Thursday, January 8, 2009...Welcome to a New Year, and a new beginning as we deliver our latest KODIAK to the Jungle Aviation and Radio Service (JAARS).
"Today was very, very, very rewarding."
We've put this plane on floats. We've dumped parachutists out of it. We've worked our way through Certification with the FAA and continue the journey ramping up to full production. It all seems very complicated, and it has been, but those six words spoken by Quest co-visionary Dave Voetmann may sum it all up. It was very rewarding indeed when on this winter's afternoon the wild wheel we've been on began the graceful turn full circle.
The handoff of s/n 008 took place at 2 pm, between shifts, so that our entire crew could be there to see it. And it just seemed fitting that Dave Voetmann and Tom Hamilton, the two visionaries whose hearts sparked this dream, would be standing there, in front of our newest KODIAK, to hand keys over to David Reeves, president of JAARS. (The photo above shows Voetmann on the left, Hamilton in the middle, and Reeves on the right.) This moment meant a lot to all of them, and you could see it in their faces.
Reeves will put 008 to work providing both field and domestic aviation service as part of JAARS' worldwide effort to offer a translation of the Bible in every language. This plane will provide access to Papua New Guinea's rugged mountains and remote coastal areas, where it is virtually impossible to reach rural communities and local language projects without air support. As Voetmann put it, "JAARS needs the equivalent of a Mack truck and a Jeep in the form of an airplane to continue their work. There's just no other good economical aircraft that will do this job."
Reeves choked up as he thanked the Quest team for all the work it's done and highlighted the tremendous need for KODIAK in jungle situations. The handoff made manifest the very real investments of time, labor and money contributed by men and women who believe in a simple dream of leveraging the good of some for the benefit of many.
KODIAK 008 is now off on a rigorous eight month schedule. During this time it will fly an introductory tour of America and provide stateside orientation for JAARS pilots. This July/August you can see it featured on prominent display at AirVentureOshkosh 2009 before heading off for its real mission in Papua New Guinea.
Very few regions of the world have a greater need for safe, reliable, air transportation than the vast island nation of Papua New Guinea, north of Australia. Once there the KODIAK -- unaffected by a drought in AvGas, a lack of prepared runways, and the many other challenges that hinder remote jungle operations -- will perform the mission it was built for.
“From the very beginning, our underlying mission at Quest has been to design, certify, and manufacture a bush utility aircraft specifically suited to meet the needs of mission and humanitarian aviation organizations,” said PaulSchaller, Quest's president and CEO. “With its greater cargo-carrying capabilities and the ability to get in and out of unpaved, short strips, the KODIAK provides reliable access to the most remote regions of the world and the isolated peoples who live there.”
We're looking forward to a big year in 2009 and, my goodness, what a start.