SAVAGE SAFARI: Part 2

2021 PART 2:

Four of the five Savages flying low and slow across the flooded salt pans of the Northern Cape.

HEADING NORTH TOWARDS Gariep Dam, we routed low level along the picturesque eastern Cape mountain ranges, skirting Queenstown to the east and passing over the Stormberg near Molteno, eventually landing at Burgersdorp airfield for a break and a stretch.

By the time we reached Burgersdorp, tummies were rumbling and Jason phoned ahead to Jaco at Gariep, who would be meeting us with fuel, and asked him to bring out some burgers and chips for the hungry crew.

Soon we were racing (it’s relative, ok!) our way over the flatlands of the Karoo, weaving between rocky koppies and over ridges, absolutely loving the freedom and open space this area offers, flying low, loving the sensation of the rush of the ground just below our wheels. This is what I live for - the sense of utter freedom, the focus on nothing but the flying, and the pure joy of keeping loose formation with four other like-minded pilots revelling in the open spaces Africa has to offer.

A little while later, some glistening reflection on the horizon signalled our arrival at the massive Gariep Dam, South Africa’s largest water reservoir along the Orange River. Soon we were overflying herds of wildebeest, impala and hartebeest as we made our way across the dam to the Gariep airfield on the north-western shore. Interestingly, this would be the first time Cullen and Patrick had ever landed their Savages on an asphalt runway, not an easy task with large bush wheels that grip the tar surface.

Both landed like old pro’s and soon we were munching our burgers while we filled up our planes with go-juice. Fuel burn on our aircraft averages 18lph, depending on how hard we push it, making for really economical flying at 85-95mph TAS.

Spectacular scenery unfolded ahead of us

Happy campers - the Savage safari team.

Fed and fuelled we continued along the Orange River at mid-day, aware of the need to push on to our destination near Groblershoop, some 40 miles short of Upington along the Orange River. There are numerous small powerlines crossing the river, so we flew along at a safe height until we entered the Vanderkloof Dam gorge, a long and narrow spectacular stretch of river that winds its way into the enormous Vanderkloof Dam, the second massive reservoir along the Orange. Flying in formation up the narrow gorge was spectacular, and great practice for the pilots in our group. Formation flying is a subtle art that really improves your finer flying skills, and is also incredible fun - and something, in my opinion, all pilots should aspire to learn. Soon after Vanderkloof there is the little town of Petrusville with what used to be a great airfield on

the outskirts of town. Having landed there regularly over the past 10 years, I have watched the decay of the runways and the growth of the informal settlement that is now threatening to completely overrun the airfield. This in the enormous my opinion is the greatest threat to GA in South full moon Africa at the moment - the complete and utter disregard shining down of our national general aviation infrastructure by a on our little disinterested government and dysfunctional municipalities camp and around the country. aircraft Wherever we fly in the backcountry, we see the decay of airfield after airfield, to the extent that in most cases, the fields are not safe to land on due to broken bottles, overgrown runways, and crowds of ‘squatters’ now living on no cost state land. Petrusville is no different, and soon after landing we were surrounded by a hundred curious young onlookers with signs of poverty clearly to be seen

wherever you looked. Forgotten people in a largely forgotten part of South Africa, and a government uninterested in the genuine plight of its poorest citizens.

Flying on a direct track for Prieska, we routed away from the river and into a strong headwind that at one stage slowed us down to 45mph across the ground. Luckily this didn’t last too long, and soon the green crop circles and silos of Prieska came into sight. We landed for a final break before our last leg into a private airfield called Skerpioenpunt near Groblershoop.

As the late afternoon calm descended on the northern Cape, we took off into beautiful soft light, and what would be for many of us on the trip, the most incredible 90 minutes of flying we had done.

Spectacular scenery unfolded ahead of us as we flew low level along the river; forests of quiver trees on the rocky ridges along our path, beautiful reflections of subtle sunlight on the dark waters of the Orange. With soft light bathing the beautifully coloured Savages we flew in alternating loose and close formation along the snaking river.

Shane made a meal of the experience, taking some of the most beautiful photos of the trip that evening, including some spectacular shots of Jason washing the dust off the Bobber’s wheels…

Landing at Skerpioenpunt at sunset was special, and soon we had the planes tied down and our team set up in the empty hangar that owner Stoffel van Zyl had kindly offered us for the night. With our beds and chairs set up we started a braai fire and watched the pyrotechnics of the approaching thunderstorm, which rained down briefly on us.

