A poignant moment as Edie plane finally flies high

Edie took ill suddenly last October on the day her family were set to move to from Kirkcaldy to Leeds, with what was later discovered to be hemiconvulsion hemiplegia syndrome, and sadly passed away.

Family friends entered a competition with airline Thomson to have a Boeing 787 named in her memory, and using the hashtag #flyhighedie, launched an online campaign which proved to be a success.

Edie’s parents, Cheryl and Tom, watched proudly at Manchester Airport as Edie’s maiden flight took off, bound for Mexico.

Cheryl said the occasion was “lovely but sad”.

“I really wish we didn’t need to have a plane but it’s such a lovely thing to have with her name on it,” she said.

“ It will go all over the world and see places we will never be able to.

“We’ve struggled with knowing we’ll never have any new memories with Edie, but the plane gives us a lovely one that will last for a long time.

“We will never get bored seeing where Dreamliner Edie has been or hearing from people who have travelled on it.”

The couple say their focus is now on baby daughter Annie and are also set to embark on a series of fundraising runs in aid of sick children.

“Nothing will bring Edie back, but knowing that we are running to raise money for them to support other families going through the worst time of their lives is helping us so much,” Cheryl added.