Biafra
 

It's forty years since the end of the Nigerian Civil War (Biafra).
Shouldn't somebody be recording the story of the Sao Tome / Cotonou airlifts into Uli Ihiala, and those who died in that extraordinary effort?

Biafra Story
 

Shadows - Airlift and Airwar in Biafra and Nigeria 1967 - 1970 by Michael I Draper with forward by Frederick Forsyth ISBN 1 902109635 published 1999 available at the S American river for £29.99

Not sure if that covers your point if interest

PZU - Out of Africa (Retired)

Biafra 40 Years On
 

There was 60 minute TV film made a few years ago by a Dutch company I think with Frederick Forsyth (who was a TV jounralist at the time and flew on a Super Connie from Portugal to Fernando Po or Sao Taome) detailing some of his exploits. The programme also featured the Irish priest who was the ´´fixer´´ for many of the mercy flights. I think the programme was shown on Channel 4 in the UK and probably on Discovery or National Geographic as well. I am sure it must be available on DVD somewhere. Hope this helps.
Just remembered the TV programme was called Jesus Christ Airlines!

Tony Jonsson's book dealt with Biafra. Ex CLX Chief Pilot; Icelandic gentleman.

Father Byrne who was the prime ambassador in organising the food airlift is in Dublin and wrote a paperback "Airlift To Biafra" by Columba Press,Dublin 1997.

Tony Jonsson
 

Was he the only Icelandic gentleman to fly with the RAF during
World War 2, or were there others? I met him some 10 years ago at a friends 60th birthday party and it was mentioned that he flew in the
B of B and I have to say that he looked far to young or may be I am getting far too old. Alan

Tony Jonsson
 

I endorse what CR2 said, a real gentleman. I have a signed copy of the book he wrote " Dancing in the skies ", which recounts his RAF carreer.etc.
After training he joined 111 Sqn in September 1941, remaing there until March 1943. He finished the war with eight confirmed `kills` and was the onlY Icelender to serve in the RAF during the war. Sadly Tony passed away a few years ago. A true Viking gentleman. His book may still be available from Grub Street.

Quote from CR2His Biafran exploits are in part 2 of his biography "Lucky 13".(ISBN 9979-60-425-5) Though getting hold of a copy is somewhat problematic as it was a limited publication by Air Atlanta / Cargolux to mark his retirement. Though legend has it there is at least one pallet full stored at a large European cargo hub (long haul). Axel Duch who also flew into Biafra on the airlift has recently been seeking a publisher for the English edition of his memoirs, his native Danish one is held in high regard by those who have read it.THE AIRLIFT TO BIAFRA - The TRUE Story . I believe that an Australian pilot who also flew on the airlift has written and published a book on it (or at the very least a chapter in his book), and would dearly like to know his name and the title.
In case you are wondering 13 was the number of Tony Jonsson's Icelandic pilots licence.
Hope it helps
Be lucky
David
Shadows is an extremely good read.

I managed to get hold of a copy of 'Lucky 13' through contacts at Cargolux so you could try writing to CV to see if they'll sell you one. I can thoroughly recommend both Tony's books and agree with all the comments, he was a real gentleman & I feel honoured to have known him!

Sao Tome Connies
 

I remember coming out of the terminal at Sao Tome over a decade ago and on the left hand side were two of Connies in a fairly decrepit state along with what appeared to be the remains of a small two seat jet - fuselage only no wings. The Connies had very faded paintwork but I seem to recall the words of some Canadian church group written down the side. Having checked on Google Earth I see they are still in situ.

The 4 Connies were x Nordair a/c. They were purchased and operated by Can Air Relief , a church organization

My uncle flew the whole Biafra airlift on DC-6 and C-97 (one of them still in good shape in Pima Museum in Tucson), I heard incredible storys....

Quote Dave Clarke FifeThey are both L1049H models c/n 4831 CF-NAL and c/n 4832 CF-NAM. Titles were/are Canairelief and Jointchurchaid. They have been there since Jan 1970.
Hope it helps,
Be lucky
David

I used to have Lucky 13, bought it while I was still at CLX. Lord know what happened to it, probably lent in to somebody. :hmm:

I had the pleasure of TJ's acquaintance. A true gentleman.

Quote by CR2
I still have mine, it is not for loan:= however I know a lot of folk who are very desirous of obtaining one.
Be lucky
David

Michael Drapers book is excellent and I was also involved in the filming of the documentary. Fascinating stories including a couple of characters it turned out I knew.

May be something of interest here Jack Malloch :: Tango Romeo [The life and times of Jack Malloch] ,whilst not totally focused on Biafra it does touch on it.

Thanks for that info Dave...........in fact this whole thread has inspired me to purchase some books and read up about the whole Biafra incident!!

When I was in stationed Nigeria, (Port Harcourt), I heard many interesting stories about the efforts of Gustaf Von Rosen. I first heard of him when I was in Ethiopia in the early '70s.

