The Mileses signed up to serve in Australia when Mission Aviation Fellowship was in its mid-40s. Now, as the organisation approaches its 80th anniversary, they look back on an eventful career.
The tip of a propeller blade mounted on a small wooden base stands on Doug Miles’s bookshelf – a keepsake of a “wheels-up” landing and a reminder of a career filled with both turbulence and grace.
Of that incident, Doug says, “Within a week, the chief pilot had me back in the air. I flew with him for around ten hours, I think. And then off I went again. You come out of it. But you never forget it.”
For 35 years, Doug and his wife, Yvonne, have served in Mission Aviation Fellowship, navigating not just the skies but the complexities of faith, purpose and perseverance.
Originally from New Zealand, Doug and Yvonne joined MAF in January 1990, unaware that their journey would span three and a half decades of service across Arnhem Land, Papua New Guinea and Cairns, in roles that went far beyond piloting aircraft.
In the first week of 1990, the family of five arrived in Ballarat, Victoria, for MAF orientation, and then moved to the unfamiliar landscape of Arnhem Land six months later.
Leaving behind the familiarity of New Zealand was challenging, especially with one of their daughters having Down syndrome. Yet they saw God’s provision.
“We had left an early intervention program in New Zealand, and I missed my family,” said Yvonne. “But we received better care for our daughter in Arnhem Land than we would have in a city location in either New Zealand or Australia.”
At one point, Yvonne even found herself hoping for a guilt-free exit. When Doug was grounded after a medical test, Yvonne admits, “I was thinking, ‘I might get to go home, and it won’t be my fault. This would be an honourable way out’.”
However, Doug was sent for further tests, which he passed easily, and Yvonne experienced a shift in her heart.
“I prayed that if he passed, I’d be genuinely pleased. And I was. That was God’s confirmation to me that I was meant to be there as well,” she said.
Over the decades, Doug has served as line pilot, country director, regional director, project manager, HR manager, facilities manager, and operations manager, sometimes wearing as many as five different hats at the same time.
He has steered MAF teams through tumultuous change in flight programmes, staffing, programme ministry, funding, and facilities, and he has stepped up numerous times to fill interim leadership roles, which have often stretched to months and years beyond the original briefs.
Everything we’ve done, we feel as if we’ve done it for a reason. And we’re quite fulfilled with that because we know that it’s made a difference.
The work of MAF is about far more than flying planes, and Doug has seen the impact that mission aviation can have in remote communities in Arnhem Land and Papua New Guinea.
“There is certainly an expectation that MAF is there to support the community,” Doug says.
“Whether that be in health, education, and community development, or whether it be by flying people’s produce so that they can get an income to send their kids to school.
“We're actually bringing the health, the education and the support to the communities.”
You can join MAF, and then you’re part of something much bigger.
For Yvonne, one of the most inspiring realisations was when she learned about the true scope of MAF’s work.
“MAF is the aviation arm for over 1,300 aid agencies in the world. I just thought, wow. If I were preaching, I would say to people, ‘Would you like to be part of 1,300 aid agencies in the world?’ We all would love to give to all those agencies if we could. Well, you can be part of it. You can join MAF, and then you’re part of something much bigger,” she says.
Doug and Yvonne’s long journey has been marked by a peculiar pattern of events and seasons.
“There’s that saying that everything comes in threes, and we’re a good example of that,” Doug says. “We were in Arnhem Land for three separate periods. We were in PNG for three separate periods. And we have tried to retire three separate times.”
The third attempt at retirement, toward the end of 2024, is looking to be the final one. When asked if they would do anything differently, Doug answers without hesitation.
“I don’t think we would, because it’s all part of our journey and our life experience,” Doug says.
“The work of MAF is something we’re still very much passionate about. Everything we’ve done, we feel as if we’ve done it for a reason. And we’re quite fulfilled with that because we know that it’s made a difference.”
