Self-fly hire in Kenya

AS350 taking off from Lake Naivasha

I have just spent the last six days in Kenya, helping Marco Brighetti publicise his new hands -on flying in Kenya helicopter company. This is a totally new concept; that a rated pilot can go out and hire a helicopter, with a safety pilot and navigator, and fly him or herself around Kenya in the AS350 Squirrel. The safety pilot is there to help, give advice and navigate if required. We actually had a very good Garmin, so navigation was easy, but the concept is totally brilliant.
In my case I flew from Brighetti's helipad in Karen in Nairobi across Lake Magadi to the Maasai Mara. It was incredible flying: high - not so warm - about 23 degrees but with a variety of heights from 6200 feet down to sea level and back up again. We flew through lakes with pink flamingos, over untenanted plains and for a while into 'softer' lands where the tribesmen have been persuaded into farming communities. The flying itself was wonderful: up and down escarpments, over lakes and dry land and then into hills. And the animals.. well - you can see things from a helicopter you would not see from any other transport.

An elephant family in the Mara

Cheetah seen on a night drive

We stayed the night at the tented camp of Ol Seki in the Mara conservancy and the next day flew into the triangle to visit the Maasai Mara game reserve.
In the evening, we left the tented camp and went into the bush on a landrover to see game. We spotted many of the big five but the real piece de resistance was after sun-downers when the wardens were out with their lights and we spotted a cheetah ready to hunt.




The cheetah actually had three attempts to catch game - all unsuccessful but all witnessed by us and wow - what a change from flying around the circuit at Biggin Hill!