So this is christmas...

Merry Christmas to You All!
'Pilots don't need much school. They just have to learn to read numbers so they can read their instruments.'

A letter from Maun

To all those Dudes out there, ladies as well for that matter - Being one of those people that you have asked for an ACTUAL tell of the situation at present - ill try and give a little bit of insight into the going on's of a pilots life in Maun. At this time of the year, the best things that you could do for yourself, is make sure that you turn up to EVERY Christmas party!Meet everybody thats here, leaving here, and looking here. The best way to get a job - make a good impression the people within the company - they do the hiring. We dont care on your hours, what you have flown, whether you have an Instrument rating or not( whats instrument flying anyway?? ) just get along. There are a lot of people leaving here in the next few months, even weeks, so chances are good. Cant put a number on who's going, staying - but a fair amount are. To Live here...dont expect much, this really is one of the slum's of the earth! BUt for those of us that live here, Its like a great night out in a Major Town with girls everywhere, except there really aren't... sorry fellas, think i spotted one the other day although! You have an absolute blast with the people that you work with, the community is small, being segregated partly into PILOTS, hunters, guides, and locals. We all get on though if you make an effort. I know the looking time is hard, we have all had to do it, see the good side of it though and make the most of being here, if you dont get a job at first, go see africa, Maun is not the only place that has planes! Look foward to meeting those of you that arrive next year!! ALL THE BEST

Some clouds

If you followed the situation on PPRUNE you saw that there is a great number of wannabe pilots heading down this season to Maun. All prepared to live in uncomfortable conditions for love of flying and career.

But there is the big cloud of recession above our head. The problem is that there is no actual reliable info on present tourism situation.

I'd stress that anyone heading to Maun try to call, email or whatever before getting his or her ticket.

Let's go on! part III.

Money you need for "surviving" untill you get the job:
Around P200/day (20 Euros) while looking for work. You'll probably spend less, including a fair drinking allowance. Work out how long you're prepared to stay without a job and add 2 months on low pay before you get online.
Pay:
well yo ain't goin to buy your first yacht from this money but hey, it is not why you are here. Expect around 800 euros monthly. Some operators offer housing/allowances.
Insurance:
What if anything happens to you out there? Probably no sane insurance company will be available if you tell them that you wanna be comercial pilot in Botswana. But no worries, companies will take care of this as soon as you get hired. What I surely know is that at Mackair you get a nice healthcare insurance for emergency flights out to SA. In case of something happens!
And finally FLYING IN MAUN:
If you have a 206 rating... great, if not... well, get a rating as this will increase your chances of getting into the system quicker. Also, any aircraft on your current license that you have flown for less that 5 hours will not be endorsed on your Botswana license!
If you get hired the company will train you in bush flying. This is usually 50 hours flying. You will be starting out on the 206’s (kavango and moremi start on the 172’s). Long term pilots move up to the caravans (turboprops), and twins. Will be flying approximately 800-900 hours a year.
Some more info to sum it up, and we're done!