They can represent emtire forests, particularly in the region of Morondava. Madagascar is fairly well equipped with runways that were opened when it was under French administration. When arriving at the typical bush field, the rural, sod runway must be carefully inspected before landing to detect any holes in the runway surface and to determine the height of grass on the strip. One must also pay attention to any local cues, such as smoke from the fires in a nearby village, as there's no ATIS or ASOS to provide this information for arriving traffic. Frequently, animals grazing on the strip must also be scared off before landing.
Takeoff can be a real journey in itself.
A bush pilot cannot afford to assume that the portion of the runway unused during the landing will, in fact, be available for takeoff. We did not hesitate to walk the entire runway length, two people on each side if possible, to detect obstacles. First Lieutenant Sylvie Mac Hardy meets the local welcoming committee. In all cases, short-field takeoffs are compulsory on this type of runway, provided the state of its surface allows it at all. The runway length, the state of its surface, the surrounding heights, and wind speed are all factors that the bush pilot must carefully evaluate before making the decision to attempt a takeoff.