GA around the world (in memory of Robert Czar)

[Kurusca 19]

Hello all.  Years and years ago, when i first starting getting into flight sims, I located a program called "It's Your Plane" from a developer named Robert Czar.  It was one of the first "co-pilot" type programs and used the microsoft voice recognition for voice commands (you could tell your copilot via a headset to change comm freqs for example).  Robert, sadly, passed on many years ago.  One of the great things he did was plan an around the world trek for small(er) general aircraft.  He even went as far as to log it as a novel, talking about real hotels and weather and so forth for each leg of the flight.

Although those flight files and website are now gone (the server was in his home), I have re-configured the trip plans and am posting the full thing below.  I have gone through and verified all the ICAO codes are correct as there were some typos on the original.  I was never able to complete the full circut, but have already started it again in MSFS2020 (Beta).

 

 

Please enjoy this trip and give a wing wave to good ol Robert in the sky.  Thanks all.

 

• Fly Around the World With Me

After I retired in 2002, I took a year off from the world and I created, flew and saved 268 individual flights that now comprise my trip around the world. All 268 flights have been created with IFR flight plans, so we'll be relying upon ATC throughout. The adventure begins in Oceano, California on Tuesday, November 19, 2002, about 06:40 AM local time, and concludes in November 2003 (a year later) back in Oceano.

I spent literally hundreds of hours planning, plotting and documenting these 268 "virtual" flights. The entire adventure is broken down into 8 parts.

The adventure is constructed as a novel and throughout this trip I am the co-pilot flying along with you. Since I've actually flown these routes before, I will share with you what to expect en route. In this lengthy novel we'll be staying in real hotels and visiting real world locations. Here's a sample:

FLIGHT 01: November 19, 2002 - 06:40
Oceano, California (L52)
Half Moon Bay, California (KHAF)
We get an early start on our trip to Half Moon Bay, CA by departing at 6:40AM. About 1:40 minutes into the flight, we've been told that we'll hit some bumpy spots and bounce around a bit. But, you're the pilot and I have no worries! We'll arrive in Half Moon Bay around 8:35AM. We'll spend a few hours checking out the scenery. While in the Bay area, we need to drive over to the Western Union office in San Francisco to send a telex to Russia - more about this later in the flight. Then we'll depart for Reno, Nevada at about 12:45PM.

 

Do You Enjoy a Challenge?
If you're the kind of person who enjoys the challenge of “really flying”, then I think you will find this one-year trip (that'll likely take you many years to complete) both educational and great fun.

Take Lots of Pictures and Videos
Take lots of pictures and shoot some videos along the way, then kindly share your media with other by uploading the material.

 

Have fun and enjoy yourself.

 

A Word Of Caution:
Do not attempt to take this trip unless you are intimately familiar with flying IFR flight plans in a General Aviation aircraft.

PREREQUISITES:
	Do NOT change the Flight Information   You must fly a General Aviation (GA) aircraft that can climb to at least 16,000 feet, with a Range capability of no less than 800 miles You need to execute ALL of the CHECKLISTS  2. DO NOT CHANGE THE FLIGHT INFORMATION The principle idea behind our Trip Around The World, is that this entire event took place over the period between November 2002 through November 2003. Therefore, it is vital that you do not change the date or time of the flights. In addition, the weather conditions that are described throughout the "story", were the actual conditions on those days.    3. USE A SUITABLE AIRCRAFT The default aircraft are the Microsoft Baron 58 and the Microsoft Mooney Bravo. The Baron 58 aircraft is loaded by default in the flights in PARTS 1 and 2 of the adventure. When we reach Bangkok in PART 3, we trade-in our Baron for a Mooney Bravo! The reason we STRONGLY RECOMMEND using these default aircraft, is to keep the story line, flight and arrival times, climb and descent rates consistent with the flight descriptions and notes. Please keep in mind...   THIS IS NOT A RACE AGAINST TIME! It is intended to be a real-world trip! However, if authenticity is of little or no importance to you, you can chose to use another aircraft. Other suitable planes are...   Carenado Beechcraft Baron 58 (BE58) Carenado Cessna C340 (C340) Carenado Cessna Skylane 182Q (C182) Carenado Mooney Bravo (M20J) Carenado Piper Cherokee (PA28) Carenado Piper Dakota (PA28) Carenado Piper Seneca (PA34) Carenado Stationair Passenger (C206) Quest Kodiak (KODI) Realair Beechcraft Duke (BE60) Realair Beechcraft Duke Turbine (BE6T) 5. Do All Checklists in the ONLINE MODE We highly recommend performing ALL of the Checklists to ensure that the aircraft is suitably prepared for the flight.
Good luck... and remember...   "Keep the blue stuff UP!"         ~Kurusca

[Kurusca 19]

PART ONE

 

 

FLIGHT 01: November 19, 2002 - 06:40
Oceano, California (L52)
Half Moon Bay, California (KHAF)

 

We get an early start on our trip to Half Moon Bay, CA by departing at 6:40AM. About 1:40 minutes into the flight, we've been told that we'll hit some bumpy spots and bounce around a bit. But, you're the pilot and I have no worries! We'll arrive in Half Moon Bay around 8:15AM with winds from 300 at 16. We'll spend a few hours checking out the scenery. Then we'll depart for Reno, Nevada about 12:45PM because we need to run over to the Western Union to send a telex to Russia - more about this later in the flight.


 

FLIGHT 02: November 19, 2002 - 12:46
Half Moon Bay, California (KHAF)
Reno Stead, Nevada (4SD)

We've submitted our flight authorization ("CDS") by telex to the Ministry of Civil Aviation in Moscow and received our confirmation. So, it's time to get on up to Reno Nevada. The airport is about 5,000 feet above sea level and we'll need to clear some pretty high mountains on the way in. We'll create a flight plan calling for a cruising altitude of 13,000 feet. It usually gets a little choppy passing over Sacramento, and the winds are reported to be from 280 at about 24. It's also been reported that as we approach Reno, the mountains will disappear in the haze from time-to-time. So, please, keep a close eye on the falling barometric pressure or we may need a rope to get off the mountain-top!

 

FLIGHT 03: November 19, 2002 - 15:19
Reno Stead, Nevada (4SD)
Walla Walla, Washington (KALW)

It's raining on and off in Reno and the crosswinds are blowing at 24. It's going to be a little tough getting off the ground as we leave for Walla Walla, Washington. Along the way, we've been told that we'll get headwinds of up to 50 and some lousy weather. On approach, you had better tune to the ILS on 111.70 or you'll have a really difficult landing with winds gusting to 38. This leg of the trip is not for the novice - that's why you're the captain! We'll spend the night in Walla Walla. There are some great restaurants in this town - so let's not eat too much junk food along the way.
 

FLIGHT 04: November 20, 2002 - 07:39
Walla Walla, Washington (KALW)
Calgary, Alberta (CYYC)

We had great food and a lovely rest in Walla Walla and now we're on our way to Calgary, Alberta. Since I am a Canadian citizen living in the US with a Green Card, and since I have a CanPass, we've got no problems entering Canada where we will clear customs. It's 7:30AM and the weather is miserable. It's raining and the fog is thick. But, we're flying IFR so --- what the heck. Our flying time to Calgary will be roughly 2:30 minutes with a top of climb altitude of 13,000 feet. We'll be skimming the beautiful Canadian Rockies en route!
 

 

FLIGHT 05: November 20, 2002 - 12:50
Calgary, Alberta (CYYC)
Ft. St. John, British Columbia (CYXJ)

We're departing Calgary after having a very enjoyable lunch at the airport. We will climb out over the mountains to an altitude of 10,000 feet and cruise on up to Ft. St. John, British Columbia. We'll be flying in cloud cover for nearly the entire flight - thank goodness for IFR! We've been alerted that on final approach we'll have port-side crosswinds of about 10 knots with low-lying fog. So tune the ILS to 109.50 and prepare to make a back-course approach.

 

FLIGHT 06: November 20, 2002 - 16:08
Ft. St. John, Alberta (CYXJ)
Haines, Alaska (PAHN)

Once again we are taking off in heavy crosswinds of 27kts and the fog is dense, so don't fight the stick. As you leave Ft. St. John, British Columbia, you'll be climbing through soup until you reach about 6,000 feet and we'll settle in at our cruising altitude of 12,000. The trip to Haines, Alaska is pretty much uneventful, except for a beautiful moon-rise. If you use the SPOT view, you are apt to see some spectacular Northern Lights displays. We'll arrive in Haines at about 8:00PM local time where the sky is clear and stars are bright. We'll spend the night here and get an early start on our trip to the far east.

