Family of Scots dad with MND determined to help him achieve dream of flying helicopter

dailyrecord.co.uk:

The family of a Scots dad diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease is determined to help him achieve his dream of flying a helicopter.

William Brunton, 49, from Dunbar, was diagnosed with MND in July 2021 after suffering a bad fall at his home. He is now in the advanced stages of MND and is receiving palliative care at Belhaven Hospital, Dunbar.His heartbroken family are trying to help him realise a lifelong ambition to take flight in a helicopter in the time he has left - and are using innovative ways to make it happen.William's cousin Karen Lorimer, 56, was left disappointed after discovering it would be impossible to fly William in a real helicopter due to the fact he was in a wheelchair - but she soon discovered the world of virtual reality (VR).She told the Daily Record: "William always wanted to go in a helicopter, in fact, he wanted to fly one and even buy one."It was always in me and the family's mind."I did think earlier on in his process about it but everything I read suggested he wouldn't be able to get on the helicopter in a wheelchair for safety reasons."When he's in the hospital, he's just lying in bed and he's a young man staring at four walls."I got thinking about how I could get him in a helicopter and remember watching on the news that people with dementia had been able to use VR technology to take them back to where they used to live."So, I thought maybe we can transport William, as near as we can, into this wonderful experience."William has been battling MND - which has no cure and affects the brain and nerves - since he was diagnosed in July 2021.

The dad-of-two spent three months in Edinburgh's Astley Ainslie Hospital but returned home in October 2021. His family and friends, with the assistance of