For the 48th consecutive year, helicopters have begun making supply runs into the high valleys of the Mercantour to support farmers and herders spending the summer on mountain pastures inaccessible by road.
The annual héliportage operation, which has been running since 1976, sees aircraft carry food, animal feed, veterinary supplies and equipment into the remote upper reaches of the Alpes-Maritimes throughout the summer season. The farms and shepherds' shelters they supply sit at altitudes beyond the reach of any vehicle, relying entirely on air delivery to sustain both the people and animals spending the estive, the traditional summer grazing period, on the high pastures.
The operation is one of the lesser-known but most distinctive features of the Alpes-Maritimes summer, running quietly in the mountains above the Côte d'Azur while the coast below fills with tourists. It reflects a centuries-old tradition of transhumance that continues in the valleys of the Mercantour despite the pressures of modern agriculture.
Source: France 3 Régions