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A Kodiak Named PK-MJL

How MAF pilot Joyce Lin’s legacy lives on

By Jeanelle Reider

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COMMISSIONED

On July 15, 2022, something happened to transcend tragedy.

More than two years earlier, an MAF Kodiak aircraft, along with its pilot, Joyce Lin, had crashed into Lake Sentani in Papua, Indonesia. No one can know why God, in His loving and perfect plan, allowed such a catastrophe. For MAF and all who knew Joyce, the fatal accident remains a heartbreak and a mystery.

On July 15, PK-MJL—the Kodiak replacement aircraft affectionately nicknamed “Miss Joyce Lin”—was commissioned for service in Sentani. As MAF staff formed a prayerful circle around the Kodiak, they knew the event’s significance extended far beyond the airplane itself. It extended to them.

Joyce was clear-eyed in her purpose with MAF. She said, “While I will always be excited to fly planes and work on computers, I am most excited to share the love of Jesus Christ by helping to transform other people’s discouragement and mourning into dancing and joy.”

Through PK-MJL, her legacy of love will continue.

Dedication of PK-MJL in Sentani. Photo by Willem Jonkers.
MAF staff wearing “ReJoyce!” T-shirts on the two-year anniversary of Joyce’s accident. Photo by Debbie Klynstra.

READY FOR SERVICE!

PK-MJL’s journey to Papua began with generous funding from MAF partners who shared Joyce’s vision and wanted to carry it further. Once purchased, the Kodiak spent two years at MAF’s headquarters in Nampa, Idaho, getting retrofitted for the field and waiting for import permissions. It was then ferried to Sentani where it cleared customs in record time! The airplane was then prepped with its new PK-MJL registration and some small modifications and stood ready to join the MAF Papua fleet.

MAF mechanics Waren Lelewa and Gasko Lum prepare PK-MJL for service. Photo by Nathan Moses.

FIRST FLIGHTS

PK-MJL’s first passenger flights, conducted on July 18 by MAF pilots Dave Ringenberg and Tom Bolser, carried MAF missionary kids (MKs). Linda Ringenberg, Dave’s wife, said, “We hope that being the first passengers in this plane will inspire them to live a life that’s sold out for God like Joyce did.”

Older MAF MKs, pre-flight. Photo by Linda Ringenberg.
Younger MAF MKs, pre-flight. Photo by Linda Ringenberg.

The next day, PK-MJL flew its first mission flight. This flight, and the ones in the weeks that followed, represented a beautiful cross section of the many ways this tool will be used to carry on Joyce’s legacy.

First mission flight: Bible translator Filemon and family after landing in Okhika to begin final accuracy checks on the recently completed Old Testament translation in the heart language of their people. Photo by Dave Ringenberg.
A delivery of 880 pounds of rice for the village of Bokondini, along with new desktop computers for Ob Anggen school. Photo by Linda Ringenberg.
Dave Ringenberg transports Dan Wisley from Bokondini after a spiritual transformation and servant leadership training for 70 highland teachers. Photo by Linda Ringenberg.
Lantern of Hope (SLH) teachers arrive in Mokndoma for the start of the school year. Photo by Dave Ringenberg.

PK-MJL brought a photographer and others to the village of Nalca for the purpose of chronicling the work of Dr. Atik and the Siloam Clinic.

Dr. Atik. Photo by Linda Ringenberg.
A nurse checks the blood pressure of a pregnant woman whom MAF planned to fly to Sentani for the Caesarean birth of her sixth child. Photo by Linda Ringenberg.
A sixth-grade girl with ambitions to become a pilot helps Dave Ringenberg mix cement for a wind sock base in Nalca. Photo by Linda Ringenberg.
MAF pilot Brian Marx brings burn cream from the Siloam clinic in Korupun to its sister clinic in Nalca. Brian said that when he handed the cream to the Nalca nurses, “cheers went up!” Burns are common because of fires that are kept burning inside thatched-roofed homes throughout cold highland nights. Photo by Brian Marx.
Photo by Linda Ringenberg.

MORE TO COME!

We’re excited to see how God will keep using PK-MJL to speak His love to the people of Papua. You’ll be hearing more as the story unfolds!

And each time you hear of new ways Joyce’s legacy lives on, we hope you know how grateful we are for compassionate partners like you whose prayers and generosity help make it all possible.

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