WizardPilot
Well-known member
- Joined
- Feb 17, 2005
- Posts
- 145
I recently returned from a safari trip to Zimbabwe and was surprised at what I found. Most of the farm owners, who are white, have been kicked off of their farms and ranches by the government and "War Vets" (of the 1985 civil war to rid a white government.) The government corruption is extreme and in such a dire need for money, they are selling passports to the chinese government who is sending people over by the hundreds and looking at the long term outlook of a chinese colony. I am not racist at all but these men and their families , all white, were removed from their farms and their homes of generations at gunpoint, with blessings from the government. Most have left the country for the UK or south Africa to start new lifes. But there are few who have stayed behind.
These who have stayed behind have had a love for and previous experience in flying. They have upgraded their tickets to commercial and are now flying charter aircraft for busisness started by these farmers kicked off of their land to try to make a living. They are very professional in everything they do and they are so positive in their thinking. After having everything taken away from them, they remain very positive about what will hopefully happen in the future when the dictatorship in that country will disolve. Hopefully they will get their farms back, which might I add they still have the titles and deed's to in out of country depositories and which were taken illegaly.
The Aviation community in Zimbabwe is very different than it is here. They all must file 24 hours before a flight to the government where they are going, why they are going and who is flying with them. If this procedure is not followed, it could be fatal. A few of the airstrips I flew out of had manned Anti-Aircraft guns at the ready. Fourtunately I never heard of any time of them being used, but this gives you an idea of what this country is like and some of the hostilities still held by the government and militants still there.
It was a pleasure to fly with these pilots and listen to their stories of their lives, what is going on now and what they plan on for the future. They have come out of these situations with a most positive attitude from what has happened. It was amazing to me to hear about what these people have gone through and how they are still looking to the future. They are great pilots, and great men who have happened to come into unfortunate circumstances. They are part of our community and I felt I should share a little about what is going on elsewhere in the world and how people in the Aviation community are living and what they are coming from. We all come from very different walks of life and we are all blessed in our own sense. This was one of the most exciting and amazing trips I have ever been on. The country is beautiful, the animals are plentiful and some of the experiences are indescribable.
We need to pay more attention at what is going on in our worldly aviation community. These guys are living by trying to hang on to whatever they can and sometimes that grip comes loose. Their outlook on life is amazing and I have learned so much by associating with these good men.
These who have stayed behind have had a love for and previous experience in flying. They have upgraded their tickets to commercial and are now flying charter aircraft for busisness started by these farmers kicked off of their land to try to make a living. They are very professional in everything they do and they are so positive in their thinking. After having everything taken away from them, they remain very positive about what will hopefully happen in the future when the dictatorship in that country will disolve. Hopefully they will get their farms back, which might I add they still have the titles and deed's to in out of country depositories and which were taken illegaly.
The Aviation community in Zimbabwe is very different than it is here. They all must file 24 hours before a flight to the government where they are going, why they are going and who is flying with them. If this procedure is not followed, it could be fatal. A few of the airstrips I flew out of had manned Anti-Aircraft guns at the ready. Fourtunately I never heard of any time of them being used, but this gives you an idea of what this country is like and some of the hostilities still held by the government and militants still there.
It was a pleasure to fly with these pilots and listen to their stories of their lives, what is going on now and what they plan on for the future. They have come out of these situations with a most positive attitude from what has happened. It was amazing to me to hear about what these people have gone through and how they are still looking to the future. They are great pilots, and great men who have happened to come into unfortunate circumstances. They are part of our community and I felt I should share a little about what is going on elsewhere in the world and how people in the Aviation community are living and what they are coming from. We all come from very different walks of life and we are all blessed in our own sense. This was one of the most exciting and amazing trips I have ever been on. The country is beautiful, the animals are plentiful and some of the experiences are indescribable.
We need to pay more attention at what is going on in our worldly aviation community. These guys are living by trying to hang on to whatever they can and sometimes that grip comes loose. Their outlook on life is amazing and I have learned so much by associating with these good men.