When one of Santa Claus' reindeer caught a nasty bout of the flu, the San Jose Police Department helped out by giving the jolly old man a lift in its helicopter.

About 100 young children facing cancer and other life-threatening diseases cheered as Santa waved from inside the blue-and-white chopper as it touched down Saturday at Moffett Field for the fourth annual Fantasy Flight organized by the Cops Care Cancer Foundation.

While Santa's arrival was the main attraction, there was plenty to interest youngsters and their families beforehand. For instance, the police agency brought its mounted unit and K-9 dogs for the children to pet.

Jessamine Nail, 9, got to get on the back of a horse, which made her day, her father Wade Owen said.

"It was fun," Jessamine said. "I'm not afraid of him."

The Sunnyale Department of Public Safety brought its SWAT team and armored vehicle, which the children got a chance to climb inside. And each child received a wrapped toy that he or she had previously requested.

The event was the brainchild of San Jose police Officer Brian Simuro, who started the Cops Care Cancer Foundation in 2004. Simuro was inspired by his own fight against cancer as a teen. The amount raised by the nonprofit has snowballed in the past four years, reaching about $100,000.

In addition to Fantasy Flight, the foundation helps families with the financial burden of fighting cancer and other life-threatening diseases, which typically force one parent to stay home with their ill youngster.

The children who attended Saturday's event came from Bay Area hospitals, including the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Medical Center and the Children's Hospital and Research Center Oakland.

Hundreds of volunteers and police officers gave their time to make the event go off without a hitch.

Bill Kaufman, a volunteer from Tracy, said when he saw the children coming into Hangar N211 for the event amid much fanfare, including a snow machine, he felt a lot of joy and sadness.

"And I'm not an emotional person," Kaufman said.