The work of church planting is not just for pastors and evangelists. It takes all kinds of skill sets to keep the work going.
Building in the Bush
As a missionary pilot with NTMA in Papua New Guinea Travis does a lot of flying people and supplies into and out of remote locations. Sometimes it’s more people, sometimes it’s more supplies. In January, he was a part of flying house building supplies into West New Britain for new members of the Mamusi team.
It was a coordinated effort between the Kodiak and the Helicopter, with the Kodiak bringing the supplies to the airstrip and the Helicopter sling-loading them from the airstrip across a deep valley to the building site about a 40 minute walk away.
A team of 3 guys from the tech services department helped the church planters and local church members with the build. A lot of planning is involved ahead of time, there’s no running to Home Depot for something you forgot 🙂 Travis moved 20,000 pounds of building supplies in 13 flights over the course of a week. The house on the left in the last photo is the house they just built.
(If you’re wondering why the houses are on stilts, it’s because most areas of PNG receive 100 – 300 inches of rain annually.)
2025 NTMA PNG Year in Review
We are thankful to be part of a great aviation team. Here’s a look at 2025 in numbers:
Pilots: 7
Aircraft: 3 – Kodiaks, 2 R66 Helicopters
Total flight hours: 1,666.8 (Kodiak 966.1, R66 Helicopter 700.7)
Passengers: 4,062
Cargo: 699,618.4 pounds
Miles flown: 225,956.9 (equal to 9 trips around the globe)
Medivacs: 11 (5 to Port Moresby, 6 to Australia)
Prayer Requests:
Please pray for the Mamusi team as they come alongside the maturing local church and help with discipleship and Bible translation.
Please pray for staffing needs at Numonohi Christian Academy. More information on that at the end of this newsletter.
Please pray for good health for our family and our co-workers. And wisdom in parenting.
Thank you for your prayers, encouragement, and support as we serve church planters in PNG through aviation!
Love,
Travis & Becky
Urgent Need for Teachers
Numonohi Christian Academy (www.ncapng.org) is looking for schoolteachers— right now we have urgent needs for the 2026–2027 school year:
– High School Math Teacher
– High School Science Teacher
– Elementary Teacher
– Educational Special Services – Educational Therapist (NILD certified, on-site or remote)
In the US alone, there are roughly 3 million elementary and high school teachers. We’re praying for at least four who feel called to invest their gifts in equipping students to follow Christ, and who want to join a team united around one purpose: seeing a thriving church for every tribe, language, and people of Papua New Guinea. Serving at Numonohi Christian Academy means discipling students and supporting missionaries by helping their families thrive. One teacher can support the work of many.
Pray. Share. Consider going.
Someone in your circle may be the answer to that prayer.
Who comes to mind?
The application process needs to begin by March 2026 so now is the time to reach out. Contact personnel-director@ntmpng.org or go online at www.ntmpng.org/nca or https://ethnos360.org/find-your-fit.
Some recent family photos. . .