Here is a link:

Carl Gustaf von Rosen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Regards

carholme

Many thanks for all your info. I wonder if there are any photos around? I must explain my interest - I was Supplies and Transport Manager for Shell products distribution in Nigeria throughout the Civil War (today job title would be Director of Logistics!). We supplied bitumen in drums from our plant at Lagos to Cotonou from where it was flown in by the DC6s to Uli ihiala for the extension of the road into a runway with dispersal points etc. At Easter 1968 my wife and I were in Cotonou watching and helping loading the standard lift of CSM and Heineken when we were offered a lift in for the fun of it - to my eternal regret I refused as I knew I'd be sacked on the spot if Shell ever heard about it).
Weapons were flown in from Sao Tome except for the French Navy Neptune from Cotonou with French arms (they flew in the radar shadow of a DC6 to avoid the Feds).
The Cotonou DC6s were maintained by Field Aircraft Services with a polyglot air crews. From memory they were rated at 20,000lbs cargo and normally lifted 24,000lbs. Watching takeoffs was heart stopping - at dusk very long run then out over the sea barely climbing (anyway they kept low to cross the Nigerian coastline below radar if possibl). upt ot three flights per night (on bonuses!)
I was also responsible for fuel supplies to the ICRC aid road convoys (and to the Fed Army and Air Force - SA mercenary pilots mostly), so immediately at the end of the war I drove into Biafra and saw Uli Ihiala (and the other military only airstrip) to suss out fuel aid routes (getting road tankers etc).
I was moved by the little cemetery of some 20 crew at the end of the runway - shortly afterwards the Fed Army bulldozed it away. Driving onto the 'runway' you went through the fuselage of a DC4? that had crashed and the two halves simply pulled apart. There were burnt out Connies etc on the dispersal points. But I had no camera, so no photos.
By the way, the C97s were never used. They were flown into Lagos by the US Government at the end of the war with the idea of replacing the aid flights, as 700,000 people were dying of starvation. But the Feds refused permission. They needed 115/145 which wqe didn't have in Nigeria but there was some in Cotonou so i organised a 'reverse lift' of road tankers to truck it into Lagos (that took some organising in 24 hours I can tell you - talk about bureaucracy!).
So I had tremendous admiration for those crews - it was 'Fate is the Hunter' type story.

Quote by four wings The C-97Gs most certainly were used, by both Joint Church Aid ( U.S. registered) and Red Cross ( Swiss registry) In fact one JCA aircraft was destroyed on 9th May 1969 by the Nigerian AF whilst landing at Uli N52679 c/n 16710 ex 52-2679. One further JCA aircraft was lost on 26th September 1969 on final approach to Uli with 5 fatalities 1 English and 4 American aircraft N52676 c/n 16707 ex 52-2676.
For further details of flights by number by weight of cargo carried by type etc buy the Shadows book, it is all there in the appendices.
Hope it helps clarify matters
Be lucky
David

Many thanks. I stand corrected! Just why I was interested in getting more input as I only saw things from one side of the country - although I did have the experience of being one of the first foreigners to see Uli Ihiala after the war. Now for the Shadows book......

Have a look here: Biafran Airlift

ARCO (Bermuda) Ltd was one of airlines of the (in)famous Hank Warton. Here is the story about ARCOs Biafran ops told by a Swedish Capt:

Lae - inte bara en stad på Nya Guinea - ARCO i Biafraliften

http://lae.blogg.se/images/2009/karta-jca_59615545.jpg

Four wings check your PMs please
Be lucky
David

French Navy Neptunes to Biafra?
 

Four Wings makes an interesting recollection of French Navy Neptunes ferrying arms from Cotonou to Biafra. As the author of "Shadows", I spent many years (on and off) researching the airlift and gained access to many sources in France as well as speaking with many of the aircrew who took part. I never came across the Neptune story and would dearly love to know more. Avgas Dionosaur makes some very kind comments about the book and it is shame that the publisher went belly-up although I did manage to secure a stock beforehand.
You are correct, of course, that after the conflict Uli has a dismembered DC-4. This was one of Jack Malloch's DC-4s that came to grief when it turned onto Uli strip to take off - in the wrong direction and simply ran out of runway!
When we were making "Jesus Christ Airlines" we made a speedy visit to film the former Uli strip and amazingly there were still bits of engine in the adjacent bush - and that was 30 years after the event. The war museum at Umuahia, however, contains a fascinating collection of aircraft and relics. We also spent a considerable number of hours interviewing Hank Warton in Miami but in the end none of that was ever used in the documentary because the Miami setting was considered overtly opulent for a film about Third World conflict and poverty. Interestingly the film rights have since been acquired by a leading British producer and maybe one day the story will appear in Hollywood format. Who knows?
Meanwhile do tell me more about the French Neptunes; call me on [email protected]

Thanks for your great input Biafranbaby.
I wonder if the presence of the Neptune could have been a French government attempt to locate the Federal Nigerian gun boats for the benefit of French / French sponsored arms/ relief flights, or even to assess their vulnerability to jamming ? Just a thought.
Be lucky
David

Sorry, your contact comes up as 'invalid hash' try a PM?

