Anonymous Donors Help Missions Group Buy Needed Airplanes
A long-time aviation missions organization announced Tuesday that it will purchase two new aircrafts using the generous donations of two anonymous donors.
Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) will soon add two more cost-efficient Quest Kodiak light aircrafts to its existing aerial fleet
Last year, an anonymous donor came forward with $1.7 million USD for purchasing one aircraft. MAF announced yesterday that a second donor delivered an unspecified sum that was to cover the cost for a second aircraft.
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"We are grateful for this generous gift that empowers MAF to further assist people in remote areas of the world that are largely inaccessible without MAF air service," said John Boyd, MAF president and CEO. "We greatly appreciate our partnerships with donors who have come alongside us to increase our services to people living in hard-to-access areas of the globe."
The recent purchases is part of a modernization program to replace MAF's aging fleet of Cessna 206 light utility aircraft that runs on expensive avgas, a high octane fuel that is also used in sports cars. The fuel type is hard to obtain in remote areas where MAF often operates. Kodiaks, however, operate on jet fuel that is more readily available. So far, MAF has obtained six Kodiaks since 2009, and currently operates these aircraft in Papua and Kalimantan, Indonesia, and Central Asia.
Manufactured by Quest Aircraft Company, the Kodiak is a ten-seat turboprop aircraft that has the Short Take-off Landing (STOL) capabilities needed to operate in remote regions where longer runways are unavailable. Kodiaks also have a higher load capacity than the older Cessnas in the MAF inventory. Besides being flown by MAF pilots, Kodiaks have found usage with government agencies including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
MAF's first operational usage of the Kodiak came last year after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti. Pilots flew supplies, medical professionals, and aid workers in subsequent relief missions to remote communities throughout the crisis. The ministry also established a satellite communication station at Port-au-Prince airport, facilitating coordination between relief agencies in and outside of Haiti.
Founded in 1945, MAF has flown missionaries and relief supplies to indigenous villages in remote areas of the world, where travel via light aircraft remains the best mode of transportation. The organization also provides learning services as well as telecommunication services such as satellite Internet access, high-frequency radios, electronic mail and other wireless systems.
While MAF maintains a strict safety standard, accidents do occur – highlighting the risks involved with aviation work.
In 2008, Australian pilot Hadleigh Smith, 23, went missing during a routine delivery flight in Australia's remote Northern Territory. Though parts of his aircraft were found, Smith was never recovered.
Just three years prior, a twin-engine DHC-6 Twin Otter crashed en route from Tabubil and Bimin, in Papua New Guinea (PNG). Veteran pilots Chris Hansen, 37, and Richard West, 40, subsequently died while the cabin attendant and 8 passengers survived to walk to a nearby village. Both pilots hailed from New Zealand and had each served MAF for about ten years.
Another MAF Twin Otter crashed in Papua New Guinea in December 1994. The plane had hit the side of a mountain while flying in poor visibility, killing 28 people including the crew and passengers.
Despite dangers, MAF continues to contribute to the global expansion of the Gospel to unreached people groups worldwide. The fellowship has a long history of working with ministries including Wycliffe Bible Translators and Jungle Aviation and Radio Service (now JAARS). About 1,000 people strong, MAF pilots and support personnel serve worldwide in 35 countries – enabling the work of hundreds of mission and relief organizations.
In 2010 alone, MAF aircraft carried 94,961 passengers and 9.2 million pounds of cargo on 33,365 flights.