 

FLIGHT 07: November 21, 2002 - 07:56
Haines, Alaska (PAHN)
Stevens Anchorage, Alaska (PANC)

It's just before 8:00AM when we climb into our Cessna and head for the fuel depot to fill her up. It's a nice morning, but you had better fasten your seat belt really tight as we clear the runway - it's going to be like riding a wild stallion. After takeoff, come to a heading of 140 and stay on that course until you reach about 6,000 feet. Then, contact ATC to get back onto the flight plan. You will arrive in Anchorage about 11:45AM, just in time for lunch. The winds on approach --- calm.


 

FLIGHT 08: November 21, 2002 - 13:48
Stevens Anchorage, Alaska (PANC)
Cold Bay, Alaska (PACD)

 

We leave Anchorage about 13:50 and realize that we have a long day ahead of us. We're going to press on to Cold Bay, then on to Adak - about 10 hours of flying time. We'll be cruising at 12,000 feet en route. The weather is clear, so we might as well press on towards Asia. In fact, Adak is halfway between Seattle and Japan - about 1300 miles southwest of Anchorage and 1400 miles from Magadan in Eastern Russia.

 

 

FLIGHT 09: November 21, 2002 - 19:33
Cold Bay, Alaska (PACD)
Adak, Alaska (PADK)

We've had some grub and we're on our way to Adak. It's about 7:30PM local time. They tell us that we'll be fighting headwinds of 35kts all the way, but other than that, it should be pretty uneventful - just a long trip! We should arrive in Adak about 11:30PM local time. Until early 2000, it was not possible to stay overnight at Adak, which is primarily an operational Navy facility. But, recently, the island was opened to scheduled commercial airline service and a lodge opened that could accommodate overnight visitors. It's a good job we've called ahead for a reservation or we might have been forced to sleep in the plane - brrrrrr!!!

 

FLIGHT 10: November 22, 2002 - 07:57
Adak, Alaska (PADK)
Attu, Alaska (ATU)

It's just before 8 AM and we're on our way to Yelizovo, Russia with a refueling stop in Attu, Alaska. We'll use the Air force Base at Shemya as a beacon - Attu is about 32 miles further west. The US Federal government had been planning since 1998 to close down the LORAN radio navigation station in Attu for a number of years since the US satellite-based Global Position System is now fully operational. In 1999, however, the Coast Guard announced that the station would remain open until at least 2006. Lucky for us, otherwise we could not get to Russia without a fuel stop. We should arrive in Attu about noon. We've called ahead to make sure that the weather is clear, because landing in Attu is VFR only and if we can't get in, it's back to Adak. They have confirmed it is clear, dry with winds in the teens. So, off we go!

 

FLIGHT 11: November 22, 2002 - 13:15
Attu, Alaska (ATU)
Yelizovo, Russia (UHPP)

Well, it's a little chilly in Attu! In any case, we've got our fuel and we're on your way to Yelizovo, Russia. The total flying time is about 6 and half hours. Before we get there, let me tell you that the Russian aviation officials are not used to dealing with the concerns of small aircraft with limited flight ranges. But, we've telexed our request for flight authorization (CDS forms) to the International Department, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Moscow, CIS TELEX: 412303 CDSSU before we left Half Moon Bay. So, we are good-to-go! We'll spend Saturday in Yelizovo and leave for Khomutovo, Russia on Sunday morning. That means we can enjoy Russian Vodka tonight!

 

FLIGHT 12: November 24, 2002 - 07:37
Yelizovo, Russia (UHPP)
Khomutovo, Russia (UHSS)

My first inclination was to try to fly directly to Japan, but it is simply too far and far too risky. If we were to encounter sever headwinds we would be in a heap of trouble! So, we'll be a little more prudent and head to Sakalina airport, at Khomutovo Russia. It's about -15F - brrrrrr! In any case, we're on our way. The prevailing winds are from the north, so we'll be landing on runway 1 about noon hour.

 

FLIGHT 13: November 24, 2002 - 14:35
Khomutovo, Russia (UHSS)
New Chitose, Sapporo, Japan (RJCC)

Well we've re-fueled and had a great lunch and we're on our way to Sapporo Japan. The flying time should be about 2:30 and from what we can understand, relatively uneventful. There ought to be a pretty nice sunset as we approach Sapporo at this time of year. By Japanese law, Japanese pilot and radio licenses are required to fly Japanese-registered aircraft. A U.S. private pilot's license is essentially convertible to its Japanese equivalent. The radio license is not. Although licenses in Japan are often very inexpensive per se (the literal cost of the license described here is only about USD 20), the total process usually includes a number of hidden costs. However, private and non-scheduled commercial aircraft need not obtain prior permission to over-fly or land for non-commercial purposes. However, advance notification must be provided by filing a copy of a flight plan with the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) which we did before we left. We can only land at International airports, so we are on our way to the New Chitose Airport.


 

FLIGHT 14: November 25, 2002 - 06:41
New Chitose, Sapporo, Japan (RJCC)
Komatsu, Japan (RJNK)

We enjoyed some wonderful Japanese cuisine and had a nice stay in a great hotel in Sapporo. The tanks are topped off and we're getting under way early, because it's going to be a long day. This trip to Komatsu will be pretty uneventful, although we are going to be fighting some headwinds. I figure we'll arrive about 10:30. We'll be cruising at 12,000 feet. There are reports of a low-lying marine layer and there'll be light rain as we arrive.

 

FLIGHT 15: November 25, 2002 - 14:14
Komatsu, Japan (RJNK)
Miyazaki, Japan (RJFM)

We've had another wonderful Japanese meal right here at the airport. It's about 2:15 PM, we've topped off the tanks and filed our flight plan to Miyazaki. We will be climbing to a cruising altitude of 12,000. The forecast is for more severely unstable air, with reports of extreme clear-air turbulence en route. If it wasn't for our tight schedule and non-cancelable reservations, I'd suggest that we spend the night right here in Komatsu. In any case, we'll press on. We'll be flying directly into the sun as we approach the airport, so that'll be annoying. We should arrive just before 4. We'll spend the night in Miyazaki and head out tomorrow for Taiwan.


 

FLIGHT 16: November 26, 2002 - 06:55
Miyazaki, Japan (RJFM)
Teipai, Taiwan (RCTP)

It's just about 7:00 AM as we are getting an early start on our trip to Teipei. This is another one of those long legs of our trip. We'll be flying at an altitude of 10,000 feet and it will be a pretty boring and uneventful trip. I estimate we'll be fighting some headwinds along the way from 30-50 kts, but other than that we can simply take turns watching the autopilot en route. We'll be arriving about 11:30 local time. We're going to spend nearly three weeks in Taiwan, enjoying the great Taiwanese cuisine, wonderful hospitality and hopping around the island to visit some of our friends. We'll try to be "down-under" for Christmas.


FLIGHT 17: December 20, 2002 - 06:56
Teipai, Taiwan (RCTP)
Kaohsiung, Taiwan (RCKH)

We have had a wonderful few weeks in Taiwan - what a great country! Regrettably, it's time to head onwards. We'll depart about 7:00AM for Kaohsiung International in southern Taiwan. We will be flying at an altitude of 10,000 feet and should arrive about 8:30AM. This will be our departing airport for our trip to Manila, Philippines.

 

FLIGHT 18: December 20, 2002 - 09:59
Kaohsiung, Taiwan (RCKH)
Ninoy Aquino International, Manila, Philippines (RPLL)

OK - we've topped off the tanks, filed our flight plan and we're heading to Manila. It's just about 10:00AM and we'll be cruising at 11,000. The weather looks great so we should have smooth sailing all of the way to Manila. We should arrive about 13:25 local time. We'll spend the weekend in Manila and head out on Monday for Australia.

 

FLIGHT 19: December 23, 2002 - 10:03
Ninoy Aquino Intl, Manila, Philippines (RPLL)
Zamboanga Intl, Philippines (RPMZ)

Manila - a very special place. What a blast! It's about 10:00 AM Monday December 23, 2002 and we're heading to Australia. We want to be there for Christmas Day. So, we'll be heading south to Zamboanga International airport - our Philippines departing airport - at an altitude of 11,000. We'll arrive about 13:00 local time and spend the day there checking out the sites and getting a good long sleep. Then we'll press onwards to Australia early the next morning.

