Mozambique drops case against American missionary pilot, Ryan Koher

USA (MAF) -- Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) announced that the investigation of their pilot, Ryan Koher, by Mozambican authorities has been dropped and no charges will be filed. Koher, a pilot for MAF — known in Mozambique as Ambassador Aviation Ltd. (AAL) — was arrested on November 4, 2022. "From the very beginning, we knew that Ryan was carrying out a legitimate and needed flight and was completely innocent of the suspicions that were investigated," said David Holsten, MAF President and CEO. "During this lengthy ordeal, Ryan and Annabel have faithfully trusted the Lord and experienced His sustaining care on many occasions. We are so grateful to everyone who has diligently prayed for the Koher family. We know that God will use this situation for His glory." Ryan Koher responded to the news by saying, “It has been a long journey and an uphill battle at times, to get to this point of closure. I know this would not be possible without the many people who have been faithfully praying to this end. I would like to thank everyone for your prayers and love for our family. I pray that God will receive all the glory for His work in our lives.” On November 2, 2022, Koher left the AAL base in Nampula for a five-hour flight to Inhambane on a Cessna 206. He met two South Africans who had brought supplies to be delivered to an orphanage in northern Mozambique. AAL has been conducting these supply flights to the orphanage for several years. While going through the normal security scan at the airport, police took an interest in some vitamins, over-the-counter medications, and food preservative supplies. They confiscated the entire load and detained Koher and the two South Africans. None of the confiscated material belonged to Koher nor had it been loaded onto the airplane, which was secured by police. The three men were jailed under suspicion of supporting the insurgent activity in northern Mozambique, near to where the orphanage is located. Following an initial incarceration at the local police jail on November 4, 2022, they were officially arrested on November 7 and moved to a prison in Inhambane. Koher and the South Africans were then moved to the Machava High Security Prison near the capital city of Maputo on November 16. AAL retained a Mozambican lawyer for Koher, and the U.S. Embassy was made aware of the situation. Koher was released from the high security prison on March 14, 2023, and required to remain in Mozambique. In late September 2023, a judge ordered that Koher’s passport be returned and he and his family arrived in the United States on October 5. Ryan and his wife, Annabel, have two boys and are expecting their third child in December. They are currently planning to resume their work in Mozambique in 2025. “There has never been a point in this whole process where Annabel and I lost the desire to return. Through this experience, we have come to love the people of Mozambique more, and we are very excited to go back and continue serving there. Because we know from experience that God is faithful to carry us through hardship and difficulty, we can return in confidence, knowing His plans for us are good and that He will again help us in any time of trouble,” Koher said. Mission Aviation Fellowship has been serving the people of Mozambique since 1999 with Ambassador Aviation becoming the operational entity in 2014. Based out of Nampula with two aircraft, the Cessna 206 and a Cessna Caravan EX, typical flights include medical evacuations, medical care through the MOZMED project, and flights for conservation groups in the Niassa Special Reserve, to name a few. In 2021, AAL evacuated over 800 people from Afungi following insurgent attacks on Palma in the Cabo Delgado province. They also provided food, medicine, and relief supplies to the area. Medical personnel flights served the area for several months in late 2021 and early 2022 as the region recovered from the attacks. In 2019, AAL provided a disaster assessment by air following Cyclones Idai and Kenneth and conducted 184 relief flight legs, delivering over 45,000 kg of cargo and 691 passengers as part of the humanitarian assistance response. Tomorrow, we’ll share part two of this story, focusing on the Koher family’s hope to resume their ministry in Mozambique.         Header photo: Ryan & Annabel Koher, their two boys, and a baby girl expected in December 2024. (Photo courtesy of MAF)