Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity will kick off onboard a LOT plane

01/06

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Captain Sławomir Majcher (left) calls himself "a full-time OrchestraLOT pilot", as he is a pilot-in-command for fifth year in a row now. He is also a LOT's pilot often featured in media on various occassions.

02/06

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For the first time an OrchestraLOT is an Embraer 170. In previous years an Embraer 145 was used for this purpose, but this type has been withdrawn from LOT's fleet last spring.

03/06

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Heart-shaped stickers were also put inside the aircraft. They will remain there for upcoming months as a sign of LOT"s support for the charity event.

04/06

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SP-LDI, a Brazilian-made Embraer 170 jet, is a seven-year-old airframe. LOT Polish Airlines is the biggest and launch customer of Embraer jets in Europe.

05/06

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Journalists had a photo-opportunity after landing in Krakow. Krakow is the nearest airport to Zakopane, where the WOŚP will officially kick off on Sunday morning.

06/06

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In the morning Jurek Owsiak and his crew will be transported by helicopters from Zakopane, a winter capital of Poland, to Krakow and further they will fly to Warsaw. Captain Majcher says he will overfly the airport at low altitude, weather permitting

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Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity kicks off at OrchestraLOT, a specially branded LOT Polish Airlines aircraft. Last year almost 14 million USD was collected and this year is expected to surpass this score. Krakow, Poland. 7th January 2012

A short hop from Warsaw to Krakow of OrkiestroLOT, a specially branded Embraer 170 of LOT Polish Airlines, inaugurated this year's Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity (WOŚP). This nationwide charity event happens yearly on first Sunday of a new year and in 2011 a total of almost 14 million USD was collected. Jurek Owsiak, the man behind the WOŚP, cautiously expects a new record this year.

For fifth year in a row LOT Polish Airlines takes part in the WOŚP event by contributing a plane. The WOŚP, which will oficially kick off on Sunday morning in Zakopane, is a one-day charity during which thousands of volunteers collect money around the country, giving red heart-shaped stickers in return for small contributions. Such a sticker, and a logo of the WOŚP at the same time, has become one of the best recognisable symbols in Poland.

Jurek Owsiak, who has created the WOŚP, is the main driving force. In previous years he ran the whole event from Warsaw, but since LOT Polish Airlines contribute a plane for this day it has become customary to start the event in another city.

The aircraft, Embraer 170 registered SP-LDI, has been branded with heart-shaped stickers with both Polish and English titles on them. Today the plane with journalists flew to Krakow, from where Jurek Owsiak will fly to Warsaw on sunday.

During the WOŚP, besides street-collecting of money, numerous auctions take place. This year among the most noticeable donations is an invitation to Phoenix Suns training camp from Marcin Gortat, a Polish NBA player, and Adam Malysz's, former ski-jumping world champion and now rally driver, Porsche Cayenne. LOT Polish Airlines, besides helping with a plane, has donated a pilot-hat of captain Tadeusz Wrone, who has succesfully belly-landed a Boeing 767 with gear up in Warsaw in November.