STG Aerospace support Orbis Flying Eye Hospital

Orbis is an organisation dedicated to saving sight worldwide, they are also our chosen charity partner. The Orbis Flying Eye Hospital takes vital training to eye care professionals around the globe, empowering them to fight avoidable blindness in their communities.

With its network of partners, Orbis trains and mentors entire local eye care teams – from health workers in rural clinics to eye surgeons in urban centres around the world.

The Flying Eye Hospital is a flagship for Orbis and is a fully accredited ophthalmic teaching hospital on board a customised MD-10 aircraft, donated by FedEx.  Although in person clinical training is on hold due to the pandemic, Orbis continues its vital work. On board, the hospital includes an operating theatre, recovery room and audio-visual equipment that transmits live surgeries to a 46-seat classroom at the front of the plane, as well as to over 200 countries and regions through, its telemedicine platform, Cybersight.  

Installed on the Flying Eye Hospital is our saf-Tglo® emergency floor path marking system. The completely sealed, hard-wearing, long-lasting system is approved and certified for installation on virtually every type of aircraft. It requires no power source and is fully charged by the cabin lighting within minutes. 100% reliable, saf-Tglo® significantly reduces the maintenance and operational costs associated with traditional electrical systems and, being much lighter, improves the aircraft’s fuel efficiency – all important factors that help Orbis get the most out of their Flying Eye Hospital.

Speaking about the partnership, Dr. Sean O’Kell, Business Unit Director, STG Aerospace, said: “Our business is fundamentally about light and flying, so a charity that is using the power of aviation to prevent sight loss in some of the poorest countries in the world was an obvious choice. The fight against avoidable blindness is such an important one, the more we learned about the fantastic work Orbis UK is doing, the more we felt compelled to support them.”