 

FLIGHT 20:December 24, 2002 - 06:33
Zamboanga Intl, Philippines (RPMZ)
Brunei Intl, Brunei (WBSB)

It's about 6:30 AM December 24, 2002. We are determined to get to Australia early tomorrow morning - Christmas Day. We had contemplated a flight from Zamboanga International directly to Bali International, however, we figured if we hit severe headwinds, we'd be low on fuel. So, we're on our way to Brunei, where we'll top off the tanks and then proceed on to Bali. The weather looks great. So, we'll file our flight plan and cruise on down the road to Brunei International airport at 10,000 feet. It's about a 2:30 flight, so we should arrive there just before 09:00.

 

FLIGHT 21: December 24, 2002 - 10:35
Brunei Intl, Brunei (WBSB)
Bali Intl, Bali, Indonesia (WADD)

Well, let's top off the tanks, mount our stallion and head off to Bali at 9,000 feet. We'll pick up some tailwinds and should have no problem maintaining a ground speed of 140 knots along the way. We should arrive in Bali about 17:30 local time.

 

FLIGHT 22: December 24, 2002 - 18:34
Bali Intl, Bali (WADD)
Port Hedland Intl, Port Hedland, Australia (YPPD)

It's 18:30 and we're heading for Australia. Albeit it's been a long day, but we've filled our stomachs and we'll take turns at the helm. This part of the trip will be basically over water most of the way, so we might as well travel at night and get it over with. We've received reports of thunderstorms near Port Hedland with a ceiling of 2,000. We should arrive at Port Hedland International airport very late Christmas Eve. We'll stay the night at the Mercure Inn at the Airport and spend Christmas day in the town of Port Hedland - also known as Cyclone Alley during these summer months. Then we'll spend the next few days visiting Broome, Kimberley and other great western Australian areas.

 

 

[Kurusca 19]

PART TWO

 

 

FLIGHT 23: December 27, 2002 - 10:40
Port Hedland Intl Australia (YPPD)
Broome Intl, Australia (YBRM)

It's December 27, 2002 and we spent a great Christmas holiday in the Port Hedland area. The people were very friendly. But it's now beginning to rain cats and dogs. So, I have a great idea - let's do the smart thing and get out of Cyclone Alley and head north to Broome Intl - the gateway to the Hamersley Ranges and Karinjini National Park. It's a little after 10:30 in the morning and we'll be cruising at 7,000 feet for about 3 and one half hours. So, let's top off the tanks and get on our way. We'll spend the next couple of days in the area and press onwards the day after tomorrow!

 

FLIGHT 24: December 29, 2002 - 11:57
Broome Int, Australia (YBRM)
Wyndham, Australia (YWYM)

It's time to bid adieu and press onwards to the east. I have some friends that live in Wyndham, where a 60 foot-long crocodile statue welcomes you to the town. This tiny port town exhibits the pioneer spirit that thrives in a dramatic backdrop of the Bastion Range and the Cambridge Gulf. It's coming up on noon on December 29, 2002. The flight is about 3 hours 30 minutes, and we'll be flying at 9,000 feet. We'll be flying in puffy clouds for a good portion of the trip. The runway in Wyndham is rather unique - kind of a cobblestone look and feel. So, let's get on our way!

 

FLIGHT 25: December 30, 2002 - 09:00
Wyndham, Australia (YWYM)
Darwin Intl, Australia (YPDN)

We had a great time amplifying long-standing relationships in Wyndham and now we're off to Darwin Intl. We'll fly a 5,000 feet so we can enjoy the water-ways. It's approaching 9:00 AM on December 30, 2002. Our flying time will be about 2 hours 30 minutes. There have been reports of pretty severe thunderstorms in the Darwin area. We'll top off the tanks in Darwin and head on further east as the day wears on.


FLIGHT 26: December 30, 2002 - 13:01
Darwin Intl, Australia (YPDN)
Weipa, Australia (YBWP)

We'll top off the tanks and head on down-the-road to Weipa. We'll be flying at 9,000 feet and should arrive about 7:30 PM. The weather in Weipa is reported as being clear and calm. When we get there, we'll decide whether or not we want to press onwards to Cairns International - it would make for a hell-of-a long day!
 

FLIGHT 27: December 30, 2002 - 20:06
Weipa, Australia (YBWP)
Cairns Intl, Australia (YBCS)

What the hell - it's been a long day, but we've elected to keep on going! It's already dark here, there isn't a lot to see, so we might as well travel by night and take turns at the helm. It's a little after 8:00 PM and we'll be cruising at 9,000 feet in good weather. We should arrive in Cairns a little after 11:00 PM. I've already called ahead and made reservations for us at the Tradewind Esplanade hotel. So, let's rock!
 

FLIGHT 28: December 31, 2002 - 05:48
Cairns Intl, Australia (YBCS)
Hamilton Island, Australia (YBHM)

Well-it's New Year's Eve and I really want to get down to the Gold Coast to bring in the New Year with some great friends of mine - Mike and Kay. We'll fly into the Coolangatta airport that is close by. Hence, we need to get an early start. It's just coming up on 6:00 AM, we'll be flying about 2 hours and 30 minutes and we'll grab a great breakfast on Hamilton Island at the renowned Reef View Hotel. We'll be cruising at 7,000 feet over the islands. So, let fill up our wild mustang and hit the friendly skies!
 

FLIGHT 29: December 31, 2002 - 10:26
Hamilton Island, Australia (YBHM)
Coolangatta, Australia (YBCG)

We had a spectacular breakfast on Hamilton Island. Now let's top off the tanks and head on down to Coolangatta. We'll be flying at a comfortable 9,000 feet and should arrive a little after 4:00 PM - just in time to meet up with Mike and Kay and get ready for a New Year's Eve celebration!
 

FLIGHT 30: January 13, 2003 - 05:29
Coolangatta, Australia (YBCG)
Tontouta, New Caledonia (NWWW)

Happy New Year. We've had a blast on the Gold Coast of Australia over the past couple of weeks. It's now time to wander around the South Pacific. It's Monday the 11th of January, 2003 and we're heading on to Tontouta airport in New Caledonia. Our 780 nm flight will take about 6 hours and 45 minutes. We'll arrive at about 1:15 PM local time because there's a one hour time difference. We'll be cruising at 9,000 feet - an altitude that our Baron seems to enjoy and where it gets great fuel economy. So, buckle-up!
 

 

 

FLIGHT 31: January 17, 2003 - 08:32
Tontouta, New Caledonia (NWWW)
Bauerfield, Vanuatu (NVVV)

We've had a real nice stay at the Isle De France hotel in Noumea, New Caledonia. As a Canadian, it was fun brushing up on my French. It's 8:30 AM on Friday, the 17th of January, 2003 and we're heading to the Bauerfield airport in Vanuatu. We'll spend the weekend there. We'll be flying at an altitude of 11,000 feet and we should arrive at Bauerfield airfield just about 11:00 AM. According to the weather reports, we'll be flying in cloud cover most of the way, but since we're traveling over water all of the way - who cares? We've filed our flight plan and we're on our way!

 

FLIGHT 32: January 21, 2003 - 08:34
Bauerfield, Vanuatu (NVVV)
Henderson, Solomon Islands (AGGH)

We've had a real nice stay at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Port Vila, Vanuatu. On Saturday afternoon, we took a VFR run over to White Grass on Tanna Island. Wow - what a volcano! And, the people live like it was hundreds of year ago - really interesting. We spent the night there and came back Sunday. Anyway, it's now 8:30 AM Tuesday, the 21th of January, 2003 and we're heading off to Henderson airport in Honiara in the Solomon Islands. We'll be flying at 9,000 feet all the way and we should arrive a little after 1:00 PM. Incidentally, when you are instructed to descend to 6,700 (or thereabouts), make your approach through the V in the mountains - otherwise it could get messy!

