RUNAWAY ENGINE

Laura McDermid continues to share the fascinating stories of Kenyan bush pilot Iris McCallum.

I breathed deeply, the ozone-rich air wet and thick as it slid into my lungs. The familiar smell of the rain-soaked African bush an intoxicating perfume that always left me feeling slightly giddy. I affectionately patted the grand old dame as I completed my final checks this Valentine’s Day in 2002.

THE CESSNA GRAND CARAVAN 208B was one of five planes that comprised my fleet at Regional Air. a branch of Kenya Air, which I was commissioned to set up in Arusha, Tanzania, the country of my birth.

Having a Tanzanian ATPL as well as a Kenyan ATPL stood me in good stead as I tackled this exciting yet complex project. Within five yearswe had a complement of 26 staff members.

Being Managing Director meant overseeing the operation which involved countless hours behind a desk keeping the TCAA happy. Paperwork was the least favourite aspect of my job so I relished any opportunity to get behind the controls of an aeroplane.

5H-MUA at kili International Airport after the emergency landing.

‘Crap!’ I wasn’t looking where I was going and had stepped into a boggy patch, my sturdy RM boots ankle-deep in sludge. It took considerable effort to extract them, my legs straining to escape their muddy captors. With a wet sucking sound my feet finally came free. ‘With all this mud I need to keep my takeoff roll as short as possible.’ I thought to myself as I squinted down the Klein’s Camp runway that I had helped build six years earlier.

The pewter clouds parted long enough to show hints of blue sky and I felt a breeze ruffling the unruly curls on the back of my neck.

Read more in this months edition..