Connecting Skies • Bridging Continents
ARTICLE AND IMAGES BY KEITH FRYER The 2025 President’s Trophy Air Race (PTAR) soared to new heights this past weekend, captivating aviation enthusiasts and competitors
Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) has commended the South African Police Service (SAPS) for their decisive action in intercepting a suspected drug trafficker at O.R.
In a strong demonstration of its commitment to aviation safety, AAR CORP. (NYSE: AIR), a global provider of aviation services, recently hosted Jackie Black, Division Manager for Aircraft Maintenance at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), at its Illinois-based facilities The visit on May 20, 2025, began
Safran Electronics & Defence has taken a bold step in accelerating its energy transition with the signing of an innovative agreement on decarbonisation and eco-mobility. Inked in January 2025, the agreement is a first-of-its-kind initiative within the Safran Group, placing environmental responsibility at the heart of
Textron Aviation continues to make significant strides in the development of its next-generation business jet, the Cessna Citation CJ4 Gen3, with the successful first flight of its second test aircraft, designated P1. This key milestone further strengthens the momentum of the CJ4 Gen3 flight test program,
Vertical Aerospace has etched its name into the history books with the successful piloted wingborne flight of its electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, the VX4, in European open airspace — a first for the continent and a major leap forward for electric aviation. The
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VIDEO COURTESY OF: GARMIN
May 6th, 2025 – Buffelsdrift to Ukuzwana — In a collaborative conservation success, the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT), in partnership with The Bateleurs and provincial authorities, has successfully relocated a female cheetah from Buffelsdrift Game Reserve in the Western Cape to Ukuzwana Game Reserve in Mpumalanga. This critical move, carried out on Wednesday, April 30th, 2025, marks a major step in establishing a new cheetah breeding population in the province.
What would have been a gruelling 30-hour, 3,000 km road trip was transformed into a seamless 5.5-hour flight thanks to the generous support of volunteer pilot Nick Lincoln, flying his Baron G58 Beechcraft on behalf of The Bateleurs, and the dedicated efforts of Olivia Sievert, EWT’s Cheetah Range Expansion Coordinator.
The mission, which began over the Freedom Day weekend, was not without its logistical challenges. After initial plans to use a smaller aircraft were thwarted by crate dimensions, Lincoln stepped in to reroute the operation, ensuring the mission could proceed with the necessary space and safety requirements.
The cheetah was safely sedated and loaded during a break in rainy Karoo weather, and by mid-afternoon had touched down in Piet Retief, where she was received by the Ukuzwana team. She now joins a coalition of males relocated in February, laying the foundation for a second breeding population of cheetahs in Mpumalanga outside of the Greater Kruger area.
This relocation was made possible through the generous collaboration of multiple stakeholders. EWT extends heartfelt thanks to Ikhala Veterinary Clinic, Wildest Vet, Buffelsdrift and Lalibela Game Reserves, the Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency, and the Ukuzwana Witbad Foundation for their unwavering support and commitment to restoring this iconic species to its former range.
This mission signals an exciting new chapter for cheetah conservation in South Africa, with Ukuzwana standing as the first of several sites identified for future reintroductions.
The Bateleurs offers a free-of-charge aerial service to conservation organizations in need, granting them an aerial vantage point for assessing environmental concerns. This aims to enhance decision-making. By affording policymakers, conservationists, scientists, media, community leaders, and activists a high-up view of our region, The Bateleurs significantly contributes to safeguarding it.
2010 – The first Solar Impulse aircraft, HB-SIA, the first solar-powered aircraft capable of flying both day and night thanks to batteries charged by solar power that provide it with power during darkness, makes its first flight powered entirely by solar energy, charging its batteries in flight. The flight takes place at Payerne Airport outside Payerne, Switzerland.[1]
1997 – March 17 – May 28 – Linda Finch, pilot, aviation historian, and San Antonio, Texas businesswoman, flying a restored and specially equipped 62-year-old Lockheed Electra 10E, recreates the 1937 Amelia Earhart flight to circumnavigate the globe solo. Her attempt was successful, taking 73 days. She touched down in Oakland, California.
1991 – An Sikorsky MH-60G Pave Hawk based at Eglin AFB, Florida, crashes off Antigua in the Caribbean, injuring six of eight aboard, but no fatalities. Although initially reported to have been on a training mission, an accident report obtained by the Northwest Florida Daily News, Fort Walton Beach, Florida, in August, revealed that the crew was sightseeing, taking pictures over beachside hotels and harbours, when the accident occurred.
1989 – First flight of the AIDC F-CK-1 Ching-kuo
1987 – Mathias Rust flew illegally into Soviet airspace in a Cessna 172 and landed in Moscow’s Red Square.
1971 – World War II hero and movie star Audie Murphy is among six people killed in the crash of a light plane near Catawba, Virginia.
1971 – First flight of the Dassault Mercure
1969 – First flight of the Saunders ST-27
1959 – Twenty-five ex-RCAF Beech Expeditors flew across the Atlantic under the Military Assistance Program, to Portugal and France.
1947 – BSAA trials non-stop flights from London to Bermuda using aerial refuelling over the Azores.
1938 – The Bristol 146 was built by Bristol to an Air Ministry order for a prototype single-seat eight-gun fighter meeting F.5/34 issued in 1934. The specification further called for an air-cooled engine for overseas use. The Type 146, K5119, incorporated the experience of metal-skinned monoplanes that Bristol had gained with the earlier Type 133, but was quite different in detail. Delivered to Martlesham in April 1938, it came close to meeting the specified requirements, but was not ordered into production. On this date, following an Empire Air Day display at Filton Aerodrome, the sole Type 146, while taxiing, struck a “set-piece” display and was damaged beyond economic repair. It was the last single-engine fighter to be built by Bristol.
1931 – A Bellanca with a Packard DR-980 diesel engine flew for 84 h: 32 m without landing for fuel setting a record.
1921 – Geo Mestdagh, Belgian aviation pioneer, dies.
1920 – The first Lewis & Vought VE-7 (Vought Experimental No.7) is delivered to the U. S. Navy.
1916 – First Flight of the Sopwith Triplane flown by Harry Hawker
1914 – Glenn Curtiss successfully flies the refurbished Langley Aerodrome for a distance of approximately 150 ft. at Keuka Lake, Hammindsport, New York.
