Hallmark Actor Aaron O'Connell Flies Rescue Dog to Her Forever Home Through Pet Charity (Exclusive)

O'Connell, who got his pilot's license in 2012, routinely volunteers to fly rescue animals in his Cirrus plane through Pilots N Paws

Aaron O'Connell is winning hearts on screen and in the air.

The actor, who played the romantic lead in Hallmark Channel's With Love, Christmas and 12 Gifts of Christmas, recently helped a rescue dog reach her new home with a dreamy charity flight.

O'Connell earned his private pilot's license in 2012 and has a Cirrus SR22T (Turbo) aircraft.

"I got my pilot's license and enjoyed flying, and then I bought a Cirrus, and I enjoyed flying even more," he tells PEOPLE, adding that he is getting his "commercial rating right now."

After becoming a licensed pilot, O'Connell started looking for more opportunities to fly. The actor says he focused on finding ways to give back through his flights.

"I started doing some Google searching and found Pilots N Paws," O'Connell says.

Pilots N Paws is a nonprofit organization that connects volunteer pilots with animal rescues and shelters looking to transport pets across long distances quickly and free of charge.

"I thought, 'If I can do some of these trips, I feel like it'd be not only rewarding and I'd be helping out, but I'd also be able to fly and fulfill my passion and dream of mine,'" O'Connell remembers.

He started flying for Pilots N Paws in 2015. After flying numerous volunteer rescue flights, O'Connell is even more enamored with Pilot N Paws than when he started.

"I started doing these flights, and I found out that I loved it more than I thought I would because you're not only rescuing these animals, or taking them to life-saving surgeries, or adding new members to families, but you're meeting great people that want to be part of a great mission," O'Connell, who is the dog dad to a pup named Fig, says.

On March 28, O'Connell completed his most recent Paws N Pilots flight, where he had the honor of escorting rescue puppy Patches to her new home.

Related: Over 130 Abandoned and Abused Pets Find Loving Homes for the New Year Thanks to Rescue Flight

Patches was part of a surprise litter. An older family in Ramona, California, adopted her mother. Later, the dog gave birth to seven puppies, which shocked her pet parents, who did not know the canine was pregnant.

"It was way beyond what they were able to take care of, but they were willing to take care of these puppies until they all got adopted, which I thought was great," O'Connell explains.

Patches was one of the surprise pups, and she found an adopter who lived several hours away via car from Ramona through Grandma Betty's Animal Rescue. The rescue posted on the Pilots N Paws forum, searching for a volunteer pilot to quickly get the dog to her new home.

"I saw Patches was willing to be rescued and adopted into a new family, but there was no way to get her there. So that's where I came in. I jumped at that opportunity," O'Connell says about how he became part of Patches' story.

For the flight, O'Connell flew to Ramona to pick up Patches. Before taking off, the actor gave the Great Pyrenees mix puppy a chance to get used to his Cirrus aircraft.

"I put her in the plane by herself so she could just get acclimated to the smell and see what it was like," he says.

Related: Rescue Cat Nicknamed 'Thicken Nugget' Takes Up Swimming to Help Him Shed Extra Weight

O'Connell always looks for "the safest way to transport" his animal passengers. For Patches' flight, he did a pre-flight briefing the night before and saw their flight path "showed some significant turbulence descending into" their original destination, an airport in Burbank.

"It's not necessarily a big thing for me as a pilot because I fly through that all the time, but I'm always leaning towards, 'How is the dog going to do?'" O'Connell says. So he opted to change the flight plan and land at a Bakersfield airport, which allowed Patches to experience a smooth flight.

Once the puppy was acclimated to the plane, O'Connell prepared to load her in for the flight.

"I either put them in a crate or I put them in the backseat and put towels down and let them roam, depending on how they seem, how they are when we first meet," he says, adding, "In this situation, Patches was a little bit timid. So I thought, 'You know what? What I'll do is I'll put her in the crate, make a nest for her, make her comfortable.'"

Patches snuggled up into the "nest" the pilot made and fell asleep within the first 10 minutes of the flight. After a "great flight all around," O'Connell landed in Bakersfield with Patches, where they met her adopter, Annie Beaman.

"I handed Annie Patches at the airport. Patches gave her a big hug; it was such an incredible moment. It makes all that worthwhile and worth the flying, and it just was so fun to see," O'Connell says.

Patches now lives with Beaman and her family, which includes an older Great Pyrenees who is excited to have a little sister. The family contacted O'Connell over Easter to let him know Patches was adjusting well to her new home.

Related: Everything You Need to Know About Traveling on a Plane with Your Dog

O'Connell, who will appear in Tyler Perry's upcoming romantic comedy Joy Ridge, hopes Patches' happy ending encourages other pilots to volunteer with Pilots N Paws.

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"I want to stress how easy it is to get started with an organization like Pilots N Paws. If you go to Pilots N Paws's website, they've got an easy sign-up where you can become a member, and then you'll be notified of local transports in your area," he says.

"If you're a pilot and you want to continue to hone your skills and gain hours, this is a great way to not only do that but also give back," O'Connell adds.

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