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Missionary Flight Training in Ohio
In 1965, Mike Stimac created UMATT (United Missionary Air Training and Transport), a flight training program in Dayton, Ohio, open to members of all faiths interested in becoming pilots and learning how small planes can be used more effectively in African mis- sionary work.
Thomas Dwyer was the program director at the University of Dayton headquarters. The Turkana Desert Fund raised over $30,000 to purchase a new Cessna U206 for the newly formed UMATT organization. The Cessna was larger, more powerful, and better suited to withstand the desert conditions in Kenya than the little Cub. Dwyer explained, “UMATT is a service for men of goodwill in all Faiths, working to help those whose lives and hopes will take on new di- mensions because of the miracle of the airplane. It means f leetness to doctors to heal the pained; it guar- antees transport of bread and milk to the hungry; it means dignity to the youth of emerging nations; and it gives strength to the energies of the dedicated missionaries and Peace Corps workers in the field. UMATT is efficiency, union, strength, and peace.”
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Navajo in front of WoH hangar
Long Distance Flying
Max Conrad, a legendary pilot and holder of several long-distance f light records, flew the Cessna’s ferry trip from St. Louis, Mo., to Nairobi, Kenya. The journey’s itinerary was paired with press events and blessed by re- ligious leaders of different faiths. The ferry began with a ceremony at the Ozark Airline Hangar at Lambert–St. Louis International Airport. Notable stops along the way included:
• UMATT headquarters at the University of Dayton
• Two days of public appearances and press in New York
• Medical Missionaries of Mary ceremony in Boston
• St. Patrick Missionary Society ceremony in Shannon, Ireland
• Papal blessing by Pope Paul VI in Rome
• Conrad’s landing in Nairobi on June 10, 1965
Incorporation
Wings of Hope became incorpo- rated in 1967 under the “General Not For Profit Corporation Law” of the State of Missouri, and its board of directors included Joseph G.Fabick, John C. Versnel, and William D. Ed- wards. According to the Wings of Hope articles of incorporation, “[we intend] to provide without charge, remuneration or profit, transporta- tion and communication facilities for missionaries, medical missionaries,