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Hangar Happenings

Dan aborted a take-off today in Shell. Turns out the turbo charger in HC-BXB was bad. Mateo and Curtis started changing it, but they won't get the job done until Monday. The normal life of a turbo is 1600 hours. This one only had 400 hours on it. It happened right in front of the hangar. Convenient, and better there than somewhere out in the jungle where it would have been a bit more difficult to repair.

Today Kevin flew his first solo flight on the mission field. The weather couldn't have been more perfect, and he made a couple flights out and back to Makuma. Of course, after his first return to Shell he was doused with water. His wife and son were there to enjoy the accomplishment with him (I'd put some photos up, but I just switched to another hard drive on this computer, and still need to install some software). Since we arrived in Shell four years ago, there are three new pilots. And, another one has come and gone. Three pilots will be leaving in the summer of '05. The turnover of MAF staff on the field is constant. I suppose an average pilot flies on the field about ten years.

By the end of the day I had placed a computer in the passengar bodega. It's a large room where people check-in for flights. People and baggage are weighed there. Cargo is stored in large bins around the room, awaiting the next flight. Recently Patricio has built a desk there, and a sales counter, and that's where they will receive cash and print receipts. I ran the network cable last week, and this week the desk was finished and ready for the computer.