TWO-YEAR-OLD Hannah Maxwell-Jones will fly to America as planned this Sunday, despite disruption caused by terrorist attacks.

The girl from Nunthorpe, Middlesbrough, is due to travel to Arkansas in America's Deep South to have pioneering surgery on her face.

Born with a serious disfigurement, Hannah is going to the one man in the world who can begin to rebuild her face, innovative surgeon Professor Milton Waner.

Allison Maxwell-Jones, Hannah's mother, said her travel agent had confirmed the flight details and, if all goes to plan, the family will begin their 18-hour, three-stage journey from Teesside to Little Rock, via Amsterdam and Memphis, at the weekend.

Despite the horrific events in New York and Washington last week, Allison says her focus is firmly on her daughter's coming ordeal.

"To be honest, it doesn't worry me. I'm more worried about the surgery and what is going to happen to my daughter," she said.

"I don't want to underestimate the seriousness of what happened last week but my attention is very much on what is ahead for Hannah," said Mrs Maxwell-Jones, an intensive care nurse from James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough.

Security is expected to be "very tight" on every stage of the flight, said Allison.

Readers of The Northern Echo helped to raise more than £55,000 to pay for accommodation, travel and medical expenses. The trip is the first of what is likely to be a series of journeys to the Arkansas hospital for further surgery.