“You’d better read this book,” Bill Clapp, an MAF alumnus said 53 years ago, as he handed “Jungle Pilot” to a pretty 19-year-old named Carole. “This is what I want to do.” Bill didn’t own a car, but he did have a plane. The two of them had just returned from a flight to take […]
Nearly 60 years ago, MAF pilot Nate Saint and four other missionaries landed at “Palm Beach” on the Curaray River in Ecuador. Setting foot on the river beach was the next logical step in what the men called “Operation Auca,” after initial attempts from the air to contact the hostile Waorani tribe were deemed positive. […]
Ecuador program pilots Daniel Soría (left) and Chad Irwin during the ferry flight from Nampa, ID to Shell, Ecuador. Photo courtesy of Chad Irwin.
Each of us pilots has our own secret gulp moment. A time when, despite training, diligence, and confidence, a voice in the back of our head brays, “Are you sure […]
In almost 70 years of service, MAF has gained a worldwide reputation as a First Responder.
The call came at a bad time. We’d loaded the airplane and buckled in three passengers. I was just climbing into the cockpit.
Pancho hurried up. “Capitán, emergency in Bufeo! Snake bite. Pregnant woman.”
I stopped mid-climb. “How long?”
“Two, maybe […]
I was MAF’s Ecuador Program Manager stationed in the Andean mountain city of Quito when a mission director asked for a special flight. Two days earlier he sent a large team down into Ecuador’s costal jungle to minister in a small town. “But,” he explained, “a government official summoned us to a critical meeting tomorrow […]