 

FLIGHT 33: January 22, 2003 - 07:36
Henderson, Solomon Islands (AGGH)
Nauru (ANYN)

It's Wednesday the 22nd of January 2003. We spend a pleasant evening at the King Solomon hotel and enjoyed some great Melanesian cuisine. On this leg of our trip around the world, we'll fly to Nauru International airport in Nauru. We'll be flying to Nauru at an altitude of 11,000 and we should arrive just before 14:00 local time - there'll be another 1 hour time difference. We'll grab some lunch, top off the tanks and head out to the Marshall Islands. You may ask, "Why go all of the way to Nauru for lunch?" The answer is simple. We want to touch as many countries as possible on our Around The World Trip.

 

FLIGHT 34: January 22, 2003 - 15:33
Nauru (ANYN)
Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands (PKMJ)

We had a spectacular lunch at the Menen Hotel near the airport. The indigenous people of Nauru are a mix of Polynesian, Melanesian and Micronesian descent. Their native language is Nauruan, though we had no problems communicating in English - great people. The waitress told us there were about 10,000 residents on this island republic - most living on the perimeter of this tiny island that is only 12 miles in circumference. Fun place! Anyway, now we're off to the Marshall Islands. We'll be flying at 9,000 feet and we should arrive about 20:30. We've got reservations at the Gateway Hotel in Majuro. We plan on staying in the Marshall Islands until January 31. Then, we'll be on our way to the Bonriki International airport on Tarawa Island, Kiribati.

 

FLIGHT 35: January 31, 2003 - 12:33
Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands (PKMJ)
Bonriki Intl, Tarawa Island, Kiribati (NGTA)

We're on our way to the Bonriki International airport on Tarawa Island of Kiribati. We've made reservations to stay at the Lagoon Breeze Motel because, besides the great ambience, they have Internet connectivity - ha! We're departing at about 12:30 in the afternoon and we have about a 360 km trip ahead of us. We'll be flying in cloud cover a great part of the way, however, for the most part we'll be on top of the clouds. We have been told that we will experience some choppy air as well. We should arrive about 15:45 local time. The approach to this island is a breath-taking view of massive coral. A note of interest: the most recent change in the International Date Line was in 1995 when Kiribati moved a large segment of the country to the east, so that the entire nation would be on the same side of the International Date Line.

 

 

FLIGHT 36: February 2, 2003 - 06:43
Bonriki Intl, Tarawa Island, Kiribati (NGTA)
Funafuti Intl, Funafuti, Tuvalu (NGFU)

We enjoyed our first night so much, we decided to stay another day. It's now 6:45 AM, Sunday the 2nd of February and we're heading out to the Funafuti airport on the island of Tuvalu. It's about a 700 nm trip and we'll be flying at 9,000. We have reports of thunderstorms in the Tuvalu area with thick cloud cover at about 11,000. I estimate we'll arrive in Tuvalu a little after noon. Even though the Flight Simulator reports the 5,000 foot runway as gravel, it was paved in 2002. We'll grab some lunch at the VIP lounge at the airport, top off the tanks and head out to Wallis and Futuna.

 

FLIGHT 37: February 2, 2003 - 14:41
Funafuti Intl, Funafuti, Tuvalu (NGFU)
Hihifo, Uvea Island, Wallis and Futuna (NLWW)

It's coming up on 3 o'clock in the afternoon on Sunday the 2nd of February, and it's raining cats and dogs! We had a very pleasant lunch at the airport, we'll fill up the tanks and we're on our way to Wallis and Futuna - where there is a very modern airport. We'll fly at 9,000 feet once again. The flight is about 340 nm, so we should arrive just before 20:00. We are not planning a stay in Wallis and Futuna - we'll be pressing on to Samoa. So why stop here? Because we can!
 

FLIGHT 38: February 2, 2003 - 21:28
Hihifo, Uvea Island, Wallis and Futuna (NLWW)
Faleolo Intl, Apia, Samoa (NSFA)

We got here as scheduled a few minutes past 20:00, we've had a few cups of coffee and a bite to eat at the airport restaurant. We've also dispensed with the unnecessary and excess bodily fluids and we're on our way to Faleolo airport in Apia, Samoa. It's about 21:30 and we should arrive at our destination about midnight - however, IT WILL BE YESTERDAY. Why? Because we are going to be traversing the International Date Line! We have ample fuel left so there's no need to fill up the tanks. I've called ahead and confirmed our late night arrival at the Seaside Inn in Apia. We'll be flying at 9,000 and there's ILS approach facilities at the Faleolo airport.

 

FLIGHT 39: February 3, 2003 - 08:41
Faleolo Intl, Apia, Samoa (NSFA)
Pago Pago Intl, Pago Pago, American Samoa (NSTU)

It's Monday, February 3, 2003 at 8:45 in the morning and we're off to Pago Pago International airport on the island of American Samoa. It's about an 80 nm flight and we'll be climbing to 5,000 feet. We should arrive in about an hour from now. Pago Pago has one of the best natural deep-water harbors in the South Pacific Ocean, sheltered by shape from rough seas and protected by peripheral mountains from high winds. We'll spend the day there and leave early tomorrow morning for Rarotonga International airport in the Cooke Islands.
 

FLIGHT 40: February 4, 2003 - 06:05
Pago Pago Intl, Pago Pago, American Samoa (NSTU)
Avarua, Cook Islands (NCRG)

We spent a pleasant evening at the Rainmaker Hotel. It's Tuesday, February 4, 2003 at about 6:00 in the morning and we're off to the Cook Islands. We'll be cruising in our wild mustang at an altitude of 11,000 feet. The weather is always dangerous and unpredictable at this time of year - especially on long flights. But, we've been assured that despite some moderate winds and some scattered clouds, we should have a pleasant and safe flight. So, here we go partner - let's top off the tanks, pack a lunch and head towards the rising sun! This will be about a 750 nm flight and if I have it figured properly, we should arrive about 15:15 hours, taking into consideration a one hour time shift to the east.

 

FLIGHT 41: February 4, 2003 - 17:15
Avarua, Cook Islands (NCRG)
Moto Mute, Bora Bora Island, French Polynesia (NTTB)

We're not going to stay in the Cook Islands today. We're going to press onwards to Bora Bora - a place you have been anxious to visit. It's just after 17:00 in the late afternoon on Tuesday, February 4, 2003. Our flight will be about 540 nm and we'll be cruising at 9,000 feet to stay just above the main cloud layer. Our tummies are full, we've unpacked some snacks, the tanks are full and we're on our way! We should arrive in Bora Bora about 22:00 on a pleasant evening. We've already made our reservations (before we left California) at the 5 star Bora Bora Pearl Beach Resort and we've taken care of our visas for the French Polynesia island hopping while we were in New Caledonia - can't wait to see Bora Bora!
 

FLIGHT 42: February 10, 2003 - 10:05
Moto Mute, Bora Bora Island, French Polynesia (NTTB)
Fare, Huahine Island, French Polynesia (NTTH)

Well, we spent 5 fantastic days at the 5 star Bora Bora Pearl Beach Resort - it was the best! It's Monday the 10th of February, 2003 and we're off to yet other dreamlands - Fare and Tahiti. We are only going to spend a few hours in Fare. Why? Because we can! But, before we left California, we also took care of making reservations at the famous Beachcomber Intercontinental Resort in Tahiti. It's only about a 45 nm trip to Fare, so we'll be flying at 5,000 and expect to arrive about 10:40.
 

FLIGHT 43: February 10, 2003 - 15:39
Fare, Huahine Island, French Polynesia (NTTH)
Faaa, Tahiti (NTAA)

Before we left California, we made reservations at the famous 5 star Beachcomber Intercontinental Resort in Tahiti, for Monday the 10th of February, 2003. And, to get there ASAP, we'll be climbing to 12,000 and cruising at that altitude for about an hour - we're about 100 nm away from paradise! This island of Fare is very interesting as well - maybe next time we can stay here.

 

FLIGHT 44: February 17, 2003 - 06:41
Faaa, Tahiti (NTAA)
Rarotonga Intl, Rarotonga, Cook Islands (NCRG)

What a spectacular place Tahiti really is - we had a real nice relaxing stay. But, all good things must come to an end. So, we're continuing our trip around the world by departing this Monday, February 17, 2003 at 6:40 in the morning - destination: Niue. The starting leg will find us cruising at 11,000 feet on a 620 nautical mile flight to the Cook Islands - roughly a five-hour flight. We should arrive in the Cook Islands about 10:30 local time, because we'll gain an hour. We'll grab some lunch in the VIP lounge at the Rarotonga International airport, top off our fuel tanks, check out our Baron's other essentials and hit the friendly skies once again for Niue.
 

