http://brc-aviation.tribe.net/thread/669023f9-1ded-4e8a-b412-e2a473bd77f1?format=rss Tribe.net. Local Connections http://BRC-Aviation.tribe.net/thread/669023f9-1ded-4e8a-b412-e2a473bd77f1#0b463b5f-2d1f-4020-a138-d98bc1f694ce Africa - it's a continent, not a country. Africa is BM on steroids. Congratulations- you did it!! There is so much to experience. I flew with an ex-SADF pilot on some projects in the area. Twin engine 6 seater, don't remember the make. In the military air force, you are rewarded for risk taking; you are only risking yourself and your machine. Some military pilots never make the transition to flying actual people and end up doing risky shit with passengers - not cool. You may run across a few in your travels. Every morning he checked the fuel for moisture, we flew around storms and spent a lot of time checking uncontrolled grass landing strips for animals (before landing). I met this great couple in the Central African Republic - it is where it is named.. He worked as the mechanical repair guy for an embassy. They ran a hostel, the Peace Corps volunteers used it as capital city home away from home. They had a training program for disabled people and a sewing school. They had a sewing business making uniforms for government agencies. They built all their own buildings. Their comment: here, no one tells you what you cannot do. If you are halfway decent at anything, you are way more expert than anyone around. Figure it out. My travels there have been supremely transformative. Journal it. It is book material. (I didn't) Sun, 26 Jul 2009 18:19:16 GMT http://BRC-Aviation.tribe.net/thread/669023f9-1ded-4e8a-b412-e2a473bd77f1#0b463b5f-2d1f-4020-a138-d98bc1f694ce The Dr 2009-07-26T18:19:16Z http://BRC-Aviation.tribe.net/thread/669023f9-1ded-4e8a-b412-e2a473bd77f1#d43ea685-4042-4b8a-ab96-3452c3b10867 Congrats on getting out to Africa. It looked like I was going to end up in Africa too this summer, but contract fell through. So I am in Saudi, and also no burn for me either this year. Hopefully next year though, and I think its good for me to have a year off. Wed, 22 Jul 2009 10:35:56 GMT http://BRC-Aviation.tribe.net/thread/669023f9-1ded-4e8a-b412-e2a473bd77f1#d43ea685-4042-4b8a-ab96-3452c3b10867 Ron 2009-07-22T10:35:56Z http://BRC-Aviation.tribe.net/thread/669023f9-1ded-4e8a-b412-e2a473bd77f1#b0a6713e-3548-4e99-bfc3-77d4c4849027 well, it's been nealy a year since my last post here. quite a bit has happened. since returning from peru most of the BWB crew reported a high incidence of Peace Corps Syndrome - wherein you just can't seem to work up the energy to care about the trvialities and excess of life back home. have to admit i brought home a big dose of it myself. re-entry was hard but with the help of Ballistic Bob, our tribe's moderator and one of the most generous and helpful people on earth, i managed to weather the storm. many other friends stepped in to help out when i was struggling as well; Agent Saviour, Erika, Hawk, the infamous Meshugganah, and many others. muchas gracias! After the rigors of 2008 and the less-than-graceful crash landing back into the USA, 2009 has brought me my all-time dream, living and working in Africa as a bush pilot! It has been quite the adventure and i am just about 4 weeks away from completing all my route training which is the last hurdle to flying solo into the various safari camps. i should be a full-on line pilot by the end of may. so many of you have been a part of the years-long course i charted to get me here, dating back to my first flight over BRC with Crazy 6-Seater Roger, that i thought it would be nice to let you know that I DID IT!! i'm leaving tomm morning for a 7-day excursion into 6 different camps including the largest game preserve in the country. this will be my first chance to get fotos of wildlife, since my other route training flights have been mostly ferrying people and cargo with a quick return flight. this time i get to stay in the camps, take part in the activities and live a little. can't wait. as most of you know, i left tribe and went over to Facebook. i hope some of you will stop by and visit me over there in online suburbia, where i will post safari pics. i miss tribe at times, but the technical issues are such a drag and my friend list now includes more international than US peeps, so FB has become the answer. obviously BM09 is not gonna happen for me. but i know that Saviour will do his best to ensure N99TA makes an appearance at the big dusty, and that the Spaceport will be the same center for debaucherous fun and frivolity it has always been. i'll be thinking of you all this Labor Day weekend. Enjoy!! { DragonFly! departs the pattern to the south this time, rocks his wings, and changes frequency ... } agentdragonfly@gmail.com Sun, 26 Apr 2009 14:04:50 GMT http://BRC-Aviation.tribe.net/thread/669023f9-1ded-4e8a-b412-e2a473bd77f1#b0a6713e-3548-4e99-bfc3-77d4c4849027 DragonFly! 2009-04-26T14:04:50Z