21 November 2017
Two paramotor pilors are training park rangers in Africa’s wild reserves to fly the powered parachutes.
David Taylor hit upon the idea to use paramotors to patrol African wildlife reserves when watching a TV programme about the illegal and deadly ivory trade. He realised there must be an alternative to expensive helicopters for monitoring wildlife across large areas of savannah.
“While there has been much attention on preventing poaching in Africa, there is a huge amount of work that goes into monitoring the animals and the fences, moving people and equipment around, and managing the welfare of wildlife in these reserves,” said David. “Currently, this is done on foot, by vehicle and by expensive helicopters, but could also be performed by paramotor.”
David’s friend and paramotor instructor Alex Anderson agrees. He said: “Paramotors are incredibly versatile. They are capable of carrying a pilot and an additional 10kg of weight, making it possible to transport veterinary or medical supplies, food, tools and equipment, and monitoring or recording devices across large distances.”
Alex and David approached the charity Tusk, to find out if they would be interested in helping to develop the project. Tusk director Daniel Bucknell said: “After speaking to David about his vision for paramotors in Africa I could see there was a potential application for the technology.
“There is a huge disparity in funding across wildlife reserves and parks across the African continent, with some well funded and others struggling for resources. Many don’t have the money to invest in helicopters or small aircraft to enhance their wildlife conservation efforts. Here, the paramotors could make a significant difference.”
Once Alex and David had received all the necessary approvals, in the UK and Malawi, they travelled to Majete Wildlife Reserve in Malawi, with the support of Tusk and New Holland, sponsors of the project.
The first trainees included Kurt Steiner, former head of law enforcement for African Parks; Craig Hay, park manager of Majete Wildlife Reserve; Gervaz Thamala, field operations manager, and Martin Awazi, Majete’s law enforcement officer.
Kurt Steiner said: “Paramotors were a completely unprecedented concept in conservation so none of us knew exactly what to expect. We all thoroughly enjoyed the training and are looking forward to completing this trial so we can substantively say if there’s a place for paramotors in this industry.”