FLIGHT 45: February 17, 2003 - 12:30
Rarotonga Intl, Rarotonga, Cook Islands (NCRG)
Niue Intl, Niue (NUIE)

We've filled up our tummies at the VIP lounge at the Cook Islands Rarotonga International airport, and we're ready to carry on to Niue Island. It's about 12:30 local time, we'll fill our fuel tanks and hit the friendly skies for Niue. We'll be flying once again at 11,000 on this 480 nm leg of the trip. We should arrive in Niue about 15:45 local time, because we're going to gain yet another hour due to a time zone change. We'll be flying through some heavy cloud layers for the first half of the trip. Otherwise, it should be pretty smooth sailing!

 

 

FLIGHT 46: February 19, 2003 - 07:34
Niue Intl, Niue (NUIE)
Fua'amotu Intl, Nuku'alofa, Tonga (NFTF)

We spent a couple of days at the Niue Hotel located about 3 km from the main town of Alofi that rests at the top of a solid coral cliff overlooking Alofi Bay. We enjoyed some great local cuisine and now it's time to head on to the Fiji Islands via the island of Tonga. We'll be flying at our customary 11,000 feet. There are reports of gathering scattered clouds turning into an overcast ceiling of about 3,000 - 4.000 feet with light rain upon arrival in Tonga. We're departing at about 7:45 AM on Thursday February, 20, 2003, but we will arrive about 10:15 AM Friday February, 21st as we will cross over the International Dateline once again. We'll fuel up, grab some brunch and head out for the Fiji Islands about noon.

 

FLIGHT 47: February 21, 2003 - 12:26
Fua'amotu Intl, Nuku'alofa, Tonga (NFTF)
Nadi Intl, Nadi, Fiji (NFFN)

It's 12:45 Friday, February, 21st and it is still raining in Tonga. We've had our brunch at the airport, given our Baron a thorough going over, filled up the tanks and we're on our way to the Fiji Islands. The flight will be about 425 nm and our flying time will be about 3 hours and 30 minutes at an altitude of 13,000 that should get us above the storm activity and gain us a ground speed of about 140 kts. We should arrive at the Nadi International airport, Fiji a little after 14:00 hours, since we will once again gain an hour by traversing another time zone. We have confirmed our reservations at the Tokatoka Resort Hotel, just 5 minutes from the Nadi airport. It's a convenient hotel to use as a dayroom before an international flight or for a short visit like ours. We'll get an earlier start tomorrow morning for Norfolk Island and then down to Auckland, New Zealand.
 

FLIGHT 48: February 22, 2003 - 05:50
Nadi Intl, Nadi, Fiji (NFFN)
Norfolk Island, Australia (YSNF)

We spent the night at the Tokatoka Resort Hotel. It's just coming up on 6:00 AM and we're getting an earlier start this morning for our trip to Norfolk Island. This is about a 850 nm voyage and we will once again be cruising at 10,000 feet. On this leg of our Trip Around The World, we had better make sure we have the mixture and prop tweaked just right - it's a long way to Norfolk Island. As it is, the LO FUEL indicators will likely be seen on approach. We'll be continuing down to Auckland, New Zealand from Norfolk. This is going to be another long day - we should arrive in Norfolk Island just after noon. We've topped off the tanks, made sure we have our snacks, treated our bodies well, and we're ready to mount our wild mustang.
 

FLIGHT 49: February 22, 2003 - 14:11
Norfolk Island, Australia (YSNF)
Auckland Intl, Auckland, New Zealand (NZAA)

We have confirmed reservations at the Chancellor Hotel, only a five-minute drive from Auckland International and Domestic Airports. We'll use this as our home base for our stay in New Zealand until our departure on March 1, 2003. Once again we'll be climbing to 9,000 on our trip to Auckland and except for some reported choppy air as we approach the Auckland airport, the flight is expected to be smooth as silk. We'll be airborne by 14:30 and we should arrive right about 19:00 local time. During the next week, we'll execute numerous VFR trips around New Zealand checking out what is celeb rated as a very interesting country.
 

 

FLIGHT 50: March 1, 2003 - 06:15
Auckland Intl, Auckland, New Zealand (NZAA)
Lord Howe Island, Australia (YLHI)

We have had an unbelievably great time in New Zealand. The people were extremely friendly and we visited many cities during our stay. It's 6:15AM on March 1, 2003 and we're on our way back to Aussie-Land. We'll do that by heading for Lord Howe airport, approximately 850 nm from Auckland - another LONG day. Here again, we had better pay close attention to fuel consumption. We've got an 8 to 10 nm tailwind to start, such that at 12 GPH, we are obtaining an airspeed of about 105 knots and an effective ground speed of about 145 knots at our 10,000 foot cruising altitude. The winds will shift to headwinds later in the flight and we'll drop to about 130 knots ground speed. The flight should take about 6 hours or so, and I think we'll get there about 12:00 local time. So, let's fuel up our wild mustang, pack a brunch and hit the skies.
 

FLIGHT 51: March 1, 2003 - 13:40
Lord Howe Island, Australia (YLHI)
Kingford Smith, Intl, Sydney, Australia (YSSY)

It's March 1, 2003 at about noon hour and we just arrived from Auckland, New Zealand. We'll be here long enough to fill up our tanks, empty our bladders, grab a couple of cups of coffee and hit the road for Sydney. We'll be flying at 10,000. We have about a 430 nm flight ahead of us and we should arrive about 17:00. We'll spend a week in Sydney and we'll be staying at the Sydney Park Lodge Hotel - I believe it to be one of the nicest hotels in Australia.
 

FLIGHT 52: March 8, 2003 - 05:50
Kingford Smith, Intl, Sydney, Australia (YSSY)
Hobart, Tasmania (YCBG)

It's just coming up on 6 AM in Sydney, Australia and we're on our way to Hobart on the island of Tasmania. We've had an incredibly good time in Sydney - the people of Australia are a blast. Our flight to Hobart is about 575 nm and, after climbing for about 30 minutes, we will be cruising at 8,000 feet. We'll be flying for a little over 4 hours and should arrive in Hobart about 9:45 (taking into account the time shift) - just in time for our full breakfast.

 

FLIGHT 53: March 8, 2003 - 13:52
Hobart, Tasmania (YCBG)
Launceston, Tasmania (YMLT)

We've enjoyed visiting Hobart. This is truly an island of warm and friendly welcomes - people always took time to chat. But it's time to move on. It's early afternoon and we're on our way to Launceston. We'll be flying at 8,000 feet and we are likely to encounter headwinds 30-40 knots. We should arrive in Launceston around 15:00. We'll spend a few hours there and then head onwards to Melbourne International airport on the mainland.
 

FLIGHT 54: March 8, 2003 - 16:54
Launceston, Tasmania (YMLT)
Melbourne Intl, Melbourne, Australia (YMML)

We spent a couple of pleasant hours in Launceston, Tasmania and now we're off to the mainland - namely Melbourne. The trip is about 260 miles and we'll be flying at 10,000 feet. We will be facing 30-40 knot headwinds right on the nose most of the way, so our ground speed will be pretty much the same as our airspeed. Nonetheless, we should arrive in Melbourne about 19:45. We have reservations at the Windsor Hotel - located on Spring Street opposite the Parliament House and Treasury Gardens, in the heart of the central business district. We'll stay in Melbourne for a couple of days and leave on Monday, March 10, 2003 for Adelaide, Esperance, Albany and Perth.

 

 

 

FLIGHT 55: March 10, 2003 - 05:40
Melbourne Intl, Melbourne, Australia (YMML)
Adelaide Intl, Adelaide, Australia (YPAD)

March 10, just before 06:00 and we're heading for Adelaide, then on to Esperance, Albany and ending up in Perth where we will spend a couple of days. The distance we will be traveling on this leg is about 350 nm and we'll be at a comfortable 10,000 feet. We should arrive in Adelaide a little after 09:00. We'll be fighting headwinds of about 30-40 knots most of the way.
 

FLIGHT 56: March 10, 2003 - 11:17
Adelaide Intl, Adelaide, Australia (YPAD)
Ceduna, Australia (YCDU)

It's March 10, 2003, we've topped-off our tanks and we're carrying on to Ceduna. We'll be flying at 10,000. We'll depart about 11:15 and arrive in Ceduna about 12:45 local time, because we'll gain an hour due to the one hour time difference. We won't stay very long in Ceduna - we'll press onwards to Esperance - a long trip.

