Flight, Skye brings a first-hand appreciation of the initiative, and assists with the booking of flights.
Thank you to all the local businesses that have help us along the way!
Rick Jarrett
Brad & Jake Letkeman
John Ankutowicz
Bruce Calder
Jane Maradyn
Wally Otting
Noel Nethercote
Wm. Paul Hooker, MD
Joyce Casler
David Barrett
Vern Mcgarrigle
Skip DeCoste
Terry MacRitchie
Marilin States Grahn
Joyce Hagal
Eva Sherry
Kenneth Aikin
Joseph Lavigne
Paul Fergus
Jane Maradyn
Edna & John Krzyzewski
Benny Mangone