From the Cockpit

The Sportsman is already at work

Greetings from Cameroon!

The last leg of the trip was the most challenging, exciting, and shortest leg of the trip. The morning that I left Lomé, Togo, there were some thunderstorms to the east along my route to Cameroon. I decided to wait one hour before leaving to see if the storm was going to move. After 40 minutes the storm had not moved but was decreasing in size, so I called Tom and said that I was leaving, hopped in the plane, and took off for Cameroon. I was in the air for about one hour and after my second waypoint I had to turn to the south to go around a very large storm. I did not have to divert very far before I could see a valley on the other side of the storm. There were storms on the lefthand and storms on the righthand, but the way that I needed to go was clear. Then I came to Malabo Island, and there was this even bigger storm over the Island. Well, God had prepared another corridor for me to go through. At Malabo Island I was to turn to the east and fly to Yaoundé. I looked to the east, and there was another valley to fly through with storms on the righthand and a 17,000 feet mountain on the lefthand.

I was 1 hour from Yaoundé when I crossed the coast of Cameroon on my way to land at Yaoundé. God opened up many doors to get this airplane here, and He has provided many people to help me along the way. I have heard about many who are following the progress on the blog, and it is encouraging to me.

When I called Yaoundé tower and reported that I had the field in sight, I heard Toms voice over the radio saying "Glory be to God!" Tom had come down in the Glastar to meet me.

We cleared customs and paid the landing fees and that was it. The aircraft was now in country. We stayed the night in Yaoundé and left the next morning for Tom's hometown of Sabga. We both landed at a airport near his house, and I went with Tom in the Glastar to make some practice landings at the mountain airstrip at his house. I am glad that we did since we had to land up hill and make the approach around a 6,000 feet hill just south east of his home. You can only land one way. I have some video of the landing, and I will put it on the blog when I get back to the States. We waited at his house for a while for some rain to pass before we took off to go and pick up the Sportsman for me to fly it to Tom's house. I made one fly-by and turned downwind. I turned base leg behind the hill, lined up for final, and saw the short narrow upsloping runway with no way out. Once turning on the base leg, I was committed to landing with no other choice. The first thought in my mind at the sight of the runway was "my God can help me do this." I set up the airspeed, made the approach, and touched down at the right spot. Just like that I was on the ground. There was a crowd of people that had gathered to see the airplane land. I did not hear them, but Tom said that when I touched down the people cheered.

What a great God that we serve! This aircraft has arrived at the place where it will be used to take the Gospel to places in Cameroon that cannot be reached readily by other means. God showed Himself mighty to me along the trip, and He will continue to show Himself to the people here in Cameroon.

I will try to write more as I get time. Thanks to all who prayed for the safe delivery of this plane.

John Douglas

Home!

Needham Home, Sabga, Cameroon

8:27 am CDT - Arrival! - 71* F , mostly cloudy, calm wind

I just received an email from Tom Needham that he and John arrived at the Needham's home. The picture above is a shot from Google Earth showing their home complex! What a joy to have this journey completed and the Sportsman safely positioned where it will be used to serve the Lord and reach souls for Christ.

I reflected on Hebrews 12:1-3 this morning.

"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds."

Thank you so much to you who have followed the progress of this journey. You have been a cloud of witnesses encouraging John and giving him motivation to make wise decisions while moving forward in his travel. The airplane could not be cumbered down with excess weight but was expressly outfitted for the purpose of its trip. The focus of the journey was the destination of the Needhams' home. John could not drop his guard, but he had to maintain his resolve and stamina until reaching the goal.

All of us are on a journey. We also have this same challenge to have a focus. We have a cloud of witnesses, both on earth around us and unseen in Heaven, who are watching us make decisions as we travel from birth to death. In order to stay on the right path and finish well in this journey we call "life," our focus must be on Jesus Christ, who is called the "authour and finisher of our faith." He is "the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father" except through Him. Jesus gave his life and endured suffering and death by crucifixion because He received great joy in providing salvation for you and me by paying for our sin. But Jesus also rose again to life and is in Heaven today.

Are you focused on Christ? Or are you encumbered with the weight and distrations of life that keep you from choosing to follow Christ? We are told that "whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Please turn your eyes upon Jesus Christ and trust Him to deliver you from sin to eternal life in Heaven.

Almost Home!

6:53 am CDT

Next Stop - Needhams' Home!

Where in the world is N211PH?

Yaoundé, Cameroon

6039 miles traveled and 0 miles remaining!

9:36 am CDT - Arrival! - 84* F , mostly cloudy, calm wind

Brother Needham said John made a perfect landing. He should be form fitted into the airplane now. The schedule for the remainder of the trip is:

• Clear Customs today
  
• Fly both the Sportsman and the Glastar to another nearby airport where the airplanes can be securely parked overnight in a missionary's hangar
• Tomorrow, fly into an airstrip similar to the Needhams' home airstrip for familiarization
  
• Complete the journey to the Needhams' home
• Leave Cameroon Tuesday, October 14 @ 8:55 pm via commercial airlines - John will not be flying!
• Arrive Chicago Wednesday, October 15 @ 6:36 pm
  

8:48 am CDT - I have been relaying communication between John and Tom Needham in preparation for landing in Yaoundé. John is currently overhead Douala and estimates landing at 9:33 am CDT. Tom said that he has a helpful police man with him so the entry and clearance should go smoothly.

8:30 am CDT - John said that first the first time since leaving the United States, he saw another airplane in flight! Is the air traffic that congested over Cameroon? Not likely, but I am sure it was somewhat comforting to see another aviator sharing the skies.