 

FLIGHT 57: March 10, 2003 - 13:32
Ceduna, Australia (YCDU)
Esperance, Australia (YESP)

It's March 10 and it is coming up on 13:30. We've filled up the tanks and we're about to hop into our wild stallion and travel about 610 miles to Esperance - another long trip! We should arrive just before 19:00 local time where we will take care of our bodies and our aircraft and hit-the-road for Perth where we will spend a couple of days. So, here we go into the wild blue yonder!

 

FLIGHT 58: March 10, 2003 - 19:29
Esperance, Australia (YESP)
Perth Intl, Perth, Australia (YPPH)

Got fuel? Yup! So, let's carry on to Perth. We'll depart about 19:30 and arrive in Perth at the parking area about 21:30. We'll be flying at 10,000 feet again, for a couple of hours. We have reports of choppy wind on approach into the Perth area. It's been a long day - I can't wait to get to Perth to kick back and relax!

 

FLIGHT 59: March 11, 2003 - 06:17
Perth Intl, Perth, Australia (YPPH)
Port Hedland Intl (YPPD)

We spent the last couple of evenings in Perth - a very nice city with many things to see and do. And, the people were very friendly. It's coming up on 06:30 Wednesday March 12, 2003 and we're on our way back to our original port of entry into Australia - Port Hedland. This flight will complete PART TWO of our Trip Around The World. We'll be flying at 9,000 feet and we should arrive in Port Hedland about noon hour. It's raining pretty heavily, however, the storm is just in the local area and once we get to our cruising altitude, it should be smooth sailing. Reports have us fighting headwinds for the first part of the trip, switching to tailwinds on the last half. If we don't get favorable tailwinds, we can always stop in Meekatharra and fill up again. So, up-up-and-away!

[Kurusca 19]

PART THREE

 

 

FLIGHT 60: March 13, 2003 – 05:22
Port Hedland Intl, Australia (YPPD)
Bali International, Indonesia (WADD)

It's Thursday, March 13, 2003 and we're heading to Bali International. We'll be flying once again at 12,000 feet. And, even though we have received reports of extremely favorable weather, and 10-15 knot tailwinds, this is a LONG flight. So please make sure you have the mixture and prop settings tweaked just right for maximum fuel economy. We'll be departing just before 06:00 in the morning and we should arrive in Bali, Indonesia about 10:30 local time.

 

FLIGHT 61: March 13, 2003 - 13:46
Bali International, Indonesia (WADD)
Jakarta, Indonesia (WIII)

It was a bit of a hassle getting our flight plan filed, however, we're on our way to Jakarta. It's Thursday, March 13, 2003 at about 13:45 and we'll be flying at 9,000 on this 530 mile flight that should take about 4 hours, meaning we should arrive about 17:45 local time.

 

FLIGHT 62: March 14, 2003 - 06:58
Jakarta, Indonesia (WIII)
Singapore, Singapore (WSAP)

It's just before 07:00 in the morning in Jakarta on March 14, 2003. We spent the evening at the Crowne Plaza hotel, had a good rest and now were on our way to Singapore - a 745 km trip. This leg is part of a trip today that will find our final destination to be Phuket, Thailand. We'll be flying at 10,000 and the weather looks great. We should arrive at the Paya Lebar airport around 09:45. We'll grab some brunch, top off the tanks, and press onwards to Phuket International airport in Thailand.


 

FLIGHT 63: March 14, 2003 - 12:07
Singapore, Singapore (WSAP)
Phuket, Thailand (VTSP)

It's a little after noon hour March 14, 2003 and we are leaving for Phuket, Thailand. There are some intermittent thunderstorms in the area, but nothing to be concerned with. We'll be flying at 12,000 feet en route and it should take us about 4 hours and 15 minutes to travel this leg of our trip. We'll spend the next couple of days in Phuket.

 

FLIGHT 64: March 16, 2003 - 11:13
Phuket, Thailand (VTSP)
Bangkok, Thailand (VTBD)

It's Sunday morning about 11:15 on March 16, 2003 and we're on our way to Bangkok, Thailand, where we will trade-in our Beechcraft Baron for a Mooney Bravo M20K with extended fuel tanks. I've had a close friend of mine in Bangkok perform a number of test flights, and he has reported that the 7-year old Mooney is in perfect shape! We'll be cruising at 9,000 feet today, and should arrive in Bangkok about 14:00. We'll spend the next couple of days in Bangkok checking out our new bird, and depart Tuesday morning, March 18, 2003 for Mandalay.

 

FLIGHT 65: March 18, 2003 - 05:45
Bangkok, Thailand (VTBD)
Mandalay, Myanmar (aka Burma) (VYMD)

It's 05:45 on March 18, 2003 and we're on our way to Mandalay, Myanmar (Burma), flying at 12,000 feet in our newly acquired Mooney Bravo! We have already applied for permission to land, fuel and depart from the Director General, Department of Civil Aviation, Yangon International Airport, Mingaladon, P.C. 11021, Yangon from Australia. It's a beautiful morning - not a cloud in the sky. We should have a very nice trip. I figure we should arrive in Mandalay just before 10:00 local time.

 

FLIGHT 66: March 18, 2003 - 14:14
Mandalay, Myanmar (aka Burma) (VYMD)
M.A.Hannan Intl, Chittagong, Bangladesh (VGEG)

It's 14:15 on March 18, 2003 and we're departing Mandalay, Myanmar (Burma) and on our way to M.A.Hannan International airport in Chittagong, Bangladesh. We have obtained prior permission from the Chairman Civil Aviation Authority, Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, Kurnitola, Dhaka 1206, Bangladesh, before we left Australia. We'll be flying at 11,000 feet and should arrive in Chittagong about 19:00 local time.


 

FLIGHT 67: March 19, 2003 - 10:18
M.A.Hannan Intl, Chittagong, Bangladesh (VGEG)
Dhaka, Bangladesh (VGZR)

It's Wednesday March 19, 2003 around 10:15 AM. We spent a pleasant evening and night at the Hotel Agrabad in Chittagong. Now we're on our way to Dhaka where we will stop to grab some lunch, top off the tanks and head onwards to Paro, Bhutan where we will spend a day taking in the beauty. We'll be cruising at 10,000 feet.


 

FLIGHT 68: March 19, 2003 - 07:26
Dhaka, Bangladesh (VGZR)
Paro, Bhutan (VQPR)

It's Wednesday March 19, 2003 around 13:25 and we’re on our way to Paro, Bhutan. There are thunderstorms in the local area, but it is not raining. We'll arrive in Paro mid afternoon, local time - because we'll be going through a time zone shift and gaining an hour. We'll be flying at 16,000 feet, with headwinds of 25-40 knots! The weather will gradually improve as the flight progresses. We'll spend a day in Paro taking in the eauty. We have reservations at the beautiful Kichu Resort that lies in the land of the Forbidden Kingdom.

 

 

FLIGHT 69: March 20, 2003 - 11:35
Paro, Bhutan (VQPR)
Tumlingtar, Nepal (VNTR)

Fly Around The World. We had a wonderful time in Paro. It's just coming up on 11:30 on Thursday, March 20, 2003 and we're leaving lovely Paro, Bhutan (the Forbidden Kingdom) for Tumlingtar, Nepal - a tiny grass airstrip with a magnificent view of the world's fifth highest mountain, Mt. Makalu. We'll be flying at 16,000 feet for this flight. We should arrive in Tumlingtar around 13:00 local time.

 

 

FLIGHT 70: March 20, 2003 - 15:30
Tumlingtar, Nepal (VNTR)
Kathmandu, Nepal (VNKT)

We're traveling from this tiny part of paradise called Tumlingtar to Kathmandu, Nepal. We'll arrive in Kathmandu a little after 17:00 and enjoy a fantastic view on approach. We're going to spend the night in Kathmandu at the Godavari Village Resort, have a nice rest and blast off early in the morning for Bhopal, India.

NOTE: We'll be taking off from runway 34 and once airborne, turn to a heading of 340. We'll maintain 340 until we climb above 3,100 feet, then turn left to 280 degrees and head up the valley. When we get to about 5.500 feet, we'll turn left to 220 and head up that valley. Once we climb above 6,500 feet, we'll be turning left to 160 degrees up another valley, etc. Meanwhile, ATC will be yelling at us, telling us to expedite our heading to this and that heading. Simply acknowledge ATC, then ignore their instructions until we are safely above 14,000 feet.


