Wings of Hope Holds Third Annual Plane Pull Fundraiser to Support Humanitarian Programs

By Carmelo Turdo

Wings of Hope held their third annual Pulling for Hope event Saturday, October 4, at their Spirit of St. Louis Airport world headquarters. Sixteen teams, sponsored by local businesses, competed for the fastest time to pull a Gulfstream jet 60 feet across the taxiway outside of the Wings of Hope hangar. All proceeds will be used to fund humanitarian aviation programs that support the Wings of Hope mission of "Changing and Saving Lives Through the Power of Aviation." The warm, sunny autumn weather was ideal for the event, and this year five additional teams joined the fun. 

The teams began arriving prior to the 11:00 A.M. start time and flowed in as their pull time drew near. Wings of Hope volunteers performed the registration duties along with the other roles needed for a fun and safe event, including tug driver, timers, team prep and start/stop signaling among others. We begin our coverage with a survey of the activities at the Wings of Hope hangar as the teams arrived and future aviators enjoyed art projects, pedal planes and great food throughout the day. 

The plane pull began with Team 1, Grounded Falcons, at 11:00 A.M. Each team had two pulls, with the best (lowest) time as the score of record. Here we include a sample of the teams during their plane pulls.

Team 1: Grounded Falcons

Team 2: Fabick Rents

Team 3: Dockstars

Team 4: Garmin 

Team 5: AVMATS Afterburners - Spirit

Team 6: Moneta

Team 7: Wings of Hope

Team 8: AVMATS Incinerators - O'Fallon

Team 9: No Plane, No Gain

Team 10: Husch Blackwell

Team 11: Pulling G's

Team 12: Chesterfield Function Fitness

Team 13: SLU-SSM

Team 14: Claire Force One

Team 15: Secure Data

Team 16: Monarch Fire Protection District

Place	Team	Time
1	Moneta	15:09
2	AVMATS Afterburners	15:13
3	Garmin	15:28
4	Monarch Fire	15:92
5	Claire Force One	16:07
6	No Plane, No Gain	16:40
7	Secure Data	16:80
8	Wings of Hope	17:37
9	Pulling G's	17:50
10	SLU-SSM	18:12
11	Gounded Falcons	18:44
12	Husch Blackwell	18:78
13	AVMATS Incinerators	18:99
14	Chesterfield Functional Fitness	19:27
15	Fabick Rents	19:28
16	Dockstars	20:78

“This year’s Pulling for Hope was incredible,” said Brittni Snidle, Director of Development and Communications at Wings of Hope. “We had sixteen teams giving it their all in friendly competition, and it was amazing to see so many families, friends, and community members come out to cheer them on. The energy was nonstop—from the music and food trucks to the kids’ activities and the excitement of each plane pull. It was truly a day of fun, teamwork, and community spirit—all in support of Wings of Hope’s mission to 'Change and Save Lives Through the Power of Aviation.'”

Special thanks to the Pulling for Hope sponsors:

Dierbergs, Fabick Rents, Moneta, Secure Data Technologies, Garmin, Husch Blackwell, AERO Charter, St. Luke's Hospital, SFW Gives Back, Amy Cole Buehler, Simmons Bank, UHY, West Star Aviation and Spirit of St. Louis Airport.

The Aero Experience thanks the teams, event and team sponsors, and Wings of Hope volunteers for making this event possible!