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May 2023 Newsletter

Praise the Lord for all his goodness! We want to thank you who have been part of the TEAM by your prayers and support. God is working as we continue to ready the aircraft for the next step of your ministry outreach.

Paul, the ministry pilot, and I are thankful that we were able to fly into the Bahamas with an aircraft borrowed from a ministry called Aero Missions. We saw a very productive two weeks after handing out several thousand tracts, and going door to door while visiting on 7 islands. We believe God opened the hearts of 10 individuals to the gospel on this one trip alone, and most were older adults professing to receive Jesus as Savior. A big “Thank you” to Bro. Jon Stanczak and Aero Missions for the use of your plane.

As we left one of these islands, my heart was quite touched for the need for laborers to work the fields. Remember, Jesus told his disciples to look on the fields? Well, that is what we are doing. Folks, it appears that in today’s world, the older laborers are retiring, or have retired long ago, and not many are following them. They are leaving behind empty spaces for laborers to reach the multitudes with the gospel. I certainly felt grateful, along with my son Paul, to have made this mission trip to go to another part of the world where aviation is essential to reach out to unreached people. This was our first successful outreach using ministry aircraft.

Please pray as we ready the two His Wings ministry planes for the Lord’s use in our future field service in Alaska and the new outreach in the Bahamas. There are many untold people that need to hear the good news that Jesus saves.

We are looking forward to the steps we are taking this year in Alaska. It all takes time, more time than we would like to admit. Helping Paul build his cabin in Hyder is a project. We hope to be starting on the hangar soon, so it is ready when we get the plane to our field in AK, and also reaching our area of outreach here during our window of weather that allows us to fly. That window is during spring, summer, and fall. The planes are still being worked on so we cannot be in too big of a hurry. Bro. Rushing from Wings of Eagles ministry in Oshkosh, WI has been a huge blessing along with all our friends from the ministry there. Bro. Rushing is presently working to restore the Cessna 185 Paul and I retrieved from Papua New Guinea last year, trying to re-certify it with FAA approval. This is not a small task, but we know God’s timing is perfect.

The other plane is the Cessna 180. It is being painted and readied for flight as well. Thank you, Bro. Randy Dorsey from Riverland Baptist Church for all you have done, for keeping our plane in your hangar in Dunnellon, FL, and preparing it for paint and inspection.

Well, in closing, may God bless each of you in a very special way. Thanks for helping lift the wings of His Wings Air and sponsoring the BEAM Team.

Sincerely,

Mark J Bach

Team Representative

September 2022 Newsletter

Greetings once again from the BEAM Team.

We are excited to see progress on the Lord’s two airplanes that he has put under our stewardship to reach souls out yonder. Since our last report, God has blessed in a great way with the transport of the aircraft that my son Paul and I were able to get from Papua New Guinea. As you know, we flew to PNG in April and went to Lae and removed the wings, and placed the plane and wings in a container and shipped it to southern California. We are glad it arrived in California safely where Paul, his wife, and a church helped to take it out of the shipping container and packed it up on our flat bed trailer. Then, Paul and his family traveled all the way to Tennessee, and then to Wisconsin with God’s precious cargo.

God’s aircraft now needs to go through the process of reassembly in the Wings of Eagles Baptist ministry that is helping us there. We truly are grateful for God’s people helping in every step of the way. The Lord’s other aircraft in Florida is being worked on as well and is also being prepared for the mission field. That means we will have two planes- one plane for Alaska and Canada, and the other plane for the Caribbean. We are excited about how God has supplied for every step of the way. I have seen God do this since he spoke to me about starting an aviation ministry back in 2002. I am seeing the verse “…that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.” Philippians 1:6. Praise his name!

We are still planning on doing evangelism and aviation outreach in the Caribbean in the winter as God makes the way. The reason for a dual focus is the fact that weather in Alaska is so bad October through May, that not even our mail is able to fly to where we live during the rough weather seasons in Hyder. Please look it up for yourself on google weather. It is a very dangerous place to fly in monsoon and winter weather. This is the time when flying in the Caribbean is at an optimum. We plan to make another trip there this year, Lord willing, where Paul, our missionary pilot son, can see the fields as well. We are excited about new horizons where we can continue our aviation evangelism, discipleship, and church planting focus in all seasons. Jesus said, “Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.” John 4:35

We have learned, and I am sure you have, that when God guides, he always provides! Thanks for your help in this greatly needed outreach. I believe the time is short and the Lord’s coming is drawing near. Jesus said, “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.” John 9:4

Thank you to those who pray for and have helped in this ministry. We are still praying about the right land for God’s hangar in Alaska. God already supplied for his hangar. We appreciate everyone who has given toward this project. One big blessing is that while we have been waiting for the right property, for the hangar, we are seeing prices of materials (like metal for instance) go down.

