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"Adrenaline junkie" animal lover takes on daring wing walk

Friday 01 July 2022

"Adrenaline junkie" animal lover takes on daring wing walk

Friday 01 July 2022


A 53-year-old with a love of adrenaline and all creatures furry, feathered and scaled will next week be walking the wing of a plane 700ft in the air to raise money for animals in need of care and conservation.

Caroline 'Charlie' McCafferty will be setting off to Wiltshire on Saturday 2 July for the challenge, which will see her spend 10 minutes on the wing, reaching speeds of up to 110mph.

Jersey-born Charlie works as an office manager at Hacquoil and Cook, and also spends time volunteering as a companion to an elderly gentleman.

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Pictured: The Wing Walk was a gift from Charlie's husband of three years, Gerry.

Her husband, Gerry, bought her the gift of the Wing Walk for Christmas last year and Charlie has never done anything like this before.

However, she is a self-confessed "adrenaline junkie".

Charlie said: "I have always loved rollercoasters and big rides, did a tandem parachute jump for Cancer Research years ago, and have always wanted to do a wing walk, so I am not nervous at all!

"I haven't had to put in any training for the Wing Walk, apart from ensuring I don’t put on too much weight so I’m too heavy to stand on the wings!"

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Pictured: Daring Charlie has asked the pilot to reach the maximum height and speed allowed for her Wing Walk.

In order to encourage her supporters to donate as much as possible, Charlie initially promised to ask the pilot to perform a loop-the-loop with her on the wing if she raised over £500. She has now surpassed this target, having raised £760 for the JSPCA and £800 for Durrell at the time of writing.

Charlie said: "When surpassing my £500 target, I messaged the Wing Walk company to ask to do a loop-the-loop. I was gutted to find out that this isn't possible, but they have assured me that they will give me the most hairy flight possible!"

Charlie's Wing Walk will take off from the Compton Abbas airfield in Salisbury. Her children, Katie and Luke, who have both moved to the UK, are driving down to support their mum in her daring endeavour. 

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Pictured: Charlie has always loved animals and is using the challenge to raise money for them.

Speaking of her decision to raise money for Durrell and the JSPCA, Charlie explained: "I love animals and have always admired the amazing work that Durrell and the JSPCA do. I couldn’t make up my mind between the to charities, so I decided to try to raise money for both!"

She added: "I’m blown away with the generosity from everyone who’s donated so far, including £250 to both charities from my employer."

You can support Charlie in raising money for Durrell and the JSPCA via her JustGiving pages.

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