LEESBURG, Va. (DC News Now) — Dozens of planes filled with essential items flew out of Leesburg Executive Airport all day Thursday, heading to areas of the South where people are recovering from the devastation caused by Helene.
Jonathan Loveless and Jon Rooney with Kuhn Aviation said after they saw the damage done by the storm, they wanted to find a way to help.
“We have pilots,” Rooney said. “We have planes. We have a community here. We have a hangar. We have space in this hangar. You know, why not?”
They teamed up with the Smokehouse Pilots Club and the word started to spread amongst the community. Soon, they had a hangar full of donated supplies.
“Baby products,” Loveless said, listing some of what they collected. “Feminine products, shelf-stable foods, generic medical supplies, cleaning supplies, etcetera.”
The supplies are weighed and loaded into the planes. Then, it’s time for dozens of pilots to takeoff, bound for many locations.
“Down to Concord, North Carolina,” Loveless said. “Lincoln County. We did a flight into Jackson County, North Carolina, and we just dispatched a flight out to Greeneville, Tennessee.”
“We moved into this community to be with people that really care about others,” Smokehouse Pilots Club member Fernando Hernandez said, “and this community really cares about everybody.”
Kuhn Aviation and Smokehouse Pilots Club will continue flying supplies to the areas affected by Helene through Sunday, Oct. 6. Donations can be dropped off at the Kuhn Aviation Hangar.
