Ben Wilhelmi

Pictures in South Sudan

 

 

 

Notice the feather.

 

 

the water point near the airtsrip. Notice the armored vehicle to welcome my airplane.

 

 

 

 

Cool pattern for this pajama?

 

 

At a USAid center, Pibor.

 

 

 

Fashion in South Sudan

In the middle of a civil war, fashion is interesting and of various influences.

 

 

Have a 2nd look at her hat...

 

Yep a slab of meat!

 

Ole! A traditional Spanish dress!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

South Sudan, random pictures

 

 

South Sudan, a veeery common scene...

 

Notice the scars and the jewel on the chin. The place was Kapoeta on the Kenyan border. Somebody told me they were cousins with the Masai people.

Fashion, henna work, jewels, South Sudanese women try hard to escape a bit from the daily horrors.

 

Welcoming party in Yirol for a VIP. Dance and...

...guns! I hated those happy trigger dudes around people and my airplane...

When the plane drops cargo in a no-seat configuration but people insist on boarding on the return flight...ah well if they are happy to sit on the floor, why not. I just to be careful and explain in detail that the aft area is a total no go (not exactly true but just to be safe over the language barrier).

Happy to sit on the floor or on anything...on another occasion there had been fighting all night long and people had died in Rubkona village and sporadic shootings were still going on while boarding! That day I took about 10 women and 22 kids on board. That plane, a Grand Caravan 208, is normally configured for 13 passengers... South Sudan being the wild west, thsi shouldn't be a surprise.

USAid center on a delivery day, Pibor.

 

Full load of biscuits...the plane was so packed I couldn't take another box. Except on my lap.

Those Chinese made bicycles are everywhere in East Africa, and beyond? One of the few kind of good Chinese products...a Grand Caravan in the background. Yirol.

Tribal woman, impressive scars to say the least.

A rare sweet moment in that war torn country... there were a few kids on that airstrip in Aweil
, all dressed in an interesting fashion and more than happy to pose and check the results on the screen.

Guess what some airfield lousy little chief of whatever (you know the kind with a few pens in his shirt pocket and black sunglasses) gave us a show of abuse of authorities, trying to make me delete my pictures under the name of security...kids, a dirt strip, one aircraft wreck, one old hangar, scorched earth as far as you can see, you get the picture...

some smartphones are great to fool those photo idiots. If you don't open the phone with your password but open the camera function, it shows "no picture no video in this folder" coz they are stored somewhere and one has no access without the password. This guy didn't  know that and I fooled him.

People in South Sudan

 

 

A civil war is raging, another timid and fragile peace agreement in the process...let's hope.

Yet in the middle of numerous atrocities and 4 million refugees of various status, life can sometimes seem normal.

 

 

Fashion is taken very seriously even in some remote places.

 

Fashion but traditional outfits are still present.

 

 

"l love Africa" Tshirt!

 

I flew beds in and was treated like a saint...I was even interviewed and was known as the Belgica man for a while. Belgica...where did the radio girl pick that is a mystery.

 

Many of those pictures would have thrown me in jail if l had been caught. Beware! A cow or a mama selling can be considered sensitive subject by any trigger happy dude or any idiot with a government ID... remember you see a lot of what look like soldiers but they are not proper soldiers, just men in uniforms who happen to fight in the bush. Conventions and rules are a strange concept.

South Sudan, random pictures

Reading the news, It seems not much has changed. Peace treaties that are not respected, ghosts raping women (yes ghosts, "Horny evil spirit rapes 6 women in Juba" says the paper), million people still displaced, child soldiers, torture, rape and murder...

Here are some pictures from 4 years ago. 4 years already...

 

My old plane back then. Here the Indian peace keepers in Pibor.

Some areas look so peaceful...one would never guess there is a civil war and atrocities raging on. Somewhere along the White Nile.

Eastern European pilots at work, maybe the Russian usual suspects, landing in the middle of the parking lot instead of on the runway. Ah well they make life interesting. I wish I had been closer to avoid the heat distortion. Over 40C...

 

 

Coming home after a shopping spree in Juba.

 

Mi 8 helicopter. Ukrainian registered I think. It was fun to "intercept" it and snap a coupla pictures. 

 

 

 

 

Pictures from South Sudan

 

 

Floods in the far bush.

Who designed the ugly contraption...

Common scenery. View from the aircraft.

 

 

 

 

Refugee camp, one of many...

People, South Sudan

 

A bit disconcerting was the fact that even some tramps could also carry an AK 47 and dubiously claim the right to jump in the aircraft for free for they were or are fighters…

 

 

 

 

 

200m from the state house! Too busy wrecking the country for good….