 

FLIGHT 71: March 21, 2003 - 05:46
Kathmandu, Nepal (VNKT)
Bhopal, India (VABP)

We spent last night in Kathmandu at the Godavari Village Resort. Wow - what a fantastic place! It's dawn on Friday, March 21, 2003 and we're on out way to Bhopal, India. We'll be flying at 12,000 feet. However, we've gotten reports of 20-30 kt winds that'll hit right-on-the-nose! So, our ground speed won't be much better than our air speed. We will arrive in Bhopal mid-morning.

 

FLIGHT 72: March 21, 2003 - 13:52
Bhopal, India (VABP)
Hyderabad, India (VOHY)

It's Friday, March 21, 2003 and we just arrived from Nepal a few hours ago. We've filled our stomachs, now let's top off the tanks and carry onwards to Hyderabad, where we have made reservation to stay a couple of nights at the Viceroy hotel. Since the prevailing winds are right on the nose, we might just as well fly at 8,500, since we'll gain the same ground speed on our trip. It's just coming up on 14:00 and our flying time to Hyderabad should be about three hours.


FLIGHT 73: March 23, 2003 - 08:49
Hyderabad, India (VOHY)
Katunayake (Colombo) International Airport, Sri Lanka (VCBI)

It's Sunday March 23, 2003 and we spent a great couple of days and evenings at the Viceroy hotel in Hyderabad, It's now about 8:45 in the morning and we're on our way to Katunayake (Colombo) Sri Lanka. It's about a 615 nm trip. It's a great day for flying and we'll be doing so at about 13,000 feet. We should arrive in Sri Lanka early afternoon. Except for some reported choppy air on approach to Colombo, it should be a smooth flight.

 

FLIGHT 74: March 23, 2003 - 16:10
Katunayake (Colombo) International Airport, Sri Lanka (VCBI)
Male, Maldives (VRMM)

It's about 16:00 on Sunday, March 23, 2003 and we're off to the lovely Maldives. This ought to be a pretty nice flight at 10,000 feet. Along the way (if the low level clouds remain) we should see a spectacular sunset. We'll arrive in Male around 18:00 and spend a few days there. We'll be staying at the awesome Baros Island resort on Kaafu, North Male' atoll.


 

FLIGHT 75: March 28, 2003 - 06:52
Male, Maldives (VRMM)
Belguam, India (VABM)

Well yesterday (March 27) was my birthday and we spent it in paradise! The past five days were very relaxing and enjoyable. It's now Friday March 28, 2003 about 7:00 AM and it's time to bid adieu. We'll be heading north to Belgaum, India. We should arrive in Belguam a little before noon local time since there will be a one hour time shift (we lose an hour). We ought to have a very enjoyable trip - the skies are clear, the wind is minimal and we're ready to go!


 

FLIGHT 76: March 28, 2003 - 15:16
Belgaum, India (VABM)
Chhatrapati Shivaji Intl Mumbai (Bombay), India (VABB)

The Belgaum Airport recently became operational for passenger services with the advent of VISA Airways introducing services from Belgaum to Mumbai. So, we decided to help to local tourism industry by stopping over and having a leisurely lunch. It's now a little after 15:00, it's raining on and off and we're on our way to Mumbai (Bombay). We'll be cruising at 10,000 feet throught cloudy skies most of the way and we'll experience light rain on arrival. We’ve made reservations at the Taj Mahal Hotel... we need to get spoiled once in a while!


 

FLIGHT 77: April 1, 2003 - 07:18
Chhatrapati Shivaji Intl Mumbai (Bombay), India (VABB)
Delhi, India (VIDP)

It’s April 1, 2003 about 7:15 in the morning and we’re off to Delhi. This is about a 600 nm flight and we’ll be cruising at 11,000 feet so it ought to take about 6 and a half hours to get there. There is moderate rainfall in the area with light winds. We do have reports of choppy air between 2,000 and 3,000 feet. We should arrive in Delhi a little after noon local time with thunderstorms in the area.

FLIGHT 78: April 2, 2003 - 06:46
Delhi, India (VIDP)
Chacklala Intl, Islamabad (OPRN)

It’s April 2, 2003 about 6:45 in the morning and we’re on our way to Chacklala Intl airport in Islamabad, Pakistan where we will spend the evening. We'll be flying at 12,000 feet and should arrive about 08:30 local time.

 

FLIGHT 79: April 3, 2003 - 07:52
Chacklala Intl, Islamabad (OPRN)
Kabul, Afghanistan (OAKB)

It’s April 3, 2003 about 7:55 in the morning and we’re leaving Islamabad for Kabul, Afghanistan with our final destination for today being the city of Osh in Kyrgyzstan. The weather looks great! It’s about 200 nm to Kabul, so we should arrive around 09:30 local time where we can drop in for a celebrated and renowned Afghan coffee, then head on north to Dushanbe, Tajikistan. We’ll be cruising at FL200 and fighting 20-25 kt winds smack on the nose from 295. We’ll be passing over Peshawar, Pakistan and Jalalabad, Afghanastan. The view of the mountains is incredible on approach!


 

FLIGHT 80: April 3, 2003 - 12:32
Kabul, Afghanistan (OAKB)
Dushanbe, Tajikistan (UTDD)

It’s April 3, 2003 a little after noon and we’re heading for Dushanbe, Tajikistan, with our final destination for today being the city of Osh in Kyrgyzstan. The weather looks great! However, there are reports of thunderstorms in the Dushanbe area. Our trip will be about 240 nm almost due north. We should arrive about 14:45 where we can top off the tanks and head onwards to Osh. We’ll be passing over Peshawar, Pakistan and Jalalabad, Afghanastan. We will be flying over some very high mountain terrain on this leg of our trip, so our flight plan calls for an altitude of FL200.

 

FLIGHT 81: April 4, 2003 - 12:14
Dushanbe, Tajikistan (UTDD)
Osh, Kyrgyzstan (UAFO)

Well, best laid plans for our trip to Osh yesterday. We had a few aircraft issues to deal with, so we elected to stay in Dushanbe and actually spent a lovely evening at the Tadzhikistan Hotel. It’s April 4, 2003 about 12:15 and we’re finally heading for Osh in Kyrgyzstan. The weather is bad, with thunderstorms throughout most of the flight. And, we're going balistic... up to FL210 in order to climb over some formidable mountains en route! We should arrive about 14:00 local time where we have made reservations to stay at the Issyk Kul hotel. We'll spend the next four days in Osh.

 

FLIGHT 82: April 8, 2003 - 07:11
Osh, Kyrgyzstan (UAFO)
Almaty, Kazakhstan (UAAA)

We’ve spent the last four days in Osh. What a great place to visit if you’re into climbing! It’s now April 8, 2002 about 7:15 and we’ll be cruising at 17,000 feet over the mountains to Almaty, Kazakhstan. We should arrive about 10:30 local time because we're on a one hour time-shift. We've got reservations at the Hyatt Regency Almaty - a really nice hotel located in the central business district of the city. Almaty is a newly developing district, the business center and capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Once again, don’t mess around getting to your cruising altitude, there are serious mountains ahead!

 

FLIGHT 83: April 12, 2003 - 09:57
Almaty, Kazakhstan (UAAA)
Balkhash, Kazakhstan (UAAH)

It’s Saturday, April 12, 2003 just coming up on 10:00 in the morning and we’ve decided to take a side trip and fly over to Balkhash and spend the next couple of evenings on the lake at the suggestions made by the locals. It’s about a 230 nm trip almost due north, so we should arrive a little before noon. We’ll cruise on over the lake at an altitude of 12,000 feet. Then, Monday morning we’ll fly directly to Tashkent, Uzbekistan.


 

FLIGHT 84: April 14, 2003 - 06:14
Balkhash, Kazakhstan (UAAH)
Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UTTT)

We’ve spent the last couple of days in Balkhash on the lake. What a fantastic place! The people were so friendly. It’s now just about 6:15 AM on April 14, 2003 and we’re moving onwards to Uzbekistan. Our flying time will be about 3:15 and we should arrive in Tashkent about 8:30 local time, since we gain an hour due to the time shift. We’ll be cruising at 10,000 feet.


