Story and photos by Lobitos de Jesus Alves
Most people in Timor-Leste’s isolated communities have never been on a plane,
but a MAF initiative gave people like Iria a chance to take off.
Iria Mutu Soares, a mother from Maliana in the western part of Timor-Leste, was worried about getting on board a plane until MAF’s Flying is for Everyone came to her community.
The 53-year-old said admitted that her nervousness turned to joy after taking to the skies in a MAF plane.
“I was afraid when the aircraft took off because it was my first time aboard an airplane, but now I’m happy and want to gain more flight experience,” she said.
MAF flights from the capital Dili bring essential services to Timor-Leste’s rural communities, and helping locals overcome their fear of flying breaks down the barriers to accessing aviation. This roadshow was held in six municipalities where MAF operates, Maliana, Suai, Same, Viqueque, Lospalos, and Baucau.
Juvencio Ferdiano, a local community from Lospalos, Lautem Municipality, the eastern part of Timor-Leste, shared his thoughts. “I’m very proud of this initiative to support rural communities in emergency situations.” Said Mr. Ferdiano. “I’m really happy because this is my first time flying on an MAF plane. Even though it’s my first time, I learned about the process of boarding a plane, and the pilot also explained the flight procedures to us before we took off.”
The campaign was financially supported by MAF in Australia, which sent a team of staff to take part in the outreach. Mike Swanton, a member of the MAF team from Sydney, enjoyed the experience. “I’m from MAF Australia. I'm based in Sydney, and I get to talk with our donors about how MAF is saving lives around the world,” he said.
“We are in Baucau at the moment, helping Timorese people understand that flying is for everyone and giving them the confidence to fly on a plane. They are so happy!”
The event was held over two weeks and carried out 362 passengers in total.
Marlo Cristianto Liu, a former MAF Partnership Development Officer, explained the initiative. “This event aims to bring aviation awareness closer to the community so they can understand how aviation actually works,” he said. “MAF is a nonprofit organisation that aims to assist in emergency situations. At the same time, we also want to understand the challenges and difficulties local people face.
“This event is called 'Flying is for Everyone', and we want to make sure that everyone is well informed about aviation and MAF itself.”
Nick Hitchins, a pilot and former MAF Country Director in Timor-Leste, observed people’s enthusiasm at this event. “Everyone loved it! I just had to look at their faces to see that almost everybody thoroughly enjoyed their flight,” he said. “We’ve seen an increase in bookings from the districts because of the event. We’re really pleased with how successful it was and how it gave people the opportunity to face their fears, as well as explore and experience something new that they had never had the chance to do before.
“We're very grateful to MAF Australia for supporting the event. I believe it was a great opportunity to demonstrate how programs and resource groups can work together. But certainly, without their support, we couldn’t have made it happen.”
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