Charter broker Air Charter Service recently helped non-profit conservation organisation African Parks to relocate 16 southern white rhinos to Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), from a private game reserve in South Africa.
ACS used a Hercules L-100 aircraft to carry out the job within a week. The relocation involved two flights due to the weight of the animals.
Lyndee du Toit, ACS South Africa’s chief executive, said: “The last northern white rhino was poached in the DRC in 2006 and this project, arranged by African Parks, is part of a ground-breaking effort to restore the ecological balance of one of Africa’s oldest national parks.
“We were contacted by African Parks to source a suitable solution for the transportation of 16 rhinos from Phinda Private Game Reserve in South Africa to Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
“We decided that a Hercules L-100 would be the best fit for the job, largely because of its ability to land on short, dirt runways. The rear-loading capability of the Herc was also utilised as Barrick’s Kibali Mine airstrip in north eastern DRC didn’t have sufficient equipment to assist in offloading the rhinos.
Source : Aircargo