1/17/06    (pictures by Arnie Solvig)

Dear Family and Friends,

Today (Saturday) our Zenith airplane flew from Libreville to Lebamba for the first time, piloted by Keith Moser, the pilot who flew the first 60 hours on it in California before we shipped it to Gabon. He was accompanied by Eugene Gomes, a volunteer Gabonese pilot, and Austin, a pilot and longtime friend.  Running on 80 octane gas (automobile gas) the Zenith's top speed against a

15 mph head wind was around 75 mph, and it made the trip in less than 3 hours. A small crowd of missionaries and Africans cheered as it landed and bounced on the uneven grass strip, the first airplane to do so in Lebamba in 40 years.  An hour later the cheers turned to tears.

Henri, our maintenance man and I, went up for a ride in the plane while Keith helped Eugene make several practice take-offs and landings. With four of us in the plane, it seemed clumsy and climbed like a wounded buffalo. It had to be landed going relatively fast, or it became difficult to control in the air. When after touchdown we rolled 70 mph down the grass runway and then hit a rise, the airplane lurched back into the air, and then banged to the ground again.

After two rough landings, Keith suggested that Henri and I hop out so that he and Eugene could practice with a lighter load. Eugene asked Keith to sit in the pilot's seat so he could see how he handled the landings, so the two pilots switched places. Keith and Eugene took off, went around, and made a smooth descent and landing, although not without bouncing around again.  Keith then turned the plane around, pushed the throttle to full power, and started up the runway for another take-off.  This time when he pulled back on the stick the plane mushed into the air and rose about ten feet off the ground. Keith lowered the nose a bit to pick up speed, but the airplane dropped close to the ground, still not gaining speed. He pulled the nose up slightly, but the plane did not seem to have enough power, lost speed again, and did not climb at all. I suddenly realized that they were going to run out of runway before they had enough altitude to get over the trees at the end of the runway.  When the end of the runway approached, Keith turned the plane to one side to avoid the trees. Flying at about 40 mph, the tail of the plane settled into 10 foot high ferns and bushes. As the propeller continued to thrash, holding the front end aloft like a helicopter, the plane settled lower and tore through the bushes until it hit several trees and stopped. Neither Keith nor Eugene were hurt.

Keith turned off the ignition, shut off the electrical power and the fuel lines, and he and Eugene quickly climbed out the only door that would open.  They could smell gasoline leaking out of the plane. By the time the rest of us came tearing through the bushes to try to help them, they were 30 feet away from the airplane, shaking but unscathed.

The airplane will never fly again. Please pray for Keith and Eugene, and thank God for sparing them from injury or death. Pray for us too, as we struggle to understand what has happened and why. Right now we are feeling tremendous gratitude to God and relief that no one was hurt. Pray that tomorrow the disappointment and confusion of what happened will not displace our gratitude and trust in God our Father, who always knows what He is doing, even if we don't.

Until Jesus Comes,  Dave & Becki Thompson