African Flying Safaris - What to Expect

“When you fly you get a feeling of possession that you couldn’t have if you owned all of Africa. You feel everything you see belongs to you – all the pieces are put together, and the whole is yours; not that you want it, but because, when you’re alone in a plane, there’s no one to share it. It’s there and it’s yours. It makes you feel bigger than you are – closer to being something you’ve sensed you might be capable of, but never had the courage to seriously imagine.”

-Beryl Markham, West with the Night ©1942 and 1983

When you join an African Flying Safari you will finally experience that which you have only imagined and you will feel the whole of Africa is yours – and yours alone.

Our trips offer adventure, excitement, culture, exquisite accommodations and food, incomparable animal viewing, and well, the thrill of flying your own plane in the most remote and desolate part of the world you have ever imagined.

Upon arrival to Johannesburg, you will be met by a representative of African Flying Safaris, taken to your hotel, and encouraged to spend the balance of your day recovering from what may have been your longest ever airplane ride from the USA.

While in Johannesburg, starting with the tour begin date, all meals are included. Depending on your arrival time your first meal may be lunch or dinner. If you have not already met Johann Venter, Operations Manager, he will join you at dinner tonight and review the schedule for the next day - pilot validation day.

The pilot validation process is a relatively easy task to accomplish. You will take both a flying test and a written test. Prior to departing for South Africa, AFS will send you all you need to achieve a passing score on your written test. The flight test generally involves landing at 3 airports and demonstrating your ability to navigate without the use of nav aids - pilotage and map reading are your tools!

Once all pilots in the tour have completed their tests, we will take care of obtaining your South African Pilots License and validation certificate. This usually can be accomplished on the same day as the validations but we allow the morning of the following day (at a minimum) to ensure the paperwork can be processed in time such that the first flight can be made under legal (Daytime VFR) conditions.

When all validation paperwork is complete, and as per your itinerary schedule, the group will depart with the guide pilot to your first safari destination. Your guide will handle the filing of all flight plans, organizing arrival and departure times with each lodge, assisting you with customs and immigration procedures and all other details. You are free to enjoy your vacation and not worry about "the next flight."

Your tour will proceed as per your itinerary. Delays for any reason will be dealt with by your guide pilot and the AFS staff in South Africa. You will be kept well informed of any changes that become necessary due to weather or an unexpected mechanical issue. We urge you to discuss all concerns with your guide pilot but we expect at all times that you adhere to the recommendations of the guide pilot which involve flying decisions. Your guide is provided to assist in a smooth tour and to help ensure safety of all group members.

Upon your return to Johannesburg, you will be provided transportation to either the international airport for homebound flights or other transfer as may be necessary for an post tour extension.