An early start the next day was hampered by the discovery during pre-flight of another crack on an exhaust, this time Cullen’s. Luckily the helpful farm manager Hannes was quickly at hand with his portable welder and some stainless rods. With a rather crude but effective repair done, we were ready to set off for the deep Kalahari by late morning.

Heading further west, we bypassed Upington to the south, and followed the snaking Orange River to Augrabies, where we landed at Dundi lodge and were met by Berto van Zyl who helped us fuel up with Avgas. Patrick taxied in at Dundi with a flat tailwheel, his Alaska Baby Bushwheel not really an ideal candidate for backcountry flying in Africa. Thin soft rubber is probably great on the tundra and

Night time at Koppieskraalpan - photos takes in Night Mode on an iPhone.

ABOVE: The four Savages along the Orange River. BELOW: Broken exhausts again - "n boer maak n plan".

Unforgettable fun following the winding Orange River.

riverbeds of Alaska, but not made for the devil thorns and sharp stones of the Kalahari. We did a quick makeshift repair using some hellishly strong superglue and wrapped the tyre in duct tape, before setting off for Koppieskraal Pan near the Namibian border where we planned to spend the night.

Soon after takeoff we climbed out over the Augrabies falls, which though it had a decent amount of water going over, was not the spectacular sight of the Orange River in flood of a few weeks prior to our visit.

Rocky hills and valleys opened up to undulating sand dunes as we headed due north, the late afternoon sun slowly slipping towards the western horizon. The Kalahari was spectacularly green, after a very high rainfall season. The massive salt pans in the area were all under water, but luckily the farm owner Hans, where we planned to spend the night, had kindly offered for us to land and camp on dry land adjacent to the pan. He’d sent a couple of pin-drops showing likely landing spots, and we made our way to the first spot after overflying his house to make him aware of our arrival. The first site chosen was ideal, with about 100m of dry gravel serving as a makeshift runway.

With the sun about to set, we landed and marvelled at the remote beauty of this amazing place. With the rest of the crew setting up camp, I had the chance to fly with Hans over his beautiful farm, and a section of the Koppieskraal pan. Hans farms and milks Dromedary camels, amazingly supplying markets as far afield as Cape Town and Johannesburg with frozen camel milk. This was something totally new to me and not what I expected to find in the furthest corner of South Africa’s dry Kalahari!

Hans had kindly brought us a bag of firewood and joined us for a beer and dinner as we settled down around the “kuiervuur” with the full moon rising over the flooded salt pan to our east. It was a surreal and incredible experience being out in the absolute isolation of the furthest corner of South Africa, with not a light to be seen in any direction bar the enormous full moon shining down on our little camp and aircraft. This was bush flying in its absolute purest form, and a night none of us will forget in a hurry.

With just a hint of light on the eastern horizon, we were up and pre-flighting for a dawn flight over the pans - the Koppieskraal and nearby Hakskeenpan, the largest in the area. Soon after takeoff we assembled in formation, and flew out over the pans, the glow of the rising sun threatening to break over the dunes on the far side of the pan. We flew directly at the sun, getting some spectacular video footage of the formation low level over the pans. Shane’s camera shutter must have been hot after the flight, with some incredible photo opportunities of the Savages low over the water of the pans, colours reflected on the glass-like surface. We landed again an hour later, back at camp, and after coffee and some breakfast, broke camp, said our goodbyes to Hans, and set off on the short flight to the Kgalagadi Lodge, just outside the Kgalagadi National Park.

The lodge runway lies in the dry Nossob riverbed in front of camp, and after landing we were met by a vehicle from the lodge which helped cart our camping equipment to the top of the dunes where the campsite was situated. Each campsite has its own spotless bathroom and shower, and we took full advantage of the facilities to wash off the Kalahari dust of the past few days. The afternoon was spent in and around the swimming pool and we enjoyed some cold refreshments in the evening. The restaurant dinner was a pleasant change from the camp-cooked meals we’d enjoyed so far.

The next morning we rented a 4x4 from the lodge and spent the bulk of the day in the Kgalagadi National Park, which provided some great game-viewing, including a sighting of a family of cheetah. The late afternoon was spent refuelling the Savages with containers supplied by the lodge and visits to the nearby Twee Rivieren petrol station inside the park.

