For nearly half a century, the staff and volunteers at Agape Flights have been operating their aviation ministry out of a small hangar at the Venice Municipal Airport (VNC), along southwest Florida’s Gulf Coast. They have made a very positive impact on people throughout the Caribbean by delivering critical humanitarian aid and relief supplies and sharing a message of faith.
In the Fall 2024 issue of the Agape “Flightline” newsletter, CEO Alan Speers commented on their annual project of flying Thanksgiving meals to their affiliate partners in Haiti, the Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, and Cuba: “I challenge you to join me in this process of looking up, looking around, and looking within, and I think you will soon discover an attitude of gratitude rising up within you!”
Agape Flights Aircraft
The Agape hangar is stuffed with thousands of boxes and containers that the organization will deliver with its two aircraft. The organization has an Embraer 110, which can carry up to 3000 pounds of cargo, and a Cessna F406, which can carry 2000 pounds. While some nonprofits transport passengers, Agape aircraft are configured to carry cargo.
Both aircraft have open cargo bays behind their cockpits, which the crews fill with boxes, packages, envelopes, and anything else their missionary partners need. On a typical flight, Agape aircraft carry a wide variety of items, from packages from Amazon and other businesses to medications, fresh food, and more. Flights have even carried equipment such as baby warmers. They really do their best to carry and deliver as much as they can.
Jacques May, Agape’s Communications Director, demonstrated their determination to help others when he said, “We want to be able to say yes.”
Missionary Aviation Focused on Faith
When talking with the people at Agape, one quickly gets the sense that they genuinely care about their mission and want to help their missionary partners. They smile when they talk about their work. Although they are not attached to a specific church, they frequently mention Jesus as inspiration for their efforts.
“It’s about the Big C, or Christianity,” said Speer.
Challenges of Missionary Aviation
Greg Haman, Director of Flight Operations and Maintenance, has been the Agape Staff Pilot since 2015. He also holds an Aircraft & Powerplant (A&P) license and is responsible for ensuring the aircraft are ready to fly. Aircraft readiness, however, is not always just basic maintenance and inspections.
In April 2024, the Cessna 406 (reg. N17CK) suffered damage after a failure in flight forced it to make a gear-up landing in Haiti. Thankfully, neither of the two pilots on board was injured. The aircraft is back in the air as of August 2025.
Haman said getting parts for the Embraer 110 and Cessna 406 is often difficult. The Embraer is a 1980 model, and the Cessna is a 1985 model. Haman added that neither aircraft has been in production for some time, so their manufacturers no longer supply parts for them. It is challenging to find spares, and they are expensive when they do find them. One of Agape’s goals for the future is to acquire a new aircraft, although there are no immediate plans right now.
Some of their flights are direct routes to the Caribbean, while others require fuel stops en route. For example, it takes the Embraer about 4.5 hours to fly the 800 miles from Venice, Florida, to Haiti, including a refueling stop in the Bahamas.
Volunteers Central to Agape’s Aviation Ministry
Volunteering is a big part of Agape’s operation. Along with its 13 paid staff members, Agape has 150 volunteers, including four pilots. One of the volunteers’ most important tasks is to help process, weigh, and inspect the many packages arriving at the hangar daily.
Agape, a nonprofit aviation ministry organization, works with affiliate missionary partners who pay $125 annually to receive supplies and bulk mail from the United States. Affiliates also pay fifty percent of the five-dollar-per-pound shipping charge for the packages, and Agape pays the other half. They currently support about 300 missionaries, their families, and their missions. Agape mission partners arrange to send mail and packages to Venice with their suppliers.
According to Shelly Watkins, Director of Donor Engagement for Agape, companies and other organizations often pay the shipping charge to help the missionaries receiving the supplies.
This is more than a business arrangement to deliver packages, as faith and service are central to everything Agape does with its aviation ministry. In addition to their regular deliveries, they also provide support following natural disasters. Following the 2021 earthquake in Haiti, they delivered tarps, tents, and other essential items.
Agape Begins Its Aviation Ministry in 1980
Keith and Clara Starkey founded Agape Flights in 1980. Following mission trips to help people in Haiti, Spain, Guatemala, and Africa, they wanted to serve even more and decided to do so through aviation ministry. They purchased a Cessna 411 and initially used their home as the organization’s shipping center and mailing address. Agape began operations on 24 October 1980 and flew its first mission on 15 November from Sarasota, Florida, to Cap Haitien, Haiti.
The word “Agape” is Greek and means God’s unconditional love, so Agape flights, or “God’s Love Flights”, seems especially fitting for the good work they have been doing for nearly 45 years.