As for the Neptune - if you can find anybody from Field Aircraft Services (who, as I posted before, did the ground servicing at Cotonou) they could verify it. I can only say that one time I was there I saw a Neptune take off immediately after a DC6 and that is what I was told - carrying arms, and therefore surely actually landing at Uli. If only I had asked more questions when I was in ex Biafra - unfortunately I was too busy trying to get fuel supplies in. There must be some Ibo people who will remember it (all my friends were from the Fed side).
On that score, did you know that the post-war relief helicopters lifting supplies locally were from Arizona Helicopters (aka Air America / CIA)?
I went berserk one day with one of their pilots.
Getting in fuel was supremely difficult before the Niger bridge was temporarily repaired - I had to do it by small trucks carrying drums, going across on a ferry-barge. All our road tankers were 32-36 ton size. Small conventional trucks were at a premium and my good friend Allen Jones who ran the ICRC logistics (got an MBE for it) and I used to share the few we could get. Using helicopters locally was crazy but what the Western media/public opinion wanted - it looked dramatic but every drum of fuel was one less crate of food.
Then this pilot told me that when he got tired of the heat he went up to 5,000 feet, opened the door and cooled off. I could have killed him.

Can anyone help me please ??
 

Anyone with any suggestions as to who this might be. I would be most appreciative.
Thanks in anticipation for your time and trouble.
Be lucky
David

Books on Biafra
 

I think the book that you are thinking of is, if I recollect corrrectly, "Roll Back The Skies" by Verdun Polley who sadly passed away just a few years ago. I have a copy of it somewhere. He helped me with "Shadows" and sent over photocopy extracts of his impressive log-book.

Vern was also involved in ferrying Pakistan brand-new L-1049s from Burbank to Pakistan in the 1950s and was later involved in a Pakistan gun-running operation to the Yemen, flying L-1049Hs. Great guy and sadly missed.

Ozzie Biafra Book
 

A book well worth searching out which covers MiG ops in Biafra plus a whole load more of misc. old-prop flying around Africa in the 70s and 80s is "The Cross-Eyed Spitting Cobra" by Noel Vonhoff.
I had to order it from Australia but it was worth the wait and every penny.
MZ

There were number of Rhodies in and out of Uli - Alastair Wicks for one and Air Trans Africa had the aircraft. The Sao Tome run was largely ammunition provided from South Africa. The Lisbon-Fernando Po-Uli run had food, aid and heavier equipment. It was fairly safe (especially when they covered up the barrels after landing) as the Egyptian pilots wouldn't descend to lower than 25,00 feet. Hank Wharton flew out on his Super Connie with loads of Nigerian currency bound for Zurich. He lost a few when they had to land in Togo. There were plenty of familiar faces in Uli (Congo Muller, Rolf Steiner, etc.) from the earlier humanitarian assistance given in Elizabethville, Albertville and Coquilhatville in the Congo. The money all came via Jaques Foccart in France and the co-ordination from Caritas guys from Rome. It was a very strange but memorable time.

Found Zombie thread
 

:eek:Found this in the cellar covered in cobwebs, it does go off on a bit of a war rant but some posts might be of interest.
http://www.pprune.org/african-aviati...vil-war-2.html
Hope it helps
Be lucky
David

Quote by 1970s Spotter
I have located a source for this book "in order to avoid the advertisement police" please PM me for details.
Be lucky
David

Book on Biafra
 

Biafran Baby, I loved your book. An ace Biafran pilot confirmed the Annabelle codes and most of your details. Is there any evidence anywhere that the priests aided or abbetted weapon smuggling into Biafra. And whatever happened to the ther crazy Mercy Mission crew?

I have to agree with Limbo Line. Great reading! Bought the book shortly after it was published. I have an interest in the subject ever since meeting one of the Mig-17 pilots (he also flew B-26K, T-6, and T-28s in the Congo) years ago.

T J

Nigeria'sMiG pilots
 

I'd be delighted to hear from anyone who's met any of the MiG pilots. Vonhoff, the Australian, was one of them. I am also interested in flight logs of the MiG and other pilots doing bombing or strafing runs in Biafra. Any ideas, leads, souces would be helpful.

The guy has shared a lot of photos for Shadows. Even his log book. When I met him he was flying helicopters for the offshore industry. I guess he is retired by now. He was living in the UK, but as far as I remember he also owned a house in South Africa. He's very likely gone back there now.

T J

If memory serves, there was a South African captain in Transmeridian, Jimmy Webb, who flew MIGs for the Nigerians but I have no idea where might be now.

I just found out about this book. Written by one of the Biafran pilots who flew during the conflict. Should be interesting to get the story from one of the locals. I really need to get hold of this one.

:: The Last Flight Book ::

T J

Copy of Micheal Drapers book on a certain popular auction website. I found it a good read a while ago..............