Hi there good people,

I've had a good time flying a 182 around South Africa and Namibia, where I am today. On Sunday evening I flew a Tiger Moth for an hour. So far I have about 17 hours of flight time, and estimate another 12 or so. Today we go to Botswana to the Okavango Delta, then on Sunday to Victoria Falls, and Monday - Thursday back to Botswana at a place called Tuli, then back to Jo-Burg. Then the next day, I'm going to Kenya for few more days before going home. There I am going to be picked up by a pilot with a 206 and also owns a game camp, so that ought to be fun as well. He and some of his friends picked up their SES ratings from Don Lee with Alaska Floats and Skis. I have already seen something called a Springboken (like an antelope), Kudus, baboons, a wild jackal, oryx, and a zebra with brown and white stripes, but they have always been at a distance. Courntryside in Namibia is great, but I have only seen perhaps a 1/4th of it. AvGas is scarce. Some dunes are sandy colored with redish tops. Unfortunately, aircraft has very milky plexiglas side windows, so airborne photo ops are rare. Have eaten oryx steak, as good or better than elk. I highly recommend coming over here to fly with Hanks Aero Adventures if you ever have the chance. Saw the Fish River Canyon, but when I was flying over it the A/C was lower on fuel than desired, so I didn't spend much time there, but did see a couple nice tourist views from the ground. People are great.

I think I know where I am some of the time. I'll post photos when I come home, and email/internet is very sporatic, so I may not be on this web site for a few days.

Take care, God Bless,

Matt

Matt, sounds like a great adventure. Are you there to just fly and tour? Will you do any hunting. Will be interested to hear details.

Matt, I'm jealous as hell.

Did you beat the fog in/out of Swakopmund? Don't worry about seeing stuff up close. You will see plenty in Botswana. We even had a hippo wipe its butt on our tent in the Okavango delta!

YB

Hi all,

Well, I'm now at the fantastic Victoria Falls in Zambia, which I oveflew today at 6000 feet, and not another plane in sight or on the radio. Stayed at a very small but nice place in the Okavango Delta, saw hippos, zebras, elephants, impalas, baboons, and giraffes. Last night in camp four elephants came in and were chomping on the trees or doing whatever it is that elephants do to make a lot of noise. One British guy decided to use his camera flash, which caused the elephants to panic, and one came out of the bush and stood facing us in the CHARGE mode, or rather highly irriated mode, and I wasn't too sure what was going to happen with him only 20 feet away. We did not have any hippos doing what you said, YB, but could here them grunting one one side of our poorly constucted cabin and an elephant distroying trees on the the other side - this was after the flash incident.

I flew slightly over Zimbabie (SP) airspace, over Vic Falls, but understand they are not very friendly to outside pilots, and I think I would rather face an elephant than a petty burerucrat. It doesn't sound like a good situation.

I am having the time of my life, and hope sometime the rest of you can make it here sometime, or come back again. I have almost got to the point that I can understand the different controllers and air laws, and I can just about say the right thing on the radio.

Take care, more in a few days. I'm interested in hearing from any of you that want to reply. God Bless,

Matt

Matt, this is a very cool travelogue you're compiling here. Keep it up!

Matt said:

but could here them grunting one one side of our poorly constucted cabin

Matt, you are lucky you only got the sound effects. I never knew they could produce something like shotcrete. Our guy left a kind of rendered stucco finish on one side of the tent.

YB

Hi there good people,

I have just a few minutes of Inet time. From vic falls made it to Tuli, saw similiar elephants, giraffes, zebras, and a wonderful DC-3 in mint condition. Arrived back in South Africa yesterday, and even managed to do two landings for the price of one. Tomorrow I leave on a 206 to game preserve northern Masai Mara. Flying in Africa is great, but everyone thinks you are an ATM machine. fuel was up to $11-12 a gallon in spots. Chunka-chunk on the old visa machine and now will have to explain why to my wife next week. Maybe she will send me back here or to Idaho, or into orbit. anyway, gotta go, I'll be back in the good old USA on Wednesday night, and then will post some photos.

God Bless,

Matt

Heading home. I am back in South Africa, waiting for my flight to Paris then on to Houston - the big one, instead of the nice one in Alaska! Altogether, I flew a total of 32 hours. After last post I went to another game lodge in Botswana, called Tuli Safari Lodge. Fuel was about $12 a gallon in Francistown, Botwana, which is where I stopped to clear customs after leaving Victoria Falls. After flying the 182 around, I went to Nairobi on Friday, stayed one night at the East Africa Aero Club, which is where Beryl Markham obtained her commercial license -fantastic, historical place - and then on Saturday flew with Joachim Pfeffer in is 206 to his Mara Siria bush camp just outside Masie (sp) Mara. Riding right seat in a 206 is a lot better than back in the cattle section of a passenger plane, but after flying the 182 and entering the cockpit of the 206 at the pilot's door, it sure took some convincing of myself that I really did have to move over to the right seat. Joachim is one of the best pilots I have ever flown with. He makes my flying look like I am still in Kindergarden.

Being new to Africa, I was please with the game I saw in Botswana and Namibia, but in comparison to what I saw in Kenya, it was like looking at an illustrated drawing on one page of a dictionary, then opening up the wild kingdom encylopedia (remember those things)! Wow. I have no idea how many I saw, and I lost count of the species. Managed to see six lions, but naturally, when I saw the Lion King, my camera decided that it needed a rest and wanted to test my skills of being my normal nice guy self (ha!). Saw three cheetahs, bunches of zebras, more giraffes, some of those big gray fat guys with white antlers hanging around their 4-foot noses, birds, mongoose, water buffalo, and saw some of the migration of the wildebeest. One of my best photos (although not perfect because of a branch) managed to capture a wildebeest jumping over a croc.

Yesterday, Joachim flew me to Amboseli, where finally the snows of Kilimanjaro could be seen after the clouds of Kilimanjaro lifted.

In a few days, I'll post some of the photos, but I'll refrain from posting all 2000+ !

Flying the African Bush is an adventure I won't soon forget, and my best wishes to all of you that someday you can do the same thing.

God Bless,

Matt

Hi everyone,

I just posted six photos of the Tiger Moth I flew in South Africa in August. More photos of the trip will be posted later.

Matt

So, what's that big old beast fly like? Judging from the large rudder and small vertical stabilizer, it seems like "modern" ideas like directional stability weren't around back then.

When I flew it, I had a ball. I was with the owner/instructor, and he did the takeoff and landing. We flew for an hour, and I thought the plane was quite responsive and really didn't notice the lack of directional stability. It is a little easier to fly than a Stearman.

Matt