A former FedEx MD-10 cargo plane converted into the world’s only flying eye care teaching hospital will make its first visit to Seattle and be stationed at the Museum for tours on July 28-29 and Aug. 4-5. The Flying Eye Hospital is operated by Orbis, an international non-profit organization that flies the plane to low and middle-income countries to mentor, train and inspire local eye health teams so they can save sight in their communities. Orbis staff will lead public tours of the plane from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day, free with Museum admission.
ORBIS PANEL DISCUSSION JULY 28
Orbis leaders will take part in a discussion and presentation open to Museum visitors at 2 p.m. on July 28. The panelists include:
Bob Ranck, President and CEO of Orbis International
Ranck graduated from the USAF Academy and was commissioned in the Air Force in 1982. He went on to fly nine different aircraft throughout his career including the Boeing 707, B757, B737, Gulfstream V, DC-10. Bob has run organizations as large as 13,000 people, serving in the field, in combat, in the Embassy in Baghdad, and on the Air Staff and the Joint Staff.
Dr. Hunter Cherwek, MD, Deputy Chief of Clinical Services, Orbis International
Dr. Cherwek oversees all clinical activities at Orbis. He previously spent six years with Orbis as a staff ophthalmologist and medical director on board the DC-10 Flying Eye Hospital. He has now worked in over 22 countries and has specific career interests in preventable and treatable causes of blindness in low resource settings.
Capt. Cyndhi Berwyn, Orbis Volunteer Pilot
Berwyn has been a volunteer pilot with Orbis since 2012. She was a pilot in the US Air Force and has been flying for 45 years with experience in gliders, single and multiengine aircraft, seaplanes, hot air balloons, and helicopters, amounting to over 10,000 hours of flight time.
Stacey MacNeil, Vice President, Communications, UTC Aerospace Systems
MacNeil provides executive direction and strategic management for communications programs to best position UTC Aerospace Systems with employees, customers and external partners. She will be the moderator of the Museum’s Orbis panel discussion.
Orbis and the Flying Eye Hospital
Orbis’s Flying Eye Hospital brings state of the art technology, training and teaching tools to local healthcare teams in low and middle-income countries so they can reverse and prevent blindness in their communities. The plane features 3D technology and live broadcast capabilities enabling Orbis, with their expert volunteer faculty, to train more doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals and ultimately treat more people and restore their sight. Orbis is headquartered in the USA with 15 international offices and has worked in over 90 countries. The MD-10 aircraft was donated by FedEx, then custom redesigned and fitted to create the unique aircraft using modular technology.
The Flying Eye Hospital is fully accredited by AAAASFI (American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities International), making it the only non-land based hospital to be certified to this standard.
For more information visit www.museumofflight.org and www.orbis.org
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Born in Milan, Italy, Moreno moved to the U.S. in 1999 to pursue a career as a commercial pilot. His aviation passion began early, inspired by his uncle, an F-104 Starfighter Crew Chief, and his father, a military traffic controller. Childhood adventures included camping outside military bases and watching planes at Aeroporto Linate. In 1999, he relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, to obtain his commercial pilot license, a move that became permanent. With 24 years in the U.S., he now flies full-time for a Part 91 business aviation company in Atlanta. He is actively involved with the Commemorative Air Force, the D-Day Squadron, and other aviation organizations. He enjoys life with his supportive wife and three wonderful children.
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