Aviation Aid: For those who need it most
Aviation plays a crucial role in relieving suffering and rebuilding countries devastated by disasters, says Rosalind Azouzi
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Published: 04 December 2006
Each year, natural disasters take their toll on the world and their number
looks set to increase with global warming. In addition, conflicts, famines
and droughts have led to long-term humanitarian crises. Areas hit by these
crises require clean water, sanitation kits, food, tents and blankets for
immediate relief. Building materials and equipment to provide more permanent
shelter are also vital. Human assistance, including medical teams, aid
workers and engineers are required quickly. However, roads and coastlines
may be destroyed or damaged, the crisis may be in a remote, isolated area,
disease could be spreading rapidly or an unforgiving winter may be just
around the corner. Aviation can play a crucial role in relieving suffering
and helping to rebuild lives with partners such as the United Nations,
national military services, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) like Oxfam
and the Red Cross, specialist aviation charities like the Mission Aviation
Fellowship (MAF) and ECHO Flight and commercial airlines.
The 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia, the 2005 Kashmir earthquake, and the long-term crisis in southern Sudan are all examples of places where aviation from non-profit, military and civil sources has helped to save lives and provide hope.
MAF has been working in southern Sudan since 1950. They aim to bring aid and relief to vulnerable people using light aircraft that can land on basic dirt airstrips in remote areas. It has its own small fleet of light aircraft and its own pilots and engineers, who are all self-funded, having usually had a career in aviation prior to joining the charity.
Derek Reeh, former chief test pilot, who is now operations director for MAF's activities in the area, gives his view. "Until a couple of years ago, I associated the word disaster with sudden events such as earthquakes and tsunamis, incidents which are often beyond human control, usually occurring with little warning. That was until I went to Kenya and started being involved in the relief operations in southern Sudan with MAF.
"Like many people, I knew very little about the disaster that has gone on in this country, a disaster that has been exclusively man-made, that was predictable and has continued almost unabated for 50 years. It is an ongoing situation that for me has redefined the word disaster. In the past 20 years this war, exacerbated by periods of severe drought and factional splits in the opposition groups of the south, has caused the deaths of two million people and resulted in the internal displacement of a further four million people."
Since 1950, MAF has had to pull out of Sudan twice due to conflict. Operations began again in the early Nineties when flying resumed from Kenya under the UN-backed Operation Lifeline Sudan (OLS). Currently, flights into southern Sudan operate mainly from Lokichoggio in northern Kenya.
The main challenge when flying in Sudan is the weather and the effect this can have on the airstrips. "The real problem is with the strips themselves: black cotton soil, a type of clay that covers most of the area, makes a fine, firm runway when dry," says Reeh. "However, when wet it forms a thick sticky surface which, at best, severely reduces take-off performance and limits departure payloads. At worst, aircraft get completely bogged down and can't move for several days. Part of MAF training is teaching pilots how to assess strips, taking into account surrounding terrain, slope, obstacles and surface conditions."
Flights are a lifeline for the organisations MAF supports and the people they serve. They carry essential supplies for health clinics and nutrition centres, as well as tools for agriculture, books for schools and expert staff who care for the physical and spiritual needs of the people.
Currently, less than 1 per cent of the population has access to clean water. A peace agreement was signed in 2005 and has led many of MAF's partners to begin relocating their offices to Juba, the new capital of southern Sudan. MAF too will invest heavily in the new Juba offices and hopes that, together with its partners, it can help to improve medical aid, agricultural training and education.
On 8 October 2005 an earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale ripped through the Kashmir region of Pakistan. In 10 minutes, 74,000 people were instantly killed; a further three million people were left homeless. Within weeks the harsh winter would arrive, while roads to the area were blocked or inaccessible. The crisis needed a rapid response. The Pakistan government turned to NATO for help and the UK military, along with 26 other nations, played a vital part in alleviating the crisis.
NATO's air bridges flew 3,500 tons of aid to Pakistan with some 170 flights. These flights carried in nearly 18,000 tents, 505,000 blankets, more than 31,500 mattresses, 49,800 sleeping bags and tons of medical supplies. NATO helicopters transported more than 1,750 tons of relief goods to remote mountain villages and evacuated over 7,650 disaster victims.
Military support can be very helpful in such a crisis, as military air crews are trained to operate in areas of uncertainty and have the advanced flying skills required for difficult flying conditions. The costs of providing aircraft and fuel are carried by the country supplying the aircraft, thus relieving the local burden of coping financially with the disaster. Military aircraft are also well equipped to carry out vital early reconnaissance missions to evaluate the scale and reach of the disaster. Sometimes, internal conflicts are exacerbated in natural disasters, and military units can help protect airstrips for aid agencies from local militia.
After the tsunami disaster of 2004 in Southeast Asia, RAF helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft again proved invaluable. For example, the RAF leased four Boeing C-17 aircraft, which are even larger than the C-130, yet can still land on untreated airstrips. Meanwhile, RAF Chinooks worked from Banda Aceh, Indonesia, providing support to the region.
Aid agencies also hire out aircraft for certain missions. Oxfam leased a helicopter for two months to help out in the tsunami and often use UN passenger flights to move their staff around quickly to help in crisis situations. There are a number of specialist aviation companies who can provide aircraft for these situations, and some other charities specialise in humanitarian aviation support, such as the ECHO Flight and Air Serv International. Many use light aircraft which are very flexible but, in situations where large cargoes need to be transported to crisis zones, a huge Russian aircraft called the Antonov 12 is used.
Unfortunately aviation is costly, and humanitarian relief has to use cheaper aircraft. Larger aircraft can be very noisy, and face restrictions when flying into Western airspace to load up with vital equipment. It is hoped that certain military projects will be contracted out to private firms. This has happened in the past, allowing them to buy more modern aircraft that can then be used for future humanitarian work. That way the network of aid agencies, charities, UN organisations and governments can continue to minimize the effects of terrible catastrophes and help rebuild lives all over the world.
