One thousand hours

09.08.2011, a landing at Solitaire strip (FYSO) marked the first big milestone. I got my 1000th hour. 

Frank of Delta Air in Maun, Jazz the new guy at Bush Bird
and Shady the gymnastics coach of the Namibian Olympics team
with a nice shishaa

Most of it flying in and out of the bush and over the dunes of the big Namib and the endless plains of the savanna. 
A year ago I just started flying here (and well just started flying at all), and the more I flew the more there was to learn. 

Himba boys

 FLY FOR FUN

Rossing mountain in fog

Swakop river flowing

My man Theo cleaning da plane

Rain and bow over the dunes

Summer over the desert

FLY baby

Something is building 

Resting in the shade

Colors of Ugab

My Cuban wingman

Walvis saltworks with the Kuiseb flowing into the Atlantic

Spitzkoppe

Henties Bay reflections

Underwater over the savanna

Green dunes

 
I still think that this is the best school for a fresh pilot. A couple of hundred hours flown over and into these remote areas will improve not just your flying skills (flying the lovely 210 to her limits safely), but your airmanship as well, and will definitely improve your situational awereness (crowded uncontrolled airspaces can get tricky), and lots more. Not to mention the feeling of belonging to the Brotherhood, where no matter where you come from, no matter what you did before, no matter how old you are  (I know, I know I've had a bit too much of The Right Stuff book). The only thing that matters is whether in the air you know your job and if you're willing to have some chatting after hours at one of the cultural institutions like the Skydivers at the airport or the Kückis or else. I got my biggest compliment when local lots-of-thousand-hours pilots said that they are unhappy because they know that I will soon leave Swakopmund. A compliment that one rarely gets from these old aviators.

End of a nice flight

Swakopmund is still the best kept secret in aviation. I mean low time job wise. Flocks of fresh pilots show up every year in Maun, Windhoek, Dar es Salaam, but just very few make it to Swakopmund. It is true that there are not too many companies here, and decisions are mostly taken in Windhoek, or some companies want to hire only locals or SA pilots. But if one makes it here and gets a job then will probably get a lifestyle that no other African bush flying job can offer. Amazing flying from the desert to the savannah and mountainous areas. From this small Africa-for-dummies town, Jewel of the Atlantic Coast. 
With complicated weather and thrilling winds.

Skydivers night

Love every moment of flying and living here, and a big thank you goes to the owners of Bush Bird Adventure Flights on running a company with the most flight hours in Swakop and thus making this 1000+ hours possible!

Welcome to wherever you are

Enjoy the pictures as much I enjoyed taking them. 

Smooth