 

Those kids were playing a healthy game, hitting a bottle at the end of a rope.

 

 

People, South Sudan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

South Sudan, aerials

 

A flooded homestead.

 

From some altitude, a view of the White Nile and secondary lakes.

 

 

A town on the very edge on the White Nile.

 

Activity along the White Nile.

 

 

Hardly no good road in the country…

 

2 scenes in a refugee camp.

Aerials of a refugee camp, South Sudan

 

This refugee camp lies next to the airstrip of Rubkona to be precise, quite a bad place on a daily basis…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some portable drinking water tanks, very convenient even in the middle of floods.

 

 

Aerials, South Sudan

 

22 km of tarmac in the country, in 2015, but I doubt the situation has changed since then…

 

 

The White Nile.

 

 

A refugee camp partially flooded.

 

 

The White Nile.

 

 

Stranded villagers in the rain season.

 

People, South Sudan

 

This is not a royal British hat but a slab of meat and I was lucky she was not my passenger.

 

 

 

 

Usual welcome committee but I was not overly impressed by the size of the cannon. It looks so small on such a big vehicle.

 

 

 

It is unlikely these 2 would meet but what a degree of coolness!

 

 

 

Random pictures, South Sudan

 

Where did that would-be pilot got this mini uniform…

 

Young refugee…what future awaits her in that hopeless land?

 

Those rambos are absolutely everywhere…

 

 

Civilians, for good reasons, hate to go naked as well.

 

Extra passengers as usual and what a coincidence, there was that comfortable office as cargo. Better seat than the aircraft ones for sure.

 

Another recurrence were those armored vehicles at the end of many airstrips.

 

As for the little pilot, the question remains, where did this lady get that flamenco dress?

 

Henne work, very common for married women.

 

This soldier looks placid enough but imagine him in combat, full of fury and armed. The effect on the enemy must be certain.

Aerials, South Sudan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aviation in South Sudan

 

Overtaking a Mi 8

 

Wrecked HS 748. One of the pilots was beaten by the crowd. The reason remains nebulous. The other pilot was about unconscious and spared more beating.

 

A bunch of Iliyushin 76’s.

 

C 130

 

A Mig 19.

 

And its neighbour, a Boeing 707

 

Some Mi 8’s

Random pictures, South Sudan

 

One of the pictures I stole while hitching a ride on a military convoy.

 

 

 

Detail of a gun held by a civilian. Quite a vintage model, 1911. Not sure if the US army still use them.

 

Some people might go for a long trip…

 

 

 

 

A mobile control tower. People tend to go back the bush or small town with heavy luggage. When a country is torn part by a civil war, any goodie is needed.

 

The infamous Kalashnikov AK 47

South Sudan, random pictures

 

I’d like to know the story of that bag! Marilyn in the South Sudanese bush?

 

This man was just dancing…happy to leave hell?

 

 

 

 

Spending the day in an encircled military camp….

No idea why this soldier was insisting on posing with a lady handbag.

 

Refugees trying to cheer up.

 

South Sudan, random pictures in the bush

 

This VIP lady was honored by dancers on arrival.

 

Resuming life after some mayhem…

 

 

 

The usual triple pack to feed weapons, usually an AK 47, but an Israeli one can do too.

 

 

Aircraft started to resume flying to a remote place, people were curious again.

Random pictures from South Sudan

 

The welcoming committee in many airstrips… These vehicles are called technical, to be seen everywhere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Common scene out there… wrecks litter the airstrips.

Random pictures, South Sudan

 

Christmas in a military camp. Refugees had escaped their ransacked village, courtesy of the rebels, and found shelter in this camp. Not that the regular soldiers are any better, it is all about tribalism, that scourge of the continent, sadly. Meanwhile we heard bullets flying around the camp. I was assured we were safe for the meeting and party duration…cool then.

 

Stunning girl coming back to visit the family in the bush. Many gifts from the city will require 2 taxi bikes.

 

 

Hass…somebody hasn’t done some basic marketing…

 

Wounded soldier. I was wondering if I was rescuing a dangerous criminal or a decent guy caught up in a civil war he maybe didn’t want.

 

Temporary feeding station in Pibor.

