A Look at JAARS Operations

You probably already know that while JAARS does plenty of work in aviation, we also are involved in both land and sea functions as well. One of JAARS' recent projects over the past few years has been to begin operating a boat in Papua New Guinea. Named the "Kwadima II", this boat provides transportation and logistics support to translators among the islands of PNG. Recently the crew and team of the Kwadima II have faced some difficulties with illnesses and team turnover. Would you pray for the crew, that God would give them strength and perseverance?

Another major function of the sea operations department is conducting training on-location. The team frequently travels all over the world providing safety training to locals and workers.

We do not have much to update on the visas for the family. While we continue to wait on them to be approved, Brad is assisting with the preparation to send the LongRanger helicopter to Papua New Guinea. It's a big project of many modifications in order for it to be usable in the country.
One of the modifications we're completing is the installation of a high-frequency radio. These radios are rarely used on aircraft in the U.S., but are required to fly in PNG due to the limited radio coverage in the more typical VHF frequencies. This highlights another amazing function the JAARS hangar performs: we have a full machine shop and make many of our own parts. Kyle in the shop is a wizard on all the tools and manufactured for us a mounting bracket for the new radio antenna. Here are a few pictures of the project.

In addition to the helicopter, JAARS has two other significant efforts we need to complete. One is repairs on an airplane which served in Africa for many years. JAARS has decided it's no longer needed on the field and is fixing it up to sell. The other is an airplane which is waiting to go to the Pacific region. This plane is caught up in import and tariff issues with the host nation. All three of these projects JAARS hopes to finish soon as they are taking up valuable time, space, and resources. Please pray for breakthroughs and speedy completion.

While we continue to wait on our visas to be approved by the Papua New Guinea government, we've enjoyed visits from family to North Carolina. It has also been a silver lining for the kids to be able to complete more of their homeschool year. Last week, William and Emrich culminated their capstone research and writing project called Faces of History. They researched a historical figure from the Middle Ages, wrote a paper on what they learned, and then dressed up and gave an in-character presentation to their homeschool group.

We are also staying busy packing up and preparing the small shipment of our household goods to PNG. Since one of JAARS' functions is logistics support, they are experts at international shipping to remote locations such as the mountains of Papua New Guinea! It's a benefit to us to be able to include our personal things for the move on the next shipment. Usually twice a year, JAARS ships a 20-foot container by sea freight, and we're completing our portion of the shipment. We even think we'll be able to bring our electric piano!

Lastly, Cambria injured her back about a week ago, and it has caused continuing nerve pain that is quite severe. Please pray for comfort and quick healing for her as she's teaching school and packing and getting ready to move.