ISLAMABAD, Nov 7: Two Frenchmen gave a motor-gliding demonstration at Fatima Jinnah Park on Monday presenting another mode of transporting relief goods and medical staff to those remote earthquake-affected areas which remain inaccessible even by helicopters.

A private gliding club has acquired the services of silver- haired motor-gliders, Didieo Debaque and Alain Maynjovet, who expressed confidence in successfully undertaking this unique relief operation, the first-ever in the world.

“I and my colleague Maynjovet held a demonstration in Shinkiari region on Sunday, and we feel highly confident that we can run this relief mission through para-gliding and motor- gliding which otherwise is a sport,” Mr Debaque told reporters at a press briefing.

“The motor-gliding flights can be successfully operated to send medicines, tents, blankets, etc., plus doctors and paramedical staff door-to-door in portions of the earthquake- affected high-altitude areas where even the choppers are unable to land”, said Maj (retired) Syed Hamid Raza, the chief executive of Hawk Gliding Club.

Hamid Raza, along with his chief instructor Imtiazul Hassan, will also be part of this relief mission involving motor-gliding flights which can rise up to 8,000 feet.

Mr Raza said initially he would employ four motor-gliding machines, but called for financial support from the government and private donors to increase this number.

He said each motor-gliding machine could run 20-25 flights a day, depending on fair weather. “Good weather is necessary for running these flights,” he added.

We can reduce the load of choppers by half, he said, adding that each flight could carry a maximum load of 220 kilograms.

Hamid Raza, a former karate instructor, said a motor-gliding flying machine cost nearly Rs1 million.

He said the Frenchmen would take 500 Euros a week in this humanitarian mission while otherwise they charged this much amount for a single day from their clients in Europe.

Former chairman NAB Lt-Gen (retired) Munir Hafeez said he had known Hamid who had come to him for guidance in running the relief mission through motor-gliding.

“I watched the demonstration at Shinkiari and I think it can greatly help the relief work. Doctors can also be sent to remote areas through motor-gliding”, he said.

He appealed to private donors to help in acquiring more motor-gliding machines for the relief work.

Gen Hafeez, who also head an NGO “Zindagi”, said donations for motor-gliding relief mission could be channelled through his organization for the sake of tax rebate.—APP