How far it is...

Getting Jet Fuel in the Bush

Sometimes working in Africa can be so different from working in the US, that the difference can not even be imagined. I remember one particular call I got from the US. It made me realize just how far out of touch the home office was sometimes.

I remember sitting with our main Ugandan operations person, Rashid, when we got the call from the US. They told us that they were sending a team over in two weeks. This team would arrive into Nairobi, catch a charter cargo flight and head to Arua. They wanted to do a minimum of three rotations.

So far so good. We asked what kind of plane they were coming in… it was an AN-32. This is a big aircraft. It can carry as much as 7 tons of cargo, and land anywhere. Code named “Cline” by NATO, this was a great plane, but a fuel guzzler.

“Ok, so you are bring fuel with you?” I asked. “No”, they said, “we are just planning on buying it at the airport in Arua.” Not only did they expect to find that much fuel (over 50 drums) but they also expected to purchase 21 tons of food! There isn’t that much food just lying around in surplus. Nor is there any fuel at the “airport”.

The airport is just a dirt strip. The town is just a dusty border town. All of this was completely lost on the people back in the states. They told me to get everything ready and that they would be there in two weeks.

In the US, this would not be a big deal. However, in Uganda, this meant hiring trucks to haul the fuel and grain up from Entebbe. At best this was several days worth of travel. Because of the large amount of fuel involved, it would be a great target for thieves, so we needed to hire guards. Then, once all of it was in Arua, it needed to be stored in a secure warehouse. Once the plane landed, we needed to haul the fuel from the warehouse to the plane. Pump the fuel up into the wings, by hand. Load all of the food into the plane, by hand.

None of this mentions all the permits, and forms to fill out. Finally, since the plane would be going into Sudan and back, there would be the army to notify, and visas to get for everyone. This was a really big deal. After the phone call, Rashid and I just looked at each other of a really long time. I know we were both thinking… these people have no clue.

Later, months later, it was ok to laugh about it. I realized just how comical it was for someone in Southern California, to try and plan something in a place like Uganda. How, with just a few sentences mentioned over the phone, weeks worth of work for dozens of people would get started. Somehow, mostly because of Rashid’s resourcefulness, we got everything ready.

It again reminds me of what the elder in Midigo told me. “It is a miracle that you have come all the way from America to this place”, he said, “He knows how far America is…”
I don’t think he or the people in the states really had any clue “how far it is”.