 

The Russian cargo airplanes always bring people, refugees or not, back to Juba. Cargo planes mean no seats, so the passengers just sit on the bare floor. Not a big deal, pilots and other greasers get richer. It could become a big deal if the people slide back and tilt the aircraft on its tail. Deadly crashes have happened for that reason. I was quite nervous myself when I did that myself with refugees. My climb was very slow to keep the plane in a flat attitude. And I realised it is quite a good thing to have carpeted floor. Metallic floors are easy to clean but slippery…

 

Mobile control tower, convenient contraption once a war zone has been temporarily/partially pacified.

 

The notorious Iliyushin 76. Stolen picture as paranoia with psychopathic behaviour doesn’t make a pleasant match amongst the soldiers and various officials, low ranking or not.

South Sudan, aerial photography

 

Detail of a refugee camp just after take off

 

 

Rubkona refugee camp. Quite a hellish place…

 

Some engineer messed up the lay out of this camp, now quite prone to flooding. Well maybe it is not an easy job either.

 

A good road in South Sudan.

 

 

 

The famous Ankole Longhorn cows. Worth killing for apparently, literally.

 

Some algae…?

 

The White Nile from mid high altitude.

South Sudan, people

 

 

Near the Kenyan border, one can notice similarities with the more famous Maasai tribe. Distant cousins maybe.

 

USAid feeding center. Those bags weigh 50 kg!

 

Young civilians with weapons, typical scene. A bit annoying when those guys come and ask for a lift on the aircraft. For free usually… sometimes they’re reasonable and understand the concept of weight vs available distance on an airstrip. Sometimes the discussion gets heated, the pilot gets threatened to be thrown in jail or gets beaten with  rifle butts . For instance my colleague who being African had more chances than me to get through such an inconvenience…, 3 days in hospital.

 

 

 

The massive Ilyushin 76 technically can carry 70 tons of cargo, was officially limited to 35 in Juba due to the available runway and the excessive heat, but the Russian pilots and crew took another extra 5 tons and pocketed the money. We all did, though in my little plane, I couldn’t compete with tons! On empty legs passengers were welcome...even on the bare floor. A bit risky if the said passengers shift too much to the back.

I guess this soldier came to collect his fee to look somewhere else while that dodgy business went on.

Another example of a picture I took with my smartphone while pretending to make a call. People can get so cagey about picture. I had been arrested for taking a picture of a fruit seller. I had learnt my lesson.

 

Traditional scars.

People, South Sudan

 

Piercing made in South Sudan, USAid feeding station, Pibor.

 

 

Fur hat, 45 Celsius in average…

 

His wife’s bag?

 

Smiles and scars.

 

 

Aerial pictures, South Sudan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

People, South Sudan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Random pictures, South Sudan

 

Antonov 32 taking off from Juba.

 

This little sells biscuits.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My last picture before I left in 2015. These killing machines, Mi 24 gunships, were being refurbished by Russians or whatever technicians. More horrors to come as we now know.

South Sudan, people

 

the situation doesn’t get better in that war-torn country, thanks to the lousy corrupt and incompetent leaders. The staggering number of 1.5 million refugees has been hit, out of a population of 12 million!

You can’t expect much hope from a government that forcibly recruits child soldiers…

 

But people there, well mostly women, seemed to be hoping for peace, to live a normal life considering the effort put in fashion and hairdos.

 

 

You’ve got to pinch yourself sometimes when those stunning creatures come out of the middle of shitty nowhere… High heels were common sightings.

 

and some guys were quite into fashion too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This girl couldn’t be my copilot, my flying precision would have suffered as a result…

Random pictures in South Sudan

 

2 extremes…

 

The air forces in 2015 had only that aircraft, rented from Uganda. But then they had those stealthy Mil 34 or 35. They had arrived just days before I fled that charming country. This is my last picture, stolen as usual, there.

 

A common scene, a crazy bigot…

 

 

Same scam everywhere…

 

 

Civilians with AK 47’s. This man looked in charge of some bodyguards so I felt half safe but sometimes you get the tramp with blood shot eyes asking for favors…

 

I’ve lost count on how many different uniforms I spotted there. There 954 generals in the country. For 12 millions citizens! That’s more generals than all the US forces combined.

 

Santa in South Sudan…sometimes it got funny out there.

B/W portraits, South Sudan

Notice the scars and the piercing under the lower lip.

 

 

 

 

 

 

People, South Sudan

 

 

In the middle of a civil war, some girls look out of place but we won’t complain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

People in South Sudan

Amongst all that extreme violence and barbarity there seemed to be some hope. With women as usual. Men seem hopelessly happy in crime and atrocities…OK maybe I simplify a bit. This week again 20 travellers were killed, 21 wounded while some trucks were attacked, one truck was torched with people on board. No women reported in the assailants.

