PCM News: TWR Mocuba

03 February 2011

TWR Mocuba

I have often flown across the vast empty spaces of southern Mozambique and wondered how the people in the isolated villages below can have contact with the outside world. What do they know of our little white aircraft, or of the message that its occupants are bringing to the people further north.

Someone else obviously wondered this many years ago and the result was Trans World Radio an organisation who broadcast the Gospel to over 40 countries in Africa alone.

They had a group of seven donors from Canada who wanted to visit the studios in Mocuba, N Mozambique. As this is quite a remote inland location, taking three full days to drive from South Africa, we arranged to fly them there in two of our aircraft. It was still a six hour journey including stops for fuel, customs and immigration, but the weather was perfect and we got there in good time.

The 310 landing at Mocuba

Cathy and I had flown here a month ago to pick up a stroke patient (http://pcm-mercyair.blogspot.com/2011/01/another-long-day-in-saddle.html) so we knew what to expect with regard to the condition of the dirt strip. As usual the local children got all excited and greeted us on our arrival.

Paul

2 comments:

Anonymous said...: Glad I'm now connected and see your blogs straightaway without external prompting from you - and great to hear this news.
i too often wonder about the relationship with us up here and those, whoever they are, down below. It's a sort of parallel world.
As you say in this case there's even more of an other-world-ness in terms of lifestyles, knowledge, mindsets etc.
Keep up the work He has given you!
Robert; 03 February, 2011
Paul and Cathy said...: Well done. I couldn't even work out how to let myself know I'd written something.; 04 February, 2011

Post a Comment

A short history of us

Not long after we were married we felt that God had some full time work for us overseas. This initially began with a move to Sheffield in 1992 to work for a Christian management training company. Three years later we felt the Lord's prompting that another change was imminent and this led to a move to Africa where we helped set up a youth program with the Lesotho-Durham link in the capital Maseru. An initial three year commitment turned into four after which the youth work was handed over to the nationals.

Then, after feeling God was moving us into mission flying Paul enrolled at a flying school and completed his South African commercial license with an instrument rating in December 1999.

We moved from Lesotho to White River in South Africa in June of 2003 where we now work with Mercy Air. Mercy Air was borne out of Youth with a Mission (YWAM) and is a sister, although smaller organisation to the more well known Mercy Ships. We are situated near Nelspruit and provide a service to missions and the development/aid community in the southern African region but mainly serve Mozambique.

We operate four aircraft at present - a Quest Kodiak, a Cessna 310 and two Airbus 350 helicopters which are often used for the relief flights.

When not flying Paul is responsible for flight operations and is Mercy Air's Safety Officer.

Cathy, who is a registered Nurse and Midwife works part time at Africa School of Missions which is a bible college preparing missionaries for overseas service. She teaches in their School of Health and is part of a team which visits a number of rural clinics during the week. She is also helps with the hospitality ministry that Mercy Air runs.

Matthew spent four years at Rhodes University in Grahamstown where he studied photo journalism. He has now flown the nest and is living with his wife in Durban. They have a young daughter named Isabella.