7:00 am CDT - I just called John on the satellite phone. The SPOT is not updating very frequently today due to poor coverage in this part of the world. The picture shows his current position at the orange pointer. The blue line is the direct course from Lomé to Yaoundé. The red line is his flight planned route. Weather is causing him to divert south of course. John can see the cloud buildups and keep a healthy distance from them. The latest ETA for Yaoundé is 9:50 am CDT, less than three hours away. Brother Needham is already in Yaoundé visiting with another missionary pilot in the area waiting foro John to arrive. He reported the weather to be good for landing.

4:26 am CDT - N211PH lifted off from foreign soil one last time before setting down in its new home country of Cameroon. Tom Needham called to confirm that he will meet John in Yaoundé this morning. Much of the flight today will again be over water, but this water is much warmer than the North Atlantic over which he flew on Saturday. He will be in nearly constant sight of ships and oil rigs which should provide a more interesting flight today.

Where in the world is N211PH?

Lomé, Togo

5406 miles traveled and 633 miles remaining

9:45 am CDT - Arrival! - 86* F , partly cloudy, southwest wind

One more flight remains! Weather could be a factor tomorrow, but local advice has been to leave ASAP before the local weather begins to build. The journey has been quite a variety of experiences from flying over heavily populated areas such as Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and Boston, Massachusetts, to flying all day Saturday over the Atlantic Ocean with not even a ship in sight. There has been water to desert, dry to soaking wet, and short (633 miles, if that is short) to long (1372 miles, now that is long). When John gets back home, I am sure he will post a full report of his perspective of the flight. Have a great day and get some rest!

7:45 am CDT - John called and revised his ETA into Lomé. He now expects to land around 10:00 am CDT. He is in radar contact which means that Air Traffic Control (ATC) can see him on their radar. That is good thing, kind of like having a constant eye watching you. That may seem intimidating to some, but it is a real comfort if a pilot needs immediate help.

"For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro
throughout the whole earth, to shew himself
strong in the behalf of them whose heart is
perfect toward him."
2 Chronicles 16:9

4:45 am CDT - John called on the satellite phone to check in. He estimates arriving in Lomé around 8:45 am CDT. I was talking to Missionary Randy Alderman in Togo when John called, and we were able to relay some helpful information pertaining to his arrival later this morning (afternoon in Togo).

3:46 am CDT - N211PH is at the end of the runway and ready to take-off from Bamako, Mali. Arrival in Togo is in about 5 hours. Today is the second shortest flight of the journey. What a relief to have the longest stretches completed. But now is not the time to relax or let down our guard. Every pilot, especially those who fly tailwheel airplanes, knows that you do not stop flying the airplane until the plane is stopped and the engine is turned off. The same goes for your prayers. Please do not stop praying for this journey until it is finished. Even then continue praying for the ministry in which the aircraft will be involved, that of reaching the lost of Cameroon with the glorious message of salvation through faith in Christ!

"Now therefore, our God, we thank thee,
and praise thy glorious name."
1Chronicles 29:13

Here are some pictures of the departure from Gran Canaria yesterday morning taken by Missionary Terry Sharp.

Where in the world is N211PH?

Bamako, Mali

4741 miles traveled and 1298 miles remaining

1:55 pm CDT - Arrival! - 86* F , clear skies, light wind

John and N211PH are safe on the ground in Bamako. The MAF pilots arranged a place for him to stay tonight and possibly put the plane in a hangar overnight. What a blessing! Pray for John to get some good rest and for clear traveling weather for the remaining two days of travel. Thanks for your prayer support!

12:10 pm CDT - John has made contact with a Missionary Aviation Fellowship (MAF) pilot in the area and is expected to land in Bamako just after 2:00 pm CDT. On a humorous note, while flight testing the ferry tanks in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, I (Terry) intentionally ran the tanks dry to verify the behavior of the engine and also to confirm the amount of usable fuel in each ferry fuel tank. The engine never quit and the fuel supply was never completely stopped, but my attention was definitely drawn to restoring the fuel supply at the first sign of an empty tank. A few times now while John has been flying and we have been talking on the phone, he stops talking and then comes back. The last time, he said "How come I always run out of gas when you call?" Maybe I should not call him any more! Seriously, the plane is running well, and the pilot seems at ease and excited to be serving the Lord in this way. Praise the Lord for all those capable hands who have had a part in this momentous journey for Christ!

Missionary Terry Sharp had this to say about his visit with Brother John Douglas, "I had a good time with brother John, he’s a good man with strong convictions yet well-balanced in application of his beliefs. Very refreshing. I hope his stay here provided needed rest for the remainder of his journey."

9:22 am CDT - Direct to Bamako - John just made the turn over head Nouakchott, Mauritania. At his present speed he should arrive in Bamako, Mali, around 2 pm CDT.

7:00 am CDT - John called, and the visibility is hazy with blowing dust but otherwise, the skies are clear.

5:20 am CDT - The SPOT messenger is in an area of possible unreliability. I called John and all is well. When the SPOT does not report, we will communicate by satellite phone every hour. So if you are following him on the SPOT Tracker website, do not be alarmed if you do not see a report for an extended period of time.

4:10 am CDT - N211PH took to the air again. You will see by the routing that John is not going direct. He is skirting Western Sahara until Mauritania when he then turns straight to Bamako. As you view this posting first thing this morning, be sure to lift up Brother Douglas before our Lord in prayer.

"My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD;
in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up."
Psalm 5:3