When a mother suffered complications after giving birth in her isolated village, MAF redirected a flight to perform an urgent medevac. Cobus van der Merwe shares what he saw on that dramatic journey.
Story by Cobus van der Merwe, MAF PNG’s Deputy Facilities and Vehicle Manager
Mum Kilda is back home in the village of Ibil and doing well, after a MAF flight brought her to hospital for life-saving treatment when she suffered complications. With her is baby Glenys, the little girl named after the pilot that responded to her urgent need for a medevac.
MAF pilot Glenys Watson flew the medevac when an HF radio call for help sparked a dramatic change of plan for a MAF team that was about to fly from Telefomin to Mount Hagen.
Two aircraft were stationed at Telefomin when the pilots received word from the MAF booking office about the potential emergency.
Deeply moved, the mother made a gesture of gratitude that will forever stay with me: she decided to name her newborn after Glenys.
Ibil, located near the Papua border, is completely isolated - no road access, and without nearby medical facilities.
With urgency and precision, Glenys checked the fuel, weather, and airstrip data, loaded a stretcher onboard, and within minutes, we were airborne, headed for Ibil.
As we flew, we could see the new road being carved through the mountains, a future lifeline that will one day connect Telefomin to the outside world. The road, a remarkable feat of engineering, winds down the rugged mountain terrain but stops short at the Sepik River - still awaiting a bridge to connect it fully to Telefomin.
For villages like Ibil, however, the steep jungles and lack of infrastructure may mean the road will never reach them. Life here is sustained by subsistence farming, and the expense of building a road through this remote, difficult landscape is challenging to justify.
News of the plane’s arrival had already spread, and a crowd gathered to watch, a rare event in their quiet community.
While the patient was transferred aboard, villagers rushed to load bags of their prized peanut harvest - precious cargo that would accompany the patient to Telefomin. These flights, though costly, are one of the few ways they can get their crops to market and earn an income.
Glenys carefully calculated the weight of the passengers and cargo, conducted a thorough pre-flight cabin briefing in Tok Pisin, and prepared for take-off.
Deeply moved, the mother made a gesture of gratitude - she decided to name her newborn after Glenys.
With final radio calls logged, the aircraft took off, carrying the mother and her day-old daughter. Within 20 minutes, we touched down in Telefomin - a journey that would have taken days on foot through challenging mountains.
The ambulance arrived a few minutes after we landed to take mother and child for further care.
After recovering in hospital, it was a MAF flight that brought mother and baby home again.
Witnessing this mission was a powerful reminder of MAF’s role in bringing help, hope, and healing through aviation.