Hospice Isle of Man has been selected as a winner of Loganair’s Diamond Ticket competition.

The charity was nominated by a member of the public for its ‘resilience in operating throughout the pandemic and adapting to home-based end of life care as well as a major refurbishment to its in-patient unit being stalled’.

Loganair marked its 60th anniversary on February 1 – a major milestone for the longest-serving name in the UK airline industry.

To celebrate, it launched a Diamond Ticket competition to give away 60 free flights across its network and asked people to enter by nominating an individual or group deserving of the prize.

The airline received more than 1,400 entries, and it selected two runners-up which included Hospice Isle of Man.

Hospice Young Ambassador Alexandra Slater selected six lucky members of staff at random to share the 12 free return flights to anywhere on the Loganair network.

Anne Mills, chief executive of Hospice Isle of Man, said: ‘What a lovely surprise to hear not only that we had been nominated for this competition but we have actually been allocated tickets for our staff.

‘It has been a truly challenging year for many so these flight tickets are a fantastic token of thanks for our hard-working team.’

The six winning colleagues picked at random by Hospice Isle of Man are: administrator Hannah Taylor, shops driver Gilbert Andrade, health care assistant Rosie Glen, specialist nurse Laura Kewley, specialist nurse Karen Taylor and volunteer Pam Martin.

Kay Ryan, chief commercial officer at Loganair, said: ‘Bringing people together is at the heart of our operation so it’s a real pleasure to be able to facilitate more connections and treasured memories for all of our diamond ticket winners.

‘We look forward to being part of these special trips for the Isle of Man Hospice colleagues as they enjoy a well-deserved break, especially those who played such a crucial part in people saying goodbye to loved ones during the pandemic.’

The Diamond Ticket winner receiving 60 free flights is RAF worker Tom Ajfield who was last year posted in Aberdeen – 423 miles away from his four-year-old son Ethan in Birmingham.

Thanks to the prize, Tom and Ethan will now get to spend more quality time together regardless of their long-distance living situation.

Alongside Isle of Man Hospice, youth worker Zoe Buchanan, from Gloucestershire was awarded second runner-up and gifted six return flights allowing her to spend quality time with her family in Shetland as she awaits her kidney transplant.