Please pray as this winter we also plan to be available to present the Baptist Evangelism Aviation Ministry in churches who would like to get involved. This makes a way for others to get involved in the Great Commission to reach the regions beyond. This will help lift the heavy flight burden. Thank you so much to those who pray for and those who support BEAM. Also a special thanks for all who gave toward the hangar and land for God’s aircraft and ministry. We have a little farther to go to reach our goal for land. Our hangar goal of $80,000 was exceeded. Praise the Lord!

God bless you all is our prayer. Sincerely,

Bro. Mark J. Bach – Director

July 2022 Newsletter

Dear BEAM supporters and prayer warriors,

I just wanted to write you and say, “Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”

The plane has been successfully shipped from PNG. My son Paul and I had a very productive trip to Papua New Guinea. We were able to get the Cessna 185 airplane from the village of Wau, transport it to Lae and put in into a container bound for California. Once it reaches California, it will be picked up and transported to Wisconsin for the wings and tail to be reassembled and to get it fly-worthy again. Also, I was blessed to fellowship and to preach in some national churches. God has some great dear people who were such a blessing to us. Our hosts were also a great blessing. God bless PNG missionaries Bro. and Mrs. Keck! A special thanks to all who have helped to make this possible by the grace of God. Praise The Lord!

We are excited to begin clearing land for the hangar. Our trip down south was such a blessing. We were with old friends and made many new ones. So many gave that we surpassed our goal of $80,000 for the hangar. This extra will help make up for the inflation costs, I am sure. We are now working on the fund for the land. There is a land owner in town we’ve offered $30,000 for a parcel that is in a great location close to our town’s float plane dock. Please make this a matter of prayer as some others may get first choice for buying the land. We have some funding already designated for this project. With promises we’re at about $10,000.

In our last letter I talked about a Caribbean outreach. Well, after surveying Nassau Island with Amy, and meeting up with some local Bahamanian pastors, I found opportunity for reaching out to places where the need certainly exists, and where God has most definitely opened a great and effectual door. Actually, we have a wheeled plane in place in Florida that could help with this outreach. I will keep you updated as things develop on the southern front. As I mentioned in other prayer letters, during the winter in Alaska, flight is very difficult, but in the south, off Florida’s coast, weather is optimum. Therefore, a dual ministry makes perfect sense. Our pastor, Bro. Combs is excited about it! We are trusting God to give the grace and wisdom for this winter outreach in a place where the need is great. While there on Nassau Island, I was given the opportunity to speak at a christian school where 18 teens trusted Christ. This is more in one day than any time in Alaska and Canada combined. What a huge blessing to deal personally with these young people!

In closing, I just want to say thank you to those who have helped us and have given to the Lord for his Great Commission. We are trying to do what Jesus said when he told the disciples to lift up their eyes unto the fields (plural) as they (plural) are white already to harvest.

God bless you is our prayer.

Mark Bach- Director and The BEAM Team

April 2022 Newsletter

God’s Tools– We want to be used of the Lord. Recently, some of my boys got together and bought their dad some tools. The reason they wanted to get them was to replace some that a thief stole recently from a compartment of our travel trailer. It was about 3:00 am while 10 of us were inside; I was startled by the sound of a compartment door slamming shut. I went outside and looked and saw no one, only to find out later I was missing a bag of tools. I thank the Lord for my older boys who told me that they are getting replacement tools for my 60th Birthday.

Tools come in handy for so many things. God has given us all we need to carry out His Great Commission. This includes the tools of aviation. In the BEAM ministry we are looking to fit the right tool to the right job. My job, as director of the BEAM ministry, is to direct the right equipment to the right job. We are praying about expanding our ministry by acquiring additional aircraft and finding fields where aviation is essential, helping to get the right tool for the job. I am looking at the West Indies for outreach in the near future. We have two aircraft, so why not fit the tool to the job? We are looking where aviation is essential to reach souls out yonder. Please pray we will know where to go and where we will have not only the tools, but God-called and local church sent pilots. By God’s grace, let’s let God equip his saints with the right tools for the job.

Papua New Guinea Plane Retrieval– Paul and I are preparing to head to PNG to get the airplane. As of the 21st of April, we plan to go and get the Cessna 185 donated by “Jungle” Jim Blume. Please pray we get everything needed and that everything falls in place. Paul and I need to travel 90 miles into the interior and take the wings off the plane to put it into a container to ship it back home to be reassembled in Wisconsin.

Hangar goal almost reached– We now have almost reached our goal of $80,000 if everything promised comes in for the hangar. Our goal now is the $30,000 for the land unless our neighbor sells us the additional house we would like to buy for a prophets chamber. In that case we will need $80,000. If the additional funding comes in we plan to expand the land goal to include enough for the house for our BEAM office and a facility to house travelers that come by to visit the field. Thanks in advance for those who plan to give for the land/house fund if everything falls in place. God has already so incredibly supplied for “His Wings” and his hangar. A special thank you for those who have helped with the hangar. For this we praise the Lord.

