The late Flight Lieutenant Gordon Sykes MBE, a fighter pilot who became paralysed when ejecting from his aircraft, formed this charitable Trust in 1982.

He had established that there were over 4,000 severely disabled ex-Royal Air Force personnel in receipt of a 100% disability pension. Many are confined to a wheelchair for life and few have the confidence or the means to enjoy a holiday in morale boosting sunshine. Some have attempted holidays and have found a great number of frustrations and problems which have destroyed their will to try again. In spite of assurances, they have arrived at their costly destinations only to find that the doors are too narrow, bathrooms and toilets inaccessible, rooms too small, lifts too tight and a multitude of steps to contend with.

The answer is to provide holidays in the sun which cater for the special needs of disabled people and in a location where they can live alongside able-bodied families enjoying the same facilities.