Moray woman and Project Wingman CEO Emma Henderson (47) receives MBE for services to charity during covid-19
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A MORAY woman has been awarded an MBE in the New Year honours list for services to charity during covid-19.
After being furloughed from her job as a pilot at the start of the pandemic, Captain Emma Henderson (47), from Kinloss, co-founded Project Wingman.
Project Wingman has set up more than 80 lounges across hospitals UK-wide, where aircrew provide hard-working NHS staff with a first-class airline experience.
Mrs Henderson, who accepted voluntary redundancy from her role with EasyJet in September, is the CEO of the project, which is now a registered charity.
Despite her inventive idea, Mrs Henderson admits she was taken aback by the MBE.
"It was a bit surreal," she said. "I was in a Zoom meeting and this square popped up and I thought 'that looks interesting'. I had to leave meeting after opening it because I was so shocked.
"I told them someone was at door and then went and had a little cry to myself."
The inspiration for Project Wingman came from a desire to help NHS and airline staff alike, with the former largely over-worked during the covid-19 outbreak and the latter dealing with the effects of furlough and redundancy.
Emma added: "When I set out, the whole premise was to help wherever possible. At the beginning, I didn't know how we would help – I just knew we would help.
"Basically, it's aircrew wrapping our arms around the NHS during this storm, which has benefited the wellbeing of aircrew as well.
"I care deeply for my fellow aircrew who have been made redundant or been furloughed.
"People have contacted me to say wingman has been a lifeline for them. It's something to grab onto in these dark days.
"It has been profoundly important for me, too, in helping me get through redundancy.
"I've never met most of the people I work with but I've made friends for life."
The legacy of Project Wingman will continue to be felt, with a number of permanent sites set up in hospitals across the UK, and with a number of aircrew staff who had been made redundant having taken up roles within the NHS.
And there are still plans in the pipeline. The Wingman Wheels Campaign aims to have six mobile lounges, in the form of converted double-decker buses, which can be used at hospitals where space is limited.
As for Emma, she has plenty of plans post-redundancy – with Project Wingman just one of many things keeping her busy.
She added: "The future is partly unknown but Project Wingman takes up a lot of my time.
"In addition, I'm a trustee at the Fresson Trust, the Leanchoil Trust, chairwoman of Forres Tennis Club and have my own small business called Moo Prints. There are plenty of possibilities for 2021.
"I had an amazing 11 years with EasyJet and put heart and soul into my job.
"I cared about the passengers and there were loads I knew well from the Inverness route
"But there used to be seven flights a day to London and now there are three a week. The commute became unviable.
"My voluntary redundancy ensured two other jobs were saved and made sure there were no compulsory redundancies."
Emma thanked her husband Jim, who is a wing commander at RAF Lossiemouth, for his love and support – as well as Jess Hall, Project Wingman team leader at Dr Gray's, and Loganair CEO Jonathan Hinkles for their help with the project.
To donate to the Wingman Wheels campaign, visit www.crowdfunder.co.uk/wingmanwheels.