In Closing- The time is short. People are still in need of being reached with the Gospel. A special thank you for all those churches that have taken on the BEAM ministry with monthly support to help our aviation outreach. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

Thank you to the aviation ministry, AREO Missions, in Alabama where we have our Cessna 180 being stored and where Bro. John Stanczak and his team have helped us with the plane. We look forward to also working with the ministry in Dunellon, FL, called Mount Up With Wings, where Bro. Randy Dorsey is planning on helping us by painting
the Lord’s plane. This entails stripping (blasting) off the paint and repainting it so we can
use it for the glory of God to reach the lost at any cost.

God bless you all!
PS. If you are looking to employ a plane in God’s kingdom, donate it to His Wings Air Inc. May God Bless You. Sincerely,

Mark Bach
BEAM Director
His Wings Air President and Director

January 2022 Newsletter

Greetings from the BEAM Team,

We hope all is well with you and yours. We just wanted to give you an update of all God is doing. We are excited to go to PNG to get the Cessna 185 airplane that was donated by Missionary Jim Blume. God used this tool there for many years. Now, we trust God will use it to help us in our aviation ministry as well. Please pray for safety and the Lord’s blessing for those that go there to retrieve this evangelism tool (Lord willing). We need to remove the wings and the tail to fit it in a container to be trucked out of a very remote place. Pray the roads are navigable and we have no problem trucking it as well as shipping it back to the USA. Pray for Paul and those who help to get it done. Thanks for your help.

Along another note, we are looking forward to building the airplane hangar in Hyder, Alaska. We want to give a special thank you for those who are helping us on the hangar fund. We have presented this need in almost every available service since we left Hyder on November 3rd and the Lord is bringing in the funds. We still have a ways to go to reach our goals. Now, we have almost $50,000 promised for land and hanger. I am trying to reduce our original goal of about $150,000 for land and hangar to closer to $110,000 if we can get the land owner to divide the land and sell us just the amount to fit the hangar and that’s it. The problem is that there is very little land available that would work for us and we have to go with what is available. Please pray the Lord would work this out, and that it would be workable with the land owner and he would be willing to sell us what we need.

The Lord knows what He wants us to do. I trust He will supply all our needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. We want to start and finish the project this summer. It is going to take a joint effort by God’s people who get a vision as the Lord enables and equips us to do what He wants accomplished in this region and ministry.

We are excited we have all our paperwork to make His Wings Air Service a reality. Donations go through our home church to Baptist Evangelism Aviation Ministry. BEAM is the funding arm for His Wings. The verse we are choosing for His Wings ministry is “…under His wings thou shalt trust.” We trust God will keep us safe as we fly in His aircraft back and forth, to and from the remote villages of Alaska and Canada.

THANK YOU so much for your help! This is an investment in God’s business. Jesus said, “Know ye not I must be about my Father’s business?” You too are investing in our Heavenly Father’s Business. Do you think God will leave you at loss for having done so? I think not. It is not a liability to give to the Lord but an opportunity. His Wings Air Service belongs to the Lord and is a non profit 501-C3 ministry. We are laborers together with God, in His business, to reach the lost at any cost. Thank you for your participation. May God bless each and every one!

Until next time this is your representative for souls out yonder,

Mark J. Bach
BEAM and His Wings Air Director and President

November 2021 News Letter

Today I write to just say, “Thank you” and to let you know how much we appreciate those that pray for and help the BEAM ministry. The Lord is blessing in big ways. BEAM is now working with our new ministry called His Wings Air Service. This means that all the aviation assets we need to do the Great Commission will have a place to be titled to. Basically we are titling these tools to the Lord. That is why we call this 501C3 ministry “His Wings.” We get this from the verse “…under his wings shalt thou trust.” Psalm 91:4.

We are excited about the fact that God has already provided two airplanes for his ministry from two missionaries. One plane (the Cessna 180 in Alabama) is ready to fly other than the need to install the floats. We have the funding for the floats. We just need the proper mounting parts to equip the 1966 Cessna 180. The parts are difficult to find and it is even harder finding a mechanic who knows how to install them. Please pray the Lord will give wisdom on what we should do with this aircraft. We can trade it in for one already with floats or keep looking for the kit and a mechanic who can install them on the aircraft.

By God’s grace we plan to share a great opportunity with some sister churches and individuals. We plan to purchase some land and a hangar to house the Lord’s aircraft. We now have the goal to raise between $70,000 and $80,000 for land and between $70,000 and $80,000 for a hangar. We are asking churches to help us with this opportunity. We are trusting that God will raise up the churches and individuals we need to conduct this ministry in the regions beyond for the Great Commission. God has so faithfully provided thus far and we praise his name for his goodness and grace every step of the way.

If you would like to help us with the land and hangar campaign, I am sure God would bless you for it. You can donate to our home church in care of Baptist Evangelism Aviation Ministry. Simply write your donation for- Hanger and Land Project. In closing, may God bless each of you that pray for and help this ministry.

Sincerely your servant for Jesus’ sake,

Mark Bach

BEAM and His Wings Air Service

Director and President

What do you Value?

The date was April 30th, 1975, in the hours just before the final tragic overrun of South Vietnam by the communist, North Vietnamese fighters. After decades of fighting, the United States Armed Forces were pulling out their last tiny foothold in Saigon, South Vietnam and the region was in turmoil. South Vietnamese soldiers and civilians alike were frantic to get out, to escape the torture, death, and destruction that were sure to follow the arrival of North Vietnamese forces.

The last commercial and military flights out of the country were jam packed with desperate refugees. Others took to the sea in anything that would float in an attempt to reach safety. Tragically, for most, there was no way out.

Operation Frequent Wind was launched in an a last ditch effort to evacuate all US personnel and as many South Vietnamese as possible. An aircraft carrier, the USS Midway, was one of the many ships ordered to the waters off Vietnam to aid in the evacuation effort. Soon, South Vietnamese pilots flying Huey Helicopters filled with people began arriving in the skies above the carrier. In short order, the flight decks were a bee hive of activity as helicopters landed and the refugees were unloaded.

Meanwhile, back in Vietnam, Major Buang Ly, a South Vietnamese Air Force pilot loaded his family aboard a small reconnaissance airplane. He knew the USS Midway was supposed to be located somewhere off the coast. The two passenger Cessna O-1 “Bird Dog” was dangerously over loaded with himself, his wife, and five small children. To make matters worse, he couldn’t know for sure if he’d be able to even locate the US aircraft carrier. However, he had no other options. Knowing the odds, yet having weighed the cost, he took off with his precious cargo and headed out to sea.

A crew member aboard the USS Midway spotted a small reconnaissance airplane flying toward to aircraft carrier. All attempts to establish radio communications with the tiny airplane failed as it flew nearer and began circling low over the ship. After successfully evading enemy ground fire and navigating without a radio, the pilot, Major Buang Ly, had miraculously found the Midway.

However, the ordeal was far from over. He quickly noticed that the carrier flight deck was jam packed with helicopters. Even if the deck had been clear there was still the problem of an extremely short landing area, far shorter than the length normally required for his airplane.

After several futile attempts at dropping a message to the ship, Mr. Ly scribbled a brief note on a chart. He stuffed it into his pistol, and on a low pass tossed his weapon onto the deck of the ship. It read, “Can you move these Helicopters to the other side, I can land on your runway, I can fly one hour more, we have enough time to move. Please rescue me. Major Bung, wife and 5 child.”

The message was quickly carried to the ship’s commanding officer, Capt. Larry Chambers, who quickly realized the gravity of the situation. Mr. Ly didn’t have enough fuel to make it back to land. Captain Chambers immediately ordered all available hands on deck and gave orders to start pitching helicopters overboard. Though he believed his decision would get him court marshaled after only five weeks of command, spotters had reported that there were at least four people in the two person aircraft, including children. There was no other choice!

Over the next few frantic minutes, over ten million dollars worth of helicopters were pitched into the South China Sea. Even as the crew worked to clear the deck, five more Hueys landed. These too where quickly unloaded and scuttled.

The weather was definitely not ideal, it was raining, the overcast ceiling was low, and the wind was blowing, but there was no time to lose. The Captain ordered the ship full speed ahead in order for the wind over the flight deck to reduce the landing distance required by the little Cessna. He also had warnings broadcast over the radio in both English and Vietnamese warning of the treacherous wake turbulence that would be present behind the moving carrier. Dangerously low on fuel, Major Buang finally received the green light to attempt the landing.

Landing a land plane on a carrier without a tail hook would be no easy task but the die was cast, and there was no turning back. Major Buang lowered full flaps and slowed down to just above stalling speed. As the crew watched with bated breath, the tiny plane cleared the threshold and touched down on the center line at the normal touchdown point. He bounced once and quickly came to a stop with room to spare, to the cheers of the carrier crew. His family was safe!

This article illustrates how much one captain was willing to sacrifice to save a Vietnamese pilot and his family. Shouldn’t we be willing to pay whatever it costs to save those who have never heard the good news of the gospel? That is why our motto is “reaching the lost at any cost.” Aircraft are not cheap. The Navy pitched ten million dollars worth of helicopters into the ocean to save one family. We are asking the Lord to provide an airplane to be used to reach whole villages, families, or even just one individual if necessary, who has never heard the Gospel. Imagine yourself in the place of that one individual. Is it worth it?