A proud Mill Hill mother is driving a Fly-2-Help scheme for children with difficulties after being inspired by the flying experiences of her son.

Air Smiles co-ordinator Marcia Mercier launched the second aviation day at Elstree Aerodrome, offering a tour of the skies to children from the Speech, Language and Hearing Centre at Christopher Place in Kings Cross.

Ms Mercier is looking to run four Air Smiles events at Elstree per year, with the next flying day scheduled for May 2014.

She said: “It’s been fantastic; our mission is to give children with these hardships a great day out.

“We are very fortunate that the airfield really gets behind us and gives up their time.”

Ms Mercier’s son Alex, 18, is profoundly deaf and is now working towards his dream of becoming a pilot, having attended Christopher Place himself.

His mother said: “When he went up in the air with Fly-2-Help for the first time it spurred me to support them as much as I can. They and Christopher Place have always held a place in my heart.

“His hearing difficulties may have stunted his dream of becoming a commercial airline pilot but there’s nothing stopping him from becoming qualified to fly privately."

Alex should finish his training by next summer and is currently applying for an aviation apprenticeship at Airbus UK.

Caleb Regisford, a three-year-old from Enfield who suffers from language delays, took to the air with teacher Zoe Holland.

Ms Holland, who sees Caleb on Thursdays and Fridays, said: “I had the pleasure of flying with Caleb. He loved wearing the big headphones and even fell asleep for the last ten minutes.

Caleb’s mother Lauren, 30, of Turkey Street, was delighted to see Fly-2-Help offer the school a day of excitement and thrills. She said: “He started off a bit miserable this morning but when he put the high-visibility jacket on he was great.

“It’s so important that they get these different experiences and for Christopher Place to be given the chance is brilliant.”

Christopher Place helps babies and children under five who have hearing impairment, delay in speech, language and communication.