Help Save Animals from Kill Shelters - Fund Rescue Plane.

Welcome and thanks for taking the time to consider my GoFundMe request, and yes, I know it's a strange high goal request, but please hear me out and read on.

The purpose of this fundraiser is to raise funds to buy the first airplane to start up an on-demand air charter service, which will in turn fund animal rescue flights as well as disaster relief missions.

690,000 animals in shelters were euthanized in the U.S. in 2023 .

Many U.S. animal shelters, primarily in the South and West, are high-kill shelters. What this means is that they euthanize animals brought to them very quickly rather than keeping them safe until they're adopted.

What I propose to do is to fly to these areas, and with the help of local rescue organizations, grab plane loads of these otherwise doomed animals and fly them to the safe care of rescue organizations in the North and North East that have more adopter demands available. In many cases, the rescue groups have already found the animals forever homes before they're even loaded on the plane. Thousands of these precious animals are killed every day! Help me save as many as I can!

Why a plane and not drive them in a packed truck? It's more humane by FAR. Think of a 4 hour flight vs a 24 hr drive without water or getting out of their cages. That's why a plane is the most humane way to transport them over long distances.

How many animals can we rescue annually with this plane? Well that depends on the size of the plane I'm able to get and of course the size of the animals. I'm hoping for at least 1,000 animals per year. Many charities focus on smaller dogs as it looks better to donors if they have larger numbers overall. As a German Shepherd owner all my life, I will not leave the big dogs behind! One of the benefits of self funding with the charter end of the business is that I don't need to impress anyone with statistics in order to get donations. If I suddenly get a call that one or two dogs need to be rescued immediately, I can do it, and will.

There are some other charity organizations that do this; however they rely entirely on donations. One who's name I won't mention, started with a plane and used the donations to buy a fleet of trucks which is how they actually transport most of their rescued animals instead of the more costly air transport. Still, donors think they're paying for flights. I can't tell you how angry this makes me!

We will be self-sufficient once we begin our on demand charter flights and able to fund our own rescues without the limitations charities have.

How I plan to roll out this project:

1. The first thing I need is obviously a plane. Originally, the plan was to start with a Pilatus PC-12, which is a pressurized turboprop that will carry a great load and fly fast. Those planes, however, cost around $5 million used, and rising. So, in the interest of getting this going sooner rather than later, I've decided to start with a smaller, cheaper plane and, as time goes on, let the company profits fund a larger plane(s) down the road. This GoFundMe page is for that purpose: to fund the first plane and initial setup.

2. Once the first plane is purchased, depending on any repairs or renovations it may need, it can start flying rescue ops right away.

3. As soon as the plane is purchased, FAA certification will be filed for the on-demand business end of it. This will likely take 6 months or more to get. In the meantime, we will continue to fly animal rescue missions.

4. Once the FAA certificate is received, the plane will fly on-demand paid passenger flights and begin to grow as a company. As profits from those paid flights roll in, they will be used to expand the company (more and bigger planes) and to fund continued rescue operations. A goal is to eventually have a plane solely dedicated to rescues while other planes work with on demand flight to fund it's operations.

Where your money is going:

1. The bulk of it will go to the initial purchase of the aircraft. What aircraft and how much, will depend on funds raised and what aircraft are available on the market at the time.

2. A much smaller portion of the funds will go towards any aircraft repairs or renovations that may be required as we plan to buy used aircraft to save money.

3. Lastly, the smallest portion of your donation will go towards logistics and operations. This will include the FAA Certificate filing, hangering and maintenance of the aircraft, as well as fuel and landing fees as we begin rescuing animals prior to getting our FAA Certificate to start on demand paid flight.

About me:

I'm a commercial pilot, former Hollywood filmmaker and athlete, who worked for an on demand charter company last year, and huge animal lover. I've had rescue dogs, and the occasional cat, all my life. I strongly believe they need our help and am trying to marry two passions here with this project.

I feel this rescue model, which does not rely on donations once we get going, offers us autonomy and therefore more freedom to focus our rescue efforts wherever they may be needed at the time.

I thank you for reading my plan and hope you will help me help these poor souls living on borrowed time who cannot ask for help themselves.

When we're lost under a building's rubble or the snow of an avalanche, we ask for their help. When we are afraid of hidden bombs, we again ask for their help. When we have physical handicaps, we ask them to help us. When we are confronted with deranged criminals, we ask them to risk their lives for us... And they do so without hesitation. We owe them so much, and yet mistreat them so badly. They deserve an our respect, our protection, and our help.

NOTE: Despite the goal being high due to the cost of purchasing an aircraft, every donation, no matter what size, helps. Please share this page with your friends on social media and make it go viral!