In 2003, Sammy joined the Helimission team here in Wamena. In 2008 he started training as an apprentice helicopter mechanic in our hangar. Over the years, many people invested in Sammy helping him develop his helicopter maintenance skills.

Every two years, our helicopters have to undergo major maintenance as required by the manufacturer. This work on the “Mike-Kilo-Tango” (5R-MKT) kept us busy for an entire month. It is necessary to carry out the tasks and procedures specified by the manufacturer. This includes the removal and installation of parts that need to be thoroughly inspected or replaced, because their service life has expired.

On November 3, Typhoon Tino raged across the Philippines. No sooner had people recovered from the severe earthquake in October than they found themselves facing yet another catastrophic natural disaster.

We received a message in Wamena that a woman in the remote jungle of Papua, Indonesia, had given birth to a baby but the placenta was still in her womb. We immediately prepared to pick up the mother by helicopter and fly her to the city hospital in Wamena for better medical care. 

A long, long time ago, Madagascar was not only an island full of lemurs and baobab trees but also a secret hideout for pirates! These fearless seafarers, famous for their adventures across the world’s oceans, sought refuge on Madagascar from their pursuers and celebrated their victories there.

The seniors’ trip organized by the Pentecostal Church Herisau, recently took us to Trogen where we visited Helimission headquarters. After a warm welcome, we were able to visit the office where the crew coordinates and organizes this far-reaching and important work.

One of our helicopters (PK-HCR) was due for a routine inspection. This includes removing the main gearbox’s oil filter, then inspecting, cleaning and reinstalling it. Unfortunately, during the inspection phase I found contamination in the filter that was very concerning.

I had been asked to take four church workers from the south of Cameroon near to the border with Congo-Brazzaville. Since this was an area where there were occasional skirmishes caused by rebels from the Congo, it was under military control. 

A baobab can grow up to 30 meters tall and has a trunk so thick that 20 children could not wrap their arms around it. Some of these trees are over 1,000 years old – some even older. But what makes this tree so remarkable?

At the end of the dry season this year, the Malagasy once again were quick to burn down their already rare rainforest, so that even in the capital of Antananarivo, we often sit in the midst of heavy smoke from the slash and burn farming.

Sunday morning at 6:30 I received a call to conduct a medical evacuation in the tropical rainforest.

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.