The start of our second-last day of the trip saw us takeoff soon after 8:30am, and following the dry Nossob riverbed past Askham we stayed low-level over the red dunes of the Kalahari, and with the help of a gentle tailwind, chewed up mile after mile before making a fortunate stop at Postmasberg, where we discovered yet another crack in the Bobber exhaust. Jannie Visser, one of locals involved at Postmasberg soon rustled up some help and we quickly had the offending exhaust tube off and were escorted to a

Low and fast over the pans is exhilarating.

welding works in town, where the necessary repairs were promptly and kindly executed.

Soon we were back in the air and heading for Jacobsdal, where we would spend the night at a friend, Andrew Conroy’s airfield. The Conroy’s have a small rustic cottage adjacent to the strip, with all the basic amenities including a hot shower and Weber braai, which was well utilised that evening with some fantastic local delicacies and hospitality.

Some rather sore heads greeted the morning sun as we loaded up the planes for the last day of our trip, via Bethlehem to Hilton. We set off into another spectacular autumn day, continuing low level across the Free State, skimming sunflower fields and winging around the numerous windmills scattered across this part of South Africa.

A day we thought may be dull turned out to be one of the best. It’s amazing how you can amuse yourself and pass hour after hour of flying by playing around low level, flying formation, following little river valleys or skirting small features like koppies or windmills.

Soon after mid-day we landed in Bethlehem and it was here that Patrick’s ailing tailwheel decided it was beyond repair. After roping in the refuelling staff and their 4-wheeler, they kindly towed the Black Bobber from the runway to the fuel bay. The wheel would make it home though, with just one more takeoff and landing needed. Once refuelled, we set off for the sandstone escarpment of the Drakensberg, over which we descended from 7000ft down to 3500ft as we followed the winding Tugela River valley out onto the Woodstock Dam. With the coolness of the approaching evening, we cruised home over the evergreen dairy farms of the KZN Midlands, landing just after 5 pm at our base at Eva’s Field.

The trip had been an incredible experience, and a true testament to the rugged capabilities of the Savage aircraft. Other than the minor exhaust problems and a badly punctured tailwheel, the aircraft and their Rotax engines had purred along for a combined 180 hours on the trip. The camaraderie and teamwork of the guys on the tour was wonderful, and the incredible warmth and hospitality shown to us throughout the trip was again a reminder of how small and interconnected our aviation community is, and how hospitable our South African folks, especially those in the rural and far-flung areas are.

Again, a great thank you to Patrick Warnking, Shane Doyle, Jason Beamish, Cullen Lang and Tyron Gibbs for joining me on this amazing adventure. There will be many more in time to come!!

And to all the folks along the way who helped us, way too many to mention, thank you again for your kind hospitality and warmth. Until next time…j

KITTYHAWK

DOWNDRAFTS?

I WOULD LIKE to make a cautionary observation about Kittyhawk airfield. A few weeks ago I landed there in my Grob 109 motor glider on runway 01. When the time came to depart the moderate wind had swung and was coming straight down runway 19, so I used this runway.

Several years ago I changed the old Limbach motor on the Grob for a UL 350i. This improved the rate of climb at 5000 ft on a warm day at 65 knots from very little to a more than acceptable 550 ft/min with full load.

After take-off I noticed that I was not out-climbing the hill beyond the end of the runway and saw that the rate of climb indicated was negligible. Just as I was about to turn away from the slope the climb improved to an acceptable rate and I continued safely.

I remembered reading about a Piper Turbo Arrow which had crashed on this hill some time ago and looked up the article in your April 2007 edition. This article implied that the Arrow had insufficient power to outclimb the slope, which is clearly true, but I always thought there must have been an additional factor.

I am convinced that with a southerly wind there is a downdraft coming over the hill which, under certain circumstances, is strong enough to cause an aircraft with a moderate rate of climb to fail to clear the hill. From experience gained gliding in the Drakensberg I surmise that there is a relatively shallow laminar stream of air flowing down the hill which could cause serious difficulties for many aircraft. Once above it the climb rate will revert to normal.

It would be interesting to put a smoke pot on the hill when there is a southerly wind and observe what happens. I hope this may help some pilots using Kittyhawk. Best Regards Richard Becker j