 

FLIGHT 85: April 14, 2003 - 13:18
Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UTTT)
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan (UTAA)

We arrived in Tashkent a little after 9:30 after a great flight over some unbelievably beautiful terrain. We grabbed some grub, topped off the tanks and now we’re heading onwards to Ashgabat, Turkmenistan at an altitude of 12,000. It’s a little past 13:15 and our flying time should be about four hours. We should arrive in Ashgabat about 16:15 local time taking into account another time-shift. We’ll spend the night there and head on to Azerbaijan the next morning.

 

FLIGHT 86: April 15, 2003 - 07:23
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan (UTAA)
Baku, Azerbaijan (UBBB)

We arrived in Ashgabat yesterday in the late afternoon after a long and uneventful trip. The approach in to Ashgabat over the Caspian Sea was impressive – and never-ending. We spent a great evening at the Sheraton Grand Turkmen Hotel. It’s located in the heart of the city, very close to all the bazaars, and it’s only about 6 miles from the airport. It’s just coming up on 7:30 and we’re on our way to Baku, Azerbaijan. We’ll be flying (once again) at 12,000 feet and we should arrive about 10:30 local time.


 

FLIGHT 87: April 15, 2003 - 15:24
Baku, Azerbaijan (UBBB)
Kars, Turkey (LTCF)

Well, as much as we'd like to spend more time in Azerbaijan, we really have to get moving on! So, it's just after 15:00 and we're heading on out to Kars, Turkey. We'll be flying at 18,000 feet and we'll arrive late afternoon local time, taking advantage of a one-hour time shift.

 

FLIGHT 88: April 15, 2003 - 19:17
Kars, Turkey (LTCF)
Locini Airport, Tbilisi, Georgia (UGTB)

Our final destination for today is Tbilisi, Georgia. We’ve had a few cups of coffee and it’s off to Georgia at 13,000 feet. It’s a short flight. There may be sporatic thunderstorms in the area, however there are no reports of precipitation in Tbilisi. We’ll spend the next few days in Georgia resting up and exploring the area.

 

FLIGHT 89: April 18, 2003 - 09:38
Locini Airport, Tbilisi, Georgia (UGTB)
Gumrak Airport, Volgograd, Russia (URWW)

Despite the wars and fires which caused innumerable changes in the topography of Tbilisi, the old part of the city still retains much of its original layout - a spider's web of narrow winding streets and alleyways. We visited the Queen Daredzhan's Palace, built in 1776 for the wife of King Irakli II and the cupolas of the sulphur baths. It's a great place to visit! But, leave we must. So we’re off to Volgograd then on to Moscow. It’s Friday April 18, 2003 and it’s just coming up on 9:30. Volgograd is 425 nm due north, so our flight plan will take us right over the Caucasus mountain range, just east of Vladikavkaz and in to Volgograd. We should arrive about 13:00 local time. Once again, keep in mind that the Russian ATC have little patience with small aircraft, so get it right the first time! There are thunderstorms in the local area, but we'll be clear of this activity once we get to our cruising altitude of FL200.

 

FLIGHT 90: April 18, 2003 - 15:44
Gumrak Airport, Volgograd, Russia (URWW)
Moscow, Russia (UUDD)

We dropped in to Volgograd to clear customs, grab some food, top off the tanks and continue on to Moscow, pursuant to our previously filed flight plan with the Russian government before we left California. It’s now about 15:45 and we’re on our way to Moscow. The weather has cleared up nicely. Our trip will be about 500 nautical miles and we should arrive about 20:00 local time. Our cruising altitude will be 12,000 feet. As we approach Moscow, the weather will get really miserable, with thunderstorms, gusty winds, low-level rain and a reported ceiling of 1,000 feet. We’ll spend the next 10 days in Moscow taking in all of the wonderful things to see and experience in this majestic city.

 

 

[Kurusca 19]

PART FOUR

 

 

FLIGHT 091: April 28, 2003 - 07:45
Moscow - Sheremetyevo (UUEE) Russia
St Petersburg - Pulkovo (ULLI) Russia

The past ten days in Moscow were fantastic! I could write a book about this remarkable city and its people - but others have done a better job! So, we're on our way to St. Petersburg where we will spend a week as well. It's April 28, 2003 at 7:45 and we'll be flying at 7,000 feet on a beautiful day. We should arrive a little after 10:00. Coffee's ready - here we go!

 

FLIGHT 092: May 5, 2003 - 07:45
St Petersburg - Pulkovo (ULLI), Russia
Helsinki - Vantaa (EFHK), Finland

I believe I can say that St. Petersburg is the most beautiful city I have ever visited! We spent a very pleasant week visiting and discovering the various wonders of this awesome city. It's about 7:45 on May 5, 2003 and we're on our way to Helsinki, Finland. We'll be flying at 12,000 feet in some reported choppy air and this 115 nm trip should take us a couple of hours. We should arrive in Helsinki about 8:45 local time because we gain an hour due to the time shift.

 

FLIGHT 093: May 5, 2003 - 08:35
Helsinki - Vantaa (EFHK), Finland
Parnu - (EEPU), Estonia

As it works out, we spent a little too much time in Moscow and St. Petersburg taking in the sites and culture. So now we need to gain some momentum on our trip. As a result, we didn't have time to visit Helsinki but just to refuel, and we will only stop in Estonia long enough to grab a bite to eat and head onwards to Latvia. We must be ever conscious that, albeit we would like to spend a month in each city along our trip, we wouldn't get back to California until the year 2009! We'll be flying to Estonia at an altitude of 10,000 feet and it should be a pleasant flight. We should arrive about 14:15 local time.

 

FLIGHT 094: May 5, 2003 - 16:00
Parnu - (EEPU), Estonia
Riga - Riga Intl (EVRA), Latvia

It's May 5, 2003 - just coming up on 16:00 in the afternoon. Consistent with our desire to visit as many countries as possible on our trip around the world, we'll drop into Riga, Latvia en route to our final destination for today Warsaw, Poland. We'll be skimming across the inlet at 7,000 feet on our flight that should last about an hour. We'll grab some coffee at the airport lounge at Riga International airport, top off the tanks and head onwards to Kaunas, Lithuania where we will land about 17:00. From there, we'll head off to Grodno, Belarus, then on to Warsaw where we will spend the night.

 

FLIGHT 095: May 5, 2003 - 18:00
Riga - Riga Intl (EVRA), Latvia
Kaunas - Kaunas Intl (EYKA), Lithuania

We arrived here in Lativa an hour ago, had a quick pit-stop, a bite to eat and we're continuing on to Kaunas, Lithuania. It's just about 18:00 and we'll once again be flying at 9,000 feet. We should arrive in Lithuania about 18:20 local time due to another one hour time shift. We have reports of moderately choppy air - otherwise it should be a pretty uneventful flight. We stay in Kaunas just about an hour then head on due south to Grodno, Belarus.

 

FLIGHT 096: May 5, 2003 - 19:20
Kaunas - Kaunas Intl (EYKA), Lithuania
Grodno - (UMMG), Belarus

It's May 5, 2003 - just coming up on 19:20. We watched the sun settle in Kaunas. Once again, we have received reports of light choppy air - no big deal! We'll be at 9,000 feet again. (boring? not really) We'll arrive in Grodno about 20:20 where we'll top off the tanks, empty our bladders and head on to our final destination for today - Warsaw, Poland. Let's boogie!

FLIGHT 097: May 5, 2003 - 20:20
Grodno - (UMMG), Belarus
Warsaw - Okecie (EPWA), Poland

It's just past 20:20 on May 5, 2003 and we're on our last leg for the day Grodno, Belarus to Warsaw, Poland. We'll spend the night in Warsaw and head on tomorrow to Tatry, Slovakia. We'll be staying at the newly build Gromada Airport Hotel. We've still got choppy air to look forward to - just as it's been throughout the day. We'll be cruising at 8,000 feet. Our trip will take us over the lights of the sprawling city of Bialystok, Poland - population, about 300,000. And of course, the lights of arsaw will be spectacular.

 

FLIGHT 098: May 6, 2003 - 05:45
Warsaw - Okecie (EPWA), Poland
Tatry - Poprad (LZTT), Slovakia

We didn't get to see a heck of a lot of Warsaw - a real shame. We're behind schedule and so we need to keep on truckin'