America Supports You: Airlines Ask Frequent Flyers to be Heroes

America Supports You ^ | Samantha L. Quigley

[SandRat]

WASHINGTON, May 22, 2007 – Ten airlines are stepping up to the plate for families of injured servicemembers and encouraging their passengers to do the same.

“The president of CNN challenged his staff to do something over Memorial Day weekend,” Jim Weiskopf, vice president of communications for the Fisher House Foundation, said. “They looked around at a couple options and they decided that they would like to do a drive to get us more ‘Hero Miles.’”

The Fisher House Foundation is a member of America Supports You, a Defense Department program connecting citizens and corporations with military personnel and their families serving at home and abroad. It also administers the Defense Department’s Hero Miles program, which provides free airline tickets to servicemembers injured during their service in Iraq or Afghanistan and their families.

To get the ball rolling, CNN contacted all 10 of the Hero Miles program’s airline partners and asked if they would agree to a challenge. The airlines agreed to match every frequent flyer mile their passengers donate to the program between 6 a.m. May 25 and 11:59 p.m. May 28, Weiskopf said.

“As you might imagine, most of the ticketing we do is all at the last minute because it’s all connected to medical emergencies,” Weiskopf said. “Normally, the tickets we’re getting today are for flights leaving tomorrow and the day after.”

If servicemembers’ families had to pay out of pocket, those tickets average more than $1,300 each. Considering Hero Miles has provided about 9,800 tickets, that’s more than $12 million the program has been able to save servicemembers and their families, Weiskopf said. That’s the equivalent of about 450 million miles in the three and a half years since the program began.

While Hero Miles makes sure any family member who wants to be at their servicemember’s side can be, it also covers what Weiskopf terms “close friends.”

“I use the terminology ‘close friends’ because if you’re young and single, it’s nice to have your mother and father there, but you probably really want your boyfriend or girlfriend,” he said. “If that will help you recover, we’ll bring them in.”

The same is true for any other person -- pastor or former coach, for example -- in a servicemember’s life who might inspire a speedy recovery, he said. He emphasized, however, that the tickets Hero Miles provides are for medically necessary travel only. Tickets for regular leave requests cannot be accommodated.

Though Hero Miles accepts donations of frequent flyer miles year-round, those who would like to make donations during this weekend when they’ll count twice as much can find links on each of the participating airlines’ Web sites. AirTran, American Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta, Frontier, Midwest Airlines, Northwest Airlines, United, and U.S. Airways are participating.

Links to these airlines also can be found on the Fisher House Foundation’s “Hero Miles” Web page, www.fisherhouse.org/programs/heroMiles.shtml.

“We are so deeply appreciative for the generosity of the American flying public,” Weiskopf said. “Individually, (the airlines) have all told us that this is perhaps the most meaningful frequent flyer program that they have been associated with in the history of the airline because (the miles) are going right to the people who need them most.

Related Sites:
Fisher House Foundation
America Supports You

[SandRat]

Heroes at Home with Hearts as big as the sky for Real American Heroes.

[SevenofNine]

Hey Sandrat I am shock CNN doing this

OMG

[freema]

Ping!

[Tuscaloosa Goldfinch]

bump

[lilycicero]

What a great ping and super gesture!

[jazusamo]

Big BUMP!

[Shimmer128]

thought you might want to read this. :)

[freema]

Bump it up! and heading to bed! Charles Barclay on Letterman.
“Everyone knows the Republicans are screwed up.”
(Gore will be on later this week.)

[Joann37]

I am not that familiar with the intricacies of airline ticketing and government reimbursements, but I don’t see why military personnel and their families should have to pay for tickets to begin with (while traveling to and from duty or to and from visits to the injured loved one).

If a soldier is wounded, I am sure a medical emergency would be readily verifiable. Why can’t these airlines give out free tickets for this reason, or why can’t the government fund the cost of these tickets? They sure pay for every trip anyone in Congress makes, and they transport illegal aliens for free on the rare occasion there’s a deportation.

Again, I am not familiar with these procedures so my questions are not rhetorical. But our military personel and their families should NOT have to worry about transportation; they do enough for us already.

[AnnaZ]

Ping.

[SandRat]

If the service member is traveling on Official Government Orders then the ticket is paid for by the government. All other travel is at the service members expense. Those are the rules in what is known as the Joint Travel Regulation that is set and approved by.......... you guessed it KongGrass.

That regulation is available on the web. Just search for Military Joint Travel Regulation or Government Joint Travel Regulation.

[sam_paine]

Finally. AA hadn't participated until now, and now they match, too.

In conjunction with a special initiative promoted by CNN Worldwide to raise awareness for Fisher House this Memorial Day weekend, we will begin accepting donations for Operation Hero Miles again effective May 25, 2007. And, to show our support, American Airlines will match all donations made from 6:00 a.m. (ET) on Friday, May 25, through 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Monday, May 28.
Please check back on Friday, May 25, 2007 for information regarding how to donate your miles.

http://www.aa.com/content/urls/heromiles.jhtml

What kinda deal is that? What do I bet you I call the AAdvantage desk at 7AM on friday and they have no clue.

[sam_paine]

Charles Barclay on Letterman. “Everyone knows the Republicans are screwed up.”

Uh, well....considering immigration....the social conservatives vs. Rudy....how in the world can you argue with his point?

The GOP right now is certainly fubar if not screwed up....

[Letaka]

I was frankly thinking long and hard about another use of some of my miles, but this post has caused me to rethink that, so I’m really grateful that it was included here. How very thoughtful.

[Malsua]

Dang, I have 60+ thousand worthless Asiana miles, they aren’t a partner with fisher house.

I have some others with onepass I can donate.