On 7 July, MAF Pilot Mike Brown loaded a new Kodiak Quest 100 aircraft with food supplies and Bibles and flew to Emdoman, central Papua.
The first operational flight for MAF’s newest aircraft had taken almost three years to reach MAF’s Indonesian programme due to coronavirus restrictions.
The trip to Emdoman, which lasted roughly an hour, saved the plane’s passengers several days of arduous overland travel – enabling the pastors to return home and distribute food and Bibles to the delighted villagers.
The aircraft’s arrival was especially poignant, given that it reached MAF’s Sentani base on 25 April 2021, and received a certificate of airworthiness on 12 May.
MAF Director of Corporate Communication Brad Hoaglun says: ‘Typically, a certificate of airworthiness can take up to six months following the inspection of a new aircraft. So, our team was delighted when the approval came in just four weeks.’
Joyce Lin
Providentially, it occurred exactly a year after the tragic death of MAF Pilot Joyce Lin (picture below). The Taiwanese American joined MAF in 2017, moved to Papua in 2019 and spent her last few months flying her ‘dream aircraft’ and delivering preventative coronavirus supplies to the region’s remotest areas – dying on 12 May 2020.
The much-loved missionary left Sentani Airport to deliver essential supplies and coronavirus test kits to the remote Indonesian village of Mamit; Joyce’s Kodiak aircraft crashed into Lake Sentani shortly after she’d made an emergency distress call.
Villagers living along the coast rushed to the lake in search of the dedicated pilot, but it was too late. On the runway at Mamit, where the villagers were expecting Joyce to land, the people left red flowers and handwritten notes. ‘Pilot Joyce Lin,’ one card read, ‘till we meet again.’
To mark the tragedy, on 12 May this year, MAF’s Papua team held a special celebration to remember their 40-year-old colleague’s short but fruitful life and to dedicate the new Kodiak in her honour.
Many wore matching ‘ReJoyce’ T-shirts, with the words Bertumbuh (to grow), Berbuah (bear fruit) and Bersatu (come together) on the back; eating together, comforting one another and sharing happy memories of Joyce.
Though sad at the loss of a beloved friend and colleague, it was a great encouragement that, to quote Brad Hoaglun: ‘On the special anniversary of Joyce Lin’s accident, this new aircraft will be a workhorse on the mission field, and the only connection for many to the outside world.’
