Ph.D.Field Research Consultant for JAARS
March 2006
During the summer of 2000, I researched the effects of mission aviation in Indonesia, Lesotho, Mali and Ecuador. I talked with 164 people during 80 interviews and flew into 44 remote airstrips. In addition to the research objectives, I learned many other things along the way. One of which was how the lack of avgas (100LL) would affect the smaller, isolated villages. Smaller villages tend to have shorter airstrips, which generally require smaller planes. The retirement of the Helio Couriers and C- 185s, coupled with the lack of avgas for the C-206s, meant the villages with the greatest need for air service would be left without it.
If a KODIAK were available, its short-field capability and use of jet fuel would allow these remote locations to remain connected with the outside world. One airstrip, Balai Sepuak, in western Borneo, was 1,037 feet long and was a hub for Theological Training by Extension (TEE) and a Christian school. The directors told me without an airplane, the TEE program’s future would be in jeopardy. The KODIAK’s 9-passenger capacity would have been ideal for transporting the 140 instructors and students involved with these programs.
