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Air charter, air ambulance service offers free flights for patients

An air charter and air ambulance service is offering free flights home for Neighbor Island patients receiving treatment on Oahu, and an airline is providing free transportation of food and household items from Oahu to Molokai and Lanai during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Through April 30, Wing Spirit is offering $1 million in free return flights for Neighbor Island residents receiving treatment on Oahu and for physicians and medical staff traveling to work at health care facilities on other islands, according to a news release from the company.

Queen’s Health Systems, Hawaii Pacific Health and Kaiser are coordinating partners in the Medical Travel Relief Program or MED-TRIP. Eligible patients and medical staff must coordinate flights through the hospitals.

The program is meant to help increase hospital bed capacity amid increased demand from COVID-19 by streamlining the patient discharge process, the news release says. “It will also allow physicians to travel to the Neighbor Islands with more flexibility given the reduction in the number of commercial flights between the islands,” according to the news release.

In another program that started this week, ‘Ohana by Hawaiian is providing free transportation of food and household items from Oahu to Molokai and Lanai.

‘Ohana by Hawaiian flights operated by Empire Airlines with ATR 42 aircraft will transport up to two packages from Oahu shippers sending food or household items to Molokai or Lanai.

Package drop-off is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Hawaiian Air Cargo facility. Cargo space will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis to the first 25 customers per flight each day. Shippers are encouraged to call (808) 835-3799 before going to the cargo facility.

Shippers must present valid identifications. Packages must weigh no more than 50 pounds and have no dimension longer than 62 inches.

There’s a limit of two packages per person, with shipments limited to a one-time free shipment of up to two items to the same recipient or address.

All shipments must be clearly marked with the recipient’s name, address and phone number, as well as the shipper’s name, address and phone number.

Packages must be picked up at Molokai or Lanai airports within one hour of the flight’s arrival. On Molokai, the scheduled arrival is 5:01 p.m. On Lanai, the scheduled arrival is 7:16 p.m.

Guidelines for the free shipments are online at newsroom. hawaiianairlines.com/internal _redirect/cms.ipressroom.com.s3.amazonaws.com/249/files/20203/Complimentary%20MKK%20LNY%20Relief%20Package%20Guidelines.pdf.

No end date has been set for the free shipments.

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