people from all over the valley were on their way to the village, armed, threatening the workers, and planning to set fire to the hospital – their own future hospital! Apparently, the Indonesian workers had hired some villagers to help with the construction. One of them fell ill and died within a very short time.

After the communist regime was overthrown in Albania the country was opened up and we had the opportunity to fly countless operations with our Jet Ranger in the mountains. The level of poverty was beyond description and there was great hunger. Albania was considered one of the poorest countries in Europe.

Sahateza is a village of new settlers from the jungle of the Marolambo region, located just half an hour’s flight southeast of the capital, Antananarivo. An elderly couple have given these settlers access to their extensive land. In return, the villagers are honoring them by building them a house. 

I spent a good week in India in February. Together with our representative, Simon, we visited the aviation authority in Delhi and a maintenance company for aeroplanes and helicopters. Things are progressing in small steps.

As a family, we were really looking forward to Christmas Day to celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. We were going to celebrate this special day in church, and I was excited because I had been asked to sing. But things turned out differently.

In Madagascar, it is quite common to see smoke in the air, especially during the dry season. However, on one particular day several unusually thick smoke plumes rising from near the Ambilorano mission base caused the cheerful mood in the helicopter to immediately change to one of concern. Smoke like that could mean trouble of some kind. 

Six years ago, I, Matt, and my fellow pilot Micha were in Karawura for a ceremony to lay the foundation stone for a future building.

Nicole works as a dentist/oral surgeon in eastern Switzerland. For two weeks, she swapped her practice to work in Madagascar.

Major parts of the helicopter have a shelf life (life cycle). At the end of this time period, these parts are either replaced or overhauled.

Small planes are cheaper to operate than helicopters. Per passenger, a plane is three times cheaper. That is why we use helicopters for...

Half the village stood laughing and in amazement around the two white men who were trying to pump drinking water from a dirty bucket...

Ernie Tanner writes: Carrying supplies in the great heat to the people starving in the camps at the edge of the Ethiopian Danakil desert...

Mmmm! A recipe for international interested people! Enjoy it!

Christmas is celebrated very differently around the world.

Around half of the airstrips in the bush have been opened with the help of Helimission. Several flights with the helicopter are necessary...

There is a large rainforest at the eastern end of the island of Madagascar. During our medical mission a while ago ...

Der Stiftungsrat der Helimission ehrte an der Sitzung vom 5. November 2024 in Trogen Ernst Tanner als Ehrenpräsident und Hedi Tanner ...

An intercom system in a helicopter is an independent communication network.

Here in Papua, Indonesia, you can quickly go from one extreme to the other. 

I spent 5 days with Sedera and his team in the east and south-east of the rainforest.