For many of the children, it was their first time on an aircraft.
Children and their families from a number of charities including CLIC Sargent, Mencap NI, Woman’s Aid, Homestart Kinship Care NI as well as families nominated through Thomas Cook social media channels were greeted by check-in staff dressed in Christmas jumpers, sang Christmas songs and carols, had their faces painted and enjoyed festive fun with Father Christmas’ Elves, Princess Elsa and Batman.
As the airplane took off for the one hour flight, the pilot urged children to cheer as loud as possible to get the engine going, and crew had children cheering and singing as they eagerly searched for Father Christmas out of the window. They then met the man himself on-board and received a special Christmas gift.
Aoife McDonogh from the Thomas Cook Children’s Charity said: “It was a magical day for all involved. For many, this was their very first time on an aircraft and it is fantastic to be able to create memories that I’m sure will stay with them for a long time. We are committed to improving children’s lives through our Thomas Cook Children’s Charity, the generosity of staff and holidaymakers means that we are able to bring a lots of smiles to really deserving children and their families.”
The Thomas Cook Children’s charity raised over £1m to support nominated charities in regions throughout the UK in 2017, which enables three festive flights (also Manchester and East Midlands) for hundreds of deserving children in the run up to Christmas.
