I quote from the CAPE TIMES in RSA today...

"A Zambia-bound private aircraft with two crew members on board has been reported missing for four days after leaving Dar es Salaam last week."

"The South African-registered Piper Seneca PA43 was expected to touchdown at Mfue in Zambia for refueling on Thursday, but did not arrive".

"The Tanzania Civil Air Authoity reported that the aircraft belonged to a South African PH who frequently hunted in southern Tanzania."

"The plane was on it's way back to SA".

Note... They did not say IF the PH was on board or not, just that the plane was owned by a PH.

Jaco DuPlesseis?

I also saw this the other day, but have been unable to find out who it is........ not even PHASA have been able to help me with it. It's a real bad place to go down and (certainly from the outside) it seems that the search & rescue effort is a bit half assed to say the least.

I'll be talking to my Tanzania office in the morning and if I can find out anything more I'll post it.

Let's hope they had a rifle and supplies with them and that they're fit enough to make use of them.............. this certainly proves that it's a good idea to have a sat phone when operating in these more remote areas.

I got an e-mail this morning from a person on Johan Calitz staff, and in it they advised that the missing plane was that of Jaco DuPlessis. It I understand it correctly, the plane left Dar es Salaam on the 12th, and never reached it's destination. The plane has not been located as of yet. Jaco has a wife and 9 month old son; keep all of them in your prayers.

Is Jaco du Plessis related to Ken du Plessis of Faunafrika Safaris?

Let us pray for a good outcome for a fellow hunter and his family.

Jako is one hell of a PH, and let's hope if they went down they are only afoot, and OK. There is some real "OUTBACK" country on the route from Dar to Mfuwe. Much of it only dirt tracks, but there are several back country air strips along that route. Lets hope for the best! He and anyone else who might have been with him, have my prayers on their side!

DAMN, I hate news like this!!!!!!!!!!

Kathy and I will remember them in our prayers. How's his family doing?

I talked with one of Jaco's PH's tonight. It has been a week now with no word. Many people are still looking but no sign of anything.Pray for his deliverence.

Makes me sick to hear it. I am just a living-room safari hunter, having watched Jaco guide Wes Hixon in Zambia over and over on video, but he sure seemed like a fine guy and I have day-dreamed about hunting buff with him someday. Here's a prayer for him, and for his family.

I met Jaco in the Bangweulu swamp in Zambia in 2000 while hunting with a different company. When we met him in the swamp he directed us to an area where he had just seen a big sitatunga. That info. paid off big time with a great trophy for us. He also had us come to dinner at his camp for a true gourmet meal. We all liked him very much and now we are crossing our fingers for his safe return.

Any word on how the search is going?

I've communicated with Jaco's Office mgr., Fredel Coetzee, and was advised Jaco and Lourens Louw were on the plane and Rolene and their child are safe in South Africa.

They continue to search for the plane and at this time there has been no sighting of anything. If there is more to come I will pass it on and hope all of you do the same. Please Keep these two very good men in your prayers, as well as Rolene and their son. "Z"

May God be with Them,

I received the following message earlier today:

To all our clients and friends,



We hope this letter finds you all in good health and spirit. Things have been very hectic for us this end with all the seasons starting one by one, operating through Africa is really an interesting venture and keeps us all on our toes 100% of the time.



I don�t know how many of you already heard the news concerning Jaco and another pilot by the name of Lourens Louw. Just to put it short and briefly they went to Tanzania on the 9th of June to return back home on the 12th of June. All went according to plan accept on their way home the last contact the Dar-Es-Salaam tower had with them after take off from the airport was 5 minutes and never again. I was not concerned, cause knowing Jaco and that the weather was reported to be bad over Lake Malawi I thought they landed on one of the unmanned airstrips in the Selous to avoid bad weather. On Friday the 13th about 10 o�clock our time, without any news, I started to get concerned and informed his parents and Lourens� wife (Gena who also has 2 kids). Since then the authorities has been looking for them all over Tanzania, crossing boarders to Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique. Up to date we have no news, the plane has not been found and they were not located by any other small plane or aircraft that routed the same way by radio or radar.



For those clients and friends that heard about this already and send your prayers to us we can only say thank you as there is no way we can express our gratitude to you all. The prayers is the only thing keeping us strong as only the Lord knows where they are and only He can keep them safe if He has not yet decided to lift them up with his Grace to the ever lasting life. He works at His own time and we need to leave it in His hands.



I just want to let you all know, new clients, old clients and dear friends. We have come a long way and we have been in this industry for quite some time, working hard to build the company to what it is today to offer everyone a chance to dare to dream. During this time Jaco and I have been running this company together and I want to assure everyone coming on safari with us this year and in the near future that everything will stay as it is, no matter what happens. As Jaco has been in the field most of the time I had to co-ordinate most of the admin and logistics and together with our team of Professionals we have on our side, I can assure you that your safari will still continue and you will still get the same service and professionalism as expected from our company.



Once again, we hope and pray that Jaco will return to us safe and sound, it is the hardest thing I ever had to face in my life and the same for his family, specially with a 10 month old baby, a child with the most beautiful personality and his dad�s replica. All we can ask you is to trust in me and our team, our systems are in place and we are confident in what we are doing as it is not something new to us. We can assure you that you will still have a successful safari.



Thank you for your understanding and once again for your prayers and support in this very difficult time for us.



If you have any uncertainty or are concerned about anything concerning this matter please feel free to contact me any time at the office numbers +27-11-974-8370 or +27-11-974-2894.



With warm regards,



Roelene, Jaco and the rest of our team!

I've never seen anyone that can deal with hardship like an African. You know she has to be suffering and completely distracted right now, but I bet she keeps everything running smoothly this season. I will continue to hope and pray for a good oucome, although the odds appear to be pretty long now.

Along with many others, I too received that msg. and you can feel the pain as you read it and I have to agree Rolene IS a strong woman. Earlier this week I had one of the PH's call me. There is no doubt in my mind that EVERYONE involved with that company is pulling together, out of friendship and respect, for Jaco and Rolene.

Not one time since this information came out did my wife and I even considering not going or changing our plans to hunt with them next year.

For Rolene's sake I would ask for your continued prayers and kind thoughts for,we hope, a positive resolution.

Good Hunting, "Z"

All I can think of to say is "WHAT A LADY!"
Rich Elliott

Rich beat me to it...One of the reasons I go back to Africa is out of admiration for many of the people I know there, and for the friendships I've made. Those folks are plain tough and Rolene's letter is a testament to that. We'll keep them in our prayers.

For those of you that would like to send a personal note to Roelene, which I know she would deeply appreciate, the e-address is info@awo.co.za

Please don't forget her at this critical time and please, even if you do not know her, drop her a note. I'd consider it a favor, Thank You.

Good Hunting, "Z"

Any one got an up update on this?

I talked with Stef Swanepoel in RSA. Stef is a PH, that hunted a bit with Jaco in Tanzania.

Stef says that the hunt for Jaco was given up some time ago, and the general feeling is that he went down in Lake Malawi.

No word on Jaco I'm sad to say. I leave Sept 6th for a 10 day Safari in the Selous with them. I'll post a report when I return. I'm sure Jaco's absense makes it tough, but I sure admire them for carrying on.