Come Fly With Me!

A few of our residents were able to fly a plane recently in a very extraordinary, and exciting, activity outing!

Last week, Bob Burns, 87, Ian Kingsland, 83 and Jimmy Oliver, 88 were able to fly a Boeing 737, a Spitfire and F35 Combat Fighter as part of a flight simulator experience at Brunswick based Flight Sim Centre.

The occasion was organised by the wellbeing team at Cramlington House as flying has a very special meaning to those involved. Bob served in the RAF as ground crew and always wanted to fly. Ian Kingsland served in the Parachute Regiment reserves and his dream was to fly a plane – he always jumped out of them but never got to land one. Jimmy thought it would be a once in a lifetime experience that he wanted to try.

Kim Stubbs, Our Wellbeing Champion at Cramlington House, said: “Our key priority is providing highly personalised care that’s relevant and appropriate to the specific care needs of each resident. We organised the flight simulator experience because of the benefits we knew it would provide to Bob, Ian and Jimmy.

“It was wonderful to see the sheer awe on their faces when flying and how happy, content and relaxed they all were. People have misperceptions about care homes and don’t understand just how much the specialised activities we organise improve their quality of life and overall wellbeing. It’s days like this when I realise that I have one of the best jobs in the world.”

As part of the simulator experience, Bob, Ian and Jimmy were able to ‘take off’, ‘land’ and tour different regions of the UK and America.

They each had such an amazing experience and couldn’t wait to tell others, their families and staff when they returned home.

A day after the flying experience, Bob Burns said: “I’ve just come back down to earth this morning – yesterday was absolutely fantastic.”

Jimmy Oliver added: “It felt marvellous! It was an unusual but wonderful thing to be able to do. I feel like I could fly a real plane and keep telling others that I could definitely take them to Tenerife or their next holiday destination!

Back to Blog

What people are saying

"I am very pleased with how my mother has settled in and generally how supportive and caring the staff are. This has given us peace of mind knowing that she is safe & well looked after. Thank you."
"Our mum has been a resident at Cramlington House for over a year and we have nothing but praise for the friendly, approachable staff and management. We always feel like part of an extended family and when we visit nothing is too much bother. We are completely happy with the standard of care, support and understanding we all receive as a family."
"From the first day, I knew it was the place for my mum. Clean, friendly staff, lovely environment! My mum would not get the opportunity to do the activities she is experiencing if she was not in Cramlington House. It is home from home and we can visit anytime. I can't say enough of how great Cramlington House is. "
"This is an absolutely superb care facility. The staff say that this is the home of the residents, in which they work - and they evidence that philosophy every day. In the last months of our mother's long life, we took comfort form the fact that she was safe and secure, being well-fed and looked after. The entire care team are brilliant. "
"All the staff at West Farm have provided such wonderful care, compassion and support to my auntie. We both feel incredibly lucky to have found West Farm, it’s been the perfect home for my auntie. I can honestly say, hand on heart, every aspect of the care provided by each member of staff at West Farm has been outstanding."