This kind of stunning was a regular occurrence.

 

 

 

 

2 women in a military camp. Christmas 2014, their village next door had been razed and burnt. How does one manage to smile after that…

 

 

 

Aerial photography, South Sudan

 

One plane was shot down over this village, the white tail is still visible after the rest of the wreck has burnt or has been looted.

 

Rare activity on the Nile river. That was a bit puzzling since there are hardly no roads. Only dirt tracks anyway and unusable in the rainy season. Maybe the civil war explains why the boat traffic is next to zero.

 

 

 

Those blue tarpaulins are to be seen everywhere, even outside refugee camps. UN materials that has been wandering away usually.

 

 

 

A military type of bridge (?) on a main track.

 

Swamp and suspicious plants.

Aviation in South Sudan

 

Common sceneries are wreckages at many airstrips or airports. Here a HS 748 where one pilot was beaten to a pulp by the local people! Why? A mystery.

Various accidents are due to overloaded airplanes or airplanes shot down by missiles for instance. All pictures taken with great care and discretion…some pilots have had their cameras trashed, some have been arrested (briefly in my case)

 

The wrecks of a Boeing 707, a sad and undignified end, and a wreck of a venerable Mig 19 .

 

Antonov 12.

South Sudan is too busy shooting itself  in each toe and many things are simply not done, like organising a proper civil aviation authority. Mind you, tax, fee and various theft schemes are well oiled and efficient.

It means that any businessman can bring any aircraft in the country and stick to the original registration, which has many perks it must be said, like no extra exams and other conversions and waste of time for crew.

The plane I flew was the only one registered in Tanzania for instance. So I just flew with my good ol' Tanzanian licence the next day or so after my arrival there. Many planes come from Eastern Europe, ex Russia, South Africa and Kenya, a couple from Canada or the USA, some from Europe.

 

UN operations are quite massive there, but not always cheap and economically wise apparently… Hercules C130.

 

A venerable Dakota DC3, retrofitted with modern turbine engines. The first model came out in 1935! What a perfect design!

 

A massive Mil 26. Remove the wings and ‘my’ Caravan below, a 14 seater, could fit in.

 

 

A more modest Mil 8, 22 seater, not that small but quite slow. I did overtake a few and couldn’t resist a few pictures.

 

A massive Ilyushin 76 operated for World Food Program. They rarely landed in the north of South Sudan. They just dropped food and supplies.

 

As said, pictures taken with discretion usually. Shot with my Leica M8. On the 2nd tour in this welcoming country, I left it in Tanzania and used my smartphone a lot more while pretending to be on a call, less threatening and more discrete. An old Nikon D200 usually stayed untouched in my bag except for aerial shootings.

The word “Welcome” was used ironically as foreign workers have being killed on regular basis! Uganda had sent its airplanes or coaches to rescue its nationals on previous targeted killing sprees…

USAid, food station in South Sudan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That was the plane I flew last year but USAid trucks had delivered the bags and oil cans.

South Sudan, people

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Below, pictures from a Christmas party in a derelict military camp surrounded by rebels. I had just brought the booze and some high ranking officers for the day. The soldiers and their families or refugees didn’t wait for the evening. The situation looked surreal. The morning phone told me to avoid the southern area because the rebels were still active, 5km away…

 

No idea why that guy was so pleased with a women’s handbag…

 

 

South Sudan, people

 

Are they really soldiers or just guys with weapons. Discipline and proper training seem a strange concept here… I have seen many times these soldiers refusing to obey their commanders, which implied some fighting to get them straight. In one case I was involved in the fighting. 50 soldiers, yes 50, had boarded my 13 seater and wouldn’t budge! So when the commander and some abiding soldiers invited me to help to remove the mutineers, I enjoyed the game, happily enjoyed a few kicks to relieve some piled up frustration..

 

Authentic  piercing.

 

Juba, the capital is dirty and not everybody has access to water. Those faucets are available here and there.

 

 

 

After a public appearance for women’s rights somewhere in the bush. Not sure the men were convinced…

 

 

Fashion in any situation. What a hat!

People, South Sudan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(All pictures taken without anybody noticing, it’s kind of the norm out there, people are very touchy about pictures)

USAid in South Sudan

 

Pibor, a village somewhere in South Sudan. I had dropped some supplies for UN pecekeepers and at the same USAid trucks were dropping food for the civilians. Interesting scenery.

 

Yes, those bags look heavy. And they are: 50kg or 113 lbs!

 

 

 

Keeping watch on precious trophies!

B/W portraits, South Sudan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

People, South Sudan