A Squared

Yes, Ethiopia is relatively secure. However the flying was into South Sudan which is a bit less secure. There is a civil war going on there with opposition forces holding some of the territory in the country. A helicopter on contract to the UN was shot down by opposition forces in South Sudan last summer. The UN initially tried to claim that it was an accident. It wasn't. The flights into one refugee camp were suspended for several days a during the contract for what the WFP euphemistically called "civil unrest". They admitted to the deaths of around 25 people in the camp. People actually on the ground there reported that death toll was actually more like 100. When your flight paperwork includes security reports on where the rebel forces are thought to be and what anti-aircraft weapons they are believed to possess, and your flying into a location where 100+ people got killed a few weeks ago, you're not exactly in Kansas any more, Toto.

Not sure who you've been talking to, but they've been blowing smoke up your tailpipe. There are no luxurious private "bungalows". And they are not in Dubai, it's one of the other, poorer emirates. They are apartments in a multi story apartment building, a little larger than a typical hotel room. The "luxury" level is probably comparable to a Holiday Inn Express. The idea that the crews are living in James Bond style opulence is pure fantasy.