5Q4 > An Adventist Aviation Pilot

Flying planes almost every day is just part of life for Damon Roberts as he works for Adventist Aviation Services in Papua New Guinea.

1 How did you get into aviation work? > When I was about nine years old I developed a passion for aeroplanes and flying, and decided I wanted to become a career pilot. I gained my first flying qualifications when I was 15. At that time I got an “Ultralight Pilot’s Licence.” This allowed me to fly what most people commonly regard as “those frail little kites powered by lawnmower engines”—which really isn’t true. But anyway, after doing my HSC I completed two Diplomas of Aviation at the Avondale College School of Aviation.

2 How did you end up deciding to go to PNG to work with Adventist Aviation? > I had heard about the work of Adventist Aviation in PNG since I was a boy, and what it stands for meshed with my ideals of wanting to use my skills to help others physically and spiritually as much as possible. While at Avondale College I was approached by the church’s chief pilot who asked me if I would consider the idea of going to PNG to work for Adventist Aviation. But it was a number of years before the right opportunity arose. I left five years of flying instructing and charter flying with two companies in Australia to take up the call to come to PNG this year.

3 What kind of things does the work you do involve? > That’s a hard question as mission life often involves more than the job description! For me that means more than just flying aeroplanes, although that is the major part of what I do. Our task is to support the large and rapidly growing church in PNG. The lack of viable alternative transport means that air travel is absolutely essential in PNG. Day-to-day flying involves transporting people and cargo as required to almost anywhere in PNG and the surrounding islands. Although it is not always life and death, without the work we do, in some cases people die—literally!

4 What’s the most exciting or adventurous thing that’s happened to you so far in your work? > There have been so many! I had my first ever experience of transporting a coffin (that of a young girl) back to her village only days after flying her to hospital. On a brighter note, flying church and government delegates out to the 75th Jubilee celebrations on picturesque Mussau Island was an enjoyable adventure. Then I could talk of the times sliding sideways on take-off and landing on insanely steep mountain airstrips after unseasonably wet weather
. . . and so on!

5 Do you have any advice to give to other young Adventist pilots or anyone who wants to work for the church? > You don’t have to be a pastor or evangelist or even work for the church to work for God. He has given us skills and He knows how they can be used—He just needs your cooperation! Aviation is a tough industry and more so for Adventists but the work is very rewarding! The church needs qualified and experienced people to fulfil all kinds of roles, and although they may not pay the earth they do look after you well! Make sure you live your life to influence eternity, not just the here and now.