Our Aircraft

We are fortunate to have several aircraft at our disposal, the use of which are donated for free. Behind the scenes a lot of maintenance expertise is also given freely, keeping our costs to a minimum.

At the heart of the Dugong Shepherds is HS-EAL, also affectionately known as “Miss Dippy”.

For logistical support, and humanitarian relief we use HS-TOM – Maliee. A Piper PA46-350P Jetprop, six seat low wing aircraft.

This aircraft can travel across Thailand without the need to refuel, and is primarily used to move people and equipment.

HS-CRZ is a Zenair 750 Cruzer designed for slow flight with the doors removed, making it an ideal photography platform. It’s home base is also Nok Airfield where it lives next door to HS-EAL.

Another great asset is our access to a Cavalon Gyrocopter; UD-39, owned by K. Arnud and flown by K. Best, both based in Phuket, at Phuket Airpark.

This aircraft is excellent for low level photography work. We normally deploy it once we know the location of any animals spotted during the surveys by the other fixed wing aircraft.