Capt. Taylor

Staff and aircraft of Air Mahe

A pioneer of commercial aviation in Seychelles, Captain John Falconer-Taylor has passed away at the age of 82, in Hampshire in the UK.

Early in 1970, when the runway at Pointe Larue was only partially complete, Captain Taylor persuaded his partner in Wilken Air Services, a Kenya based light aircraft company, to operate a passenger and mail service to Seychelles.

On the 30 April, 1970, a twin engine Piper Navajo flew from Mombassa via the Comores, Diego Saurez, the Malagasy Republic and Astove, to Mahé, carrying the first five fare paying passengers to Seychelles.

The service was operated once and sometimes twice a week until early September 1970 when it was discontinued, following the inauguration of the BOAC weekly service to Seychelles.

On the 1 July 1972, Capt. Taylor founded Air Mahe,  and operated services to Praslin with a Piper Seneca PA-34 aircraft. His son John Taylor Jnr. and brother–in-law Capt. Roy Marsh were his first pilots on these domestic services.

In 1973 Capt. Taylor’s company, in a combined operation with the Public Works Department, ferried a D6 earth moving machine to Bird Island to clear the coconut palms and vegetation for the construction of an airstrip. Once work was completed Air Mahe was to operate daily flights for day trippers and visitors to Bird Island Lodge.

With the addition of Bird Island on the Air Mahe schedule, it became necessary to bring in a back-up aircraft and a Dragon Rapide DH89A was purchased.

With the later addition of two Britain Norman Islanders to the Air Mahe fleet, service was extended to cover Denis Island, Frigate and D’Arros.

Capt. Taylor retired in 1978 and Air Mahe was sold to Interisland Airways, which was subsequently nationalised to bring Air Seychelles into being.

Article contributed by Doris Johnston with the assistance of Capt.Roy Marsh and Sybil Gonthier, of the DCA.

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