Release #05.DAL
May 3, 2005

ALPA's Delta Pilots Donate $20,000 to Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Georgia

ATLANTA, GA - The Delta Pilots Charitable Fund has donated $20,000 to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Georgia Chapter to help fund a research study to enable cystic fibrosis caregivers to learn more about the disease, including how to better detect and treat it.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a life-threatening, genetic lung disease that affects approximately 30,000 individuals in the United States. More than 10 million Americans are unknowing, symptomless carriers of one copy of the defective CF gene; a child must inherit one copy of the gene from each parent to have CF. Most children are diagnosed with the disease by age three. When the CF Foundation was created in 1955, few children lived to attend elementary school. Today, thanks to advancements in research and care, the median age of survival for a person with CF is in the mid-30s.

"The Delta pilots' donation will help fund a program that could potentially enhance our ability to care for children and adults with CF and give them a better opportunity to have a longer, healthier life," said Maureen Fraser, Director of Field Operations for the Georgia Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. "Most children are diagnosed with the disease before their first birthday. Any chance to improve their quality of life is extremely important."

The Delta Pilots Charitable Fund is supported by individual contributions from members of the Air Line Pilots Association at Delta Air Lines. The Fund is the first charitable fund established, managed and funded entirely by the pilots of a major U.S. airline; it focuses on children's charities in cities where Delta pilots live and work.

ALPA represents 64,000 airline pilots at 41 airlines in the U.S. and Canada. Its website is at www.alpa.org

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Contacts: Maureen Fraser, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, (404) 325-6973 
Scott Zettergren, Air Line Pilots Association, (404) 763-4925