Factual indie, Rare Television, is to expand its airport franchise with a new series set across southern Africa, Extreme Airport Africa.
From Johannesburg’s two biggest International Airports the series follows aviation stories across Southern Africa from bush-flying pilots and scientists brave rough runways, wildfires, and wild animals. To make the series, Rare TV also secured access to the region’s busiest airline, private wildlife reserves and national park anti-poaching teams.
In urban Johannesburg the series follows helicopter crews flying life-or-death medivac missions, while the airport ground teams fight a daily battle keeping wildlife off the runways. Out in the bush, scientists team up with park rangers and take to the air to monitor the health of rhino and buffalo populations, and veterinarians capture a wild cheetah to fly it to a new home.
In Botswana, the production filmed with lion and elephant conservation experts using helicopters and light aircraft in the stunning Okavango Delta, one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet. In Madagascar, the production filmed with the UN Humanitarian Air Service as they delivered aid to help the island recover from one of the worst tropical storms ever recorded. The series also films in the cockpit of a commercial airliner en route to the remote South Atlantic Island of St Helena for one of the most challenging landings in global aviation.
Rare TV’s VP of US Development Christian Broadhurst who executive produced adds; “Southern Africa is one of the most beautiful and extreme places on earth. The region relies on aviation, not just for tourism but for protecting its incredible wildlife from poaching and habitat loss. Aircraft big and small, alongside a vast fleet of helicopters, makes this aviation series a thrilling watch and we feel privileged to have worked with so many passionate individuals, institutions and government bodies who are all trying to protect the regions stunning biodiversity for future generations”.
Rare TV’s US showrunner Greg Chivers also executive produces, and adds; “The series is a jaw-dropping showcase for Southern Africa and African aviation. These flights are white-knuckle thrill rides through epic landscapes. The action is authentic and the stakes are as high they come.”
Jon Creamer
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