I had just accepted a job offer from Robin Hurt, a well-known and respected Professional Hunter (PH). He had recently set up his own company called Tanzania Game Trackers Safaris in Arusha, the safari capital of the world, and had asked me to set up the aviation side of his business.
I RESIGNED FROM LIMBE Leaf Tobacco in Malawi where I had worked for the past three years piloting a Citation SP1, packed up my scant belongings, and in January 1986 began my new job.
I was tasked with finding a fleet of reliable aircraft which would be used to ferry the clients of Tanzania Game Trackers Safaris from the major airports to various bush camps.
I asked a good friend, Buster Ray, to help me with this task. Buster’s father and my dad were PHs together at White Hunters (Africa) Ltd and I recall changing baby Buster’s nappies when I was eight years old. I reckoned he owed me for that, and he was only too keen to join me in this new venture.
Within five months we had managed to source and register a Cessna 206 Stationair 5H-TGT and a Cessna 404 N68071T. In June I bought our third plane through my contacts at Wilson Airport, a Cessna 402C N268PA.
My job was varied; apart from ferrying clients, I was tasked with transporting their precious custom-designed guns. Existing firearms were often modified or in many cases, new ones were built from scratch to ensure that the gun fitted the user’s body type, shooting stance, and preferences.
Denne historien er fra July 2023-utgaven av SA Flyer Magazine.
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Denne historien er fra July 2023-utgaven av SA Flyer Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Iris - her early years: IRIS FLIES ACROSS SUDAN
Laura McDermid continues her stories about Iris McCallum's early years in East Africa and the Sudan. In part 1 of this story she recounts how she had to fly a bunch of Belgian Missionaries to Aweil, a city in northwestern South Sudan, from Wilson in Nairobi in her old mate 'ARN', the Piper Aztec 5Y-ARN.
UGLY IS PRETTY: LEAR 25 VS PILATUS PC-6
When you go to a party where you don't know anybody, you should always go for the 'Ugly' girl, because she will be happy that you chose to spend time with her.
CIRRUS G7 LAUNCHED IN AFRICA
What makes one aircraft better than another? Range, Speed, or carrying capacity, short field performance, operating costs, high wing, low wing, side stick, traditional control yoke?
PRESIDENT'S TROPHY AIR RACE 2024
The annual Presidents Trophy Air Race (PTAR) is the highlight of the year for many competitive general aviation pilots.
THE ABSA LOWVELD AIRSHOW 2024
This year marked the thirtieth edition of the Lowveld airshow – and it was widely acclaimed as the best ever.
PREVIEW: AFRICAN AEROSPACE AND DEFENCE EXPO(AAD)
Guy Leitch finds out from AAD Exhibition Director, Ms Nakedi Phasha, how the buildup to this year's biennial expo is going, and what visitors and exhibitors can expect.
APRIL 2023
April has been a very quiet month on the local aviation marketplace with only nine new registration allocations and three deletions, according to the officially-supplied register review.
PIPISTREL PANTHERA FINALLY HERE
One of the world's most eagerly awaited piston single engine aircraft designs has finally arrived in South Africa. ZU-KTR is a long awaited Panthera, proudly owned by Bertus Kritzinger, a Free State trucker, and based at New Tempe in Bloemfontein, where the well-known Ferriera Aviation has assembled it.
STAGGERWING - ALREADY OLD WHEN NEW
The Staggerwing was the climax, and the end, of an era.
The Aim of Bombing
In modern warfare it's not the soldiers who die - it's the civilians. One of the best examples of this is carpet bombing.
