About The Owner
My name is Juliane Beckmann and I joined CCAS in 2007 and became the company’s owner in 2013. Since joining the company, I have been running CCAS‘s daily operations and business development initiatives.
I was born in Köln, Germany. I graduated with a Masters in Psychology from the University of Bielefeld in 1995. I worked in the fields of marketing research and consumer behavior in Germany, before making the decision to move to South Africa in 1999, to follow my life’s dream of living in the African Bush.
For the following 7 years I spent time, studying White Rhinos, in the Bush of South Africa; organizing and supervising the logistics of Operation Noha’s Arch, a first of its kind air-lift of Elephants from South Africa/Botswana to Angola in an effort to revitalize the wildlife of Kissama National Park in Angola; and managing a Safari Lodge in Kasane, Botswana. During that same time I also received a degree in Wildlife Management from the University of Pretoria, South Africa.
My education in wildlife management, combined with my experience in living in the Bush, working with African authorities to organize travel across multiple countries, and managing a Safari Lodge, provides me with the knowledge required to create personalized itineraries for my clients, and selecting only the best Safari Lodges and most knowledgeable and experienced guides.
Since its inception CCAS has served over hundreds of clients, who traveled numerous kilometers across many African countries to experience Africa the CCAS way, either by car, commercial aircrafts or private air charter.
We have a wide spread network of lodges and hotels in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Mozambique and others who have all been hand-picked by us to ensure that their accommodations and staff is up to our standards.
About The Founder
Cross Country Air Safaris was founded in 1983 by Brigitte Cross. Brigitte was born in Mannheim, Germany, and moved to South Africa as a little child. Brigitte was a Major in the South African Air Force. The words “Air Safari” represent the two things Brigitte was most passionate about in her life: Flying and the African Bush.
Brigitte founded Cross Country Air Safaris (CCAS) to provide people the opportunity of experiencing Africa the only way she believed Africa should be experienced, by flying across the country to places that allow clients to experience Africa close up and personal, without compromising safety and the comforts of first class accommodation.
Brigitte Cross passed away in 2013 at the age of 66, leaving the company to her trusted friend and business partner Juliane Beckmann. Juliane has made it her mission to continue their joined vision of providing clients with first class accommodation and customer service, when creating their personalized travel itineraries to experience Africa’s most beautiful sites and locations.
