RAF Honington supports a 500 miles push
Former gunner Sean Atherton is doing a special fund-raising event part of the Push 500 mile challenge. Today Sean and Luke Delahunty were going 2.5 miles up and down RAF Honington runway in their wheelchairs Pictured: Sean Atherton and Luke Delahunty
Members of 1Sq RAF Regiment and 1 Royal Tank Regiment showed their support for a former comrade’s 500 mile wheelchair push.
Former RAF Gunner Sean Atherton, from Yorkshire, was at RAF Honington on Wednesday to add a few more miles to his Push 500 Mile Challenge to raise money for the RAF Association, RAF Benevolent Fund, Flying Scholarships for Disabled People, Aerobility and Forgotten Heroes.
Sean has done about 300 miles since May, much of it on RAF bases but, as he served in the Parachute Regiment before joining the RAF Regiment, he also pushed around the drop zones used in the 1944 ‘Bridge Too Far’ Arnhem raid in Holland.
Sean, who broke his neck in a motorcycle accident in Cyprus in 1993, said: “I’ve been a recipient of all these charities except Forgotten Heroes and after I flew solo it was such an emotive experience I thought I had to do something.”
His inspiration for doing 500 miles was that Forgotten Heroes’ patrons include The Proclaimers who had hit with a song called 500 Miles. They mentioned him at a concert in York and got him a standing ovation then walked his first lap with him.
On Wednesday he was joined by Luke Delahunty who was also put into a wheelchair by a motorcycle accident while serving at Honington.
They had never met before but Luke said: “We’re both ex-RAF Regiment, both did a flying scholarship, both had accidents. We have too much in common not to meet up and I’ve benefitted from the charities he’s supporting.”
To find out more about Sean’s effort and sponsor him visit www.push500.com
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Bury St Edmunds
Tuesday 21 May 2013
Today
Light rain
Temperature: 7 C to 12 C
Wind Speed: 24 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 4 C to 13 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: North west
