Ben Wilhelmi

bush flying in Tanzania

 

A propeller seriously damaged. That was a prop strike with engine running at high speed. Tip: the 3 blades are equally twisted. One blade damaged means the engine was off and the propeller had no inertia. Some pilots have been caught lying...

 

Facing an active volcano, Lengai. Flying Medical Service has about 30 various airstrips to provide mobile clinics. Here is Monik on lake Natron.

 

Pilots will appreciate this sloped airstrip, Engoveroni, at 6500 feet, 400 meter long, 170 ft difference between the ends. Our C206's have a normally aspirated engine

 

Somewhere in the Ngorongoro area, Olbalbal0

 

Landing with a strong crosswind at Ngaresero, the volcano Lengai lies in the distance.

 

yes this is an airstrip.

 

This one is located in the middle of Sengerema village, with houses on each side. Congratulations to the decision makers…

 

Funny little white flowers during the rain season, Olbalbal.

 

Another airstrip but of much better quality than it looks like. The Masai ladies are sheltering from the rain.

 

stormy weather, always lovely to watch and sometimes not so when flying through.

B/W infrared film photography, the bush in Tanzania

 

Rift Valley, northern Tanzania, while I’m busy flying for the Flying Medical Service mobile clinics, I always bring a couple of cameras. From a 1910 folding to digital Nikons via Rolleiflex and Leica M. I hope to use Karine's latest Contax 645 soon! The patient are usually Masai in that area.

This mountain is an active volcano, Oldoinyo Lengai seen from Ngaresero airstrip.

 

 

The volcano again from another airstrip, Engoveroni.

the medical hut, 2 rooms, quite a luxury.

The Cessna 206, a workhorse to compare with a Land Rover.

 

These pictures were shot the old way, that is on B/W film. This implies usually a very slow speed due to the dark infrared filter which explains the blurry people when in motion. In this case the Rollei IR 400 film in combination with a filter 89B was equivalent to a 6 asa film… I thus also used a tripod. The lens was a 28mm F:2.0 mounted on a Leica M6.

a Cessna 206 in the Tanzanian bush

Flying Medical Service’s 206 at work in Tanzania.

here landing in Ngaresero near active volcano Oldoinyo Lengai, Rift valley. There was a tad bit of crosswind that day.

 

take off from Olorbelin at the foot of an extinct volcano, Shombole, lake Natron, Rift. Notice how people seem unfazed by the roaring plane… But others will run away or lie down even if the plane is not coming close.

 

Njurlan at the foot of Oldoinyo Sambu, western cliff of the Rift valley, lake Natron.

 

just having fun with ancient pinhole technique.

 

Engoveroni airstrip, volcano Lengai, Rift valley

in August, it’s getting quite dusty and the worst is still to come.

 

making friends…

 

Engoveroni airstrip on the slopes of Empakai crater, my first day of flying in Tanzania in 1999. I knew right there I’d love my time in TZ! This strip lies at 6500 feet, is about 4oom long, slope at 11%, VSI shows 600 ft down on take off, it is badly paved, is bordered by a ravine and the winds are always strong. Our 206’s are not turbo equipped…

Since then a homestead managed to develop just on threshold and 2 trees grew up, which we have just planned to have cut down. This being Maasai country, it might take a long while till they are actually chopped down…

flying the bush, part 2, Tanzania

 

so flying the bush…I was just hoping for nice pictures, a bit of dust, a nice landscape in the background (the Rift Valley at a place called Ngaresero, 600 meter cliffs), a touch of color with the red Cessna 206…I got more than expected: a tricky airstrip, quite soft and sandy and rocky altogether. The pilot got a bit rough on the controls, kicked the pedals a bit too hard and jammed the nose wheel in the sand…

 

just starting to move and turning to align with the airstrip heading…

the propeller is still rotating here….the 300 HP engine roaring, creating a lot of noise.

 

then the engine stops, see the dead propeller, and the total silence sets in…impressive moment.

 

nobody was hurt but the pilot’s pride. Two propeller blades are pretty twisted.

 

show time for the Masai!

 

on take off in a dusty area, Olpirikata, near the Serengeti. The power of a propeller!

 

Nairobi Wilson airport. A bombed airplane! Mafia style. The story was never cleared up…

 

the plane stayed there, like this, visible by everyone for months! Parked on the main parking lot, nice impression for the tourists who have just arrived in the country…nice marketing.

 

you’ve got long hair? Blonde? Or worse, red haired? You’re in to feel like a circus animal amongst the remote tribes who have never or rarely seen this kind of hair. And real, not extensions.

 

some incredible airstrips. Some pilots have refused to use this one again after the first training visit. Ngoveroni, one way in one way out no matter the wind, altitude 6500 ft or 2000m, on the flank of a crater (Empakai), 400 m long but luckily quite steep. No going around once you’re committed to land because the crater slope is too steep for the aircraft capability. For the pilots, 600 ft down on the VSI during take off, aspirated engine…

 

so steep that once I got booby trapped: heavy mamas were in the back of the plane, and as soon as I got out, the plane sat on her tail. Not proud of myself even if the conditions were unusual. The mamas were yelling at me while I was shooting instead of getting them out. Maybe they were angry that there would be a long lasting proof of their big weight…you know there is no television out there. Little stories like this are gold for people, not for the victims of course, and they stay for long. Legends start for less, nicknames or references too. “It was the day when the plane sat on its tail because fat mama 1 and fat mama 2 were on board…”.

 

here, the steepness is quite visible, and also the airstrip banks to the right as well. Quite challenging airstrip.

transport in Tanzania

 

safari car in Ndutu area during the wildebeest migration ( la migration des gnous).

 

home made anti theft on a truck rim.

 

incredible the variety and weight of goodies that can ferried on the back of a bicycle!

Arusha on a Sunday. Shops are closed and street traders have found good use of the gridlocked shops.

 

ferry in Dar es Salaam. as opposed to many other places in the world like Congo and Asia, naval accidents are pretty unheard of here.

 

an old Land Rover that deserve some rest by now.

 

my Land facing the volcano Lengai on a cold lava flow.

 

another Land, a bit overloaded. I say a bit because there is room for potential passengers on the outside of the frame.

 

the Clock Tower, Arusha city center.

 

youths hanging on a wreck that probably won’t ride again. There are still some parts to salvage though, Loliondo village.