JAARS- Missions Aviation

The first time I flew on a missions aviation aircraft was in 1995 when a group of us flew in Papua New Guinea into our remote villages where we’d spend part of our summer serving Wycliffe Bible translators.  We flew a Cessna 210 into a small Bimin village airstrip, built by hand, at 5500 ft above sea level.  The pilot literally had to land on a considerably upward slope cut into the mountains.  Landing was a challenge, but taking off was a piece of cake.  I was welcomed by a village of former headhunters who loved to touch and poke my hair and skin.  I felt like a combination of a rock star and zoo animal.  The next opportunity was years later as I flew with MAF into the Ecuador jungle town of Shell in the Amazon basin. This location was the base of famed missionary pilot and martyr, Nate Saint.  Missions aviation is essentially the same since those days except for the use of GPS equipment.  JAARS (Jungle Aviation and Radio Service serving Wycliffe) will be presenting Missions at the Airport May 2^nd and 3^rd at Albert Whitted from 9-5:30 on Saturday and 1-5:30 on Sunday.  Albert Whitted is located at 107 8^th ave South in St. Pete.  Airplane rides are a fantastically priced $20 and the helicopter rides are $25.  Coming from a pilot, this is a fantastic price! I belong to the Albert Whitted flight club and a 4 seater Cessna 172 rents out at $140 per hour.  For more info on missions aviation, click here: http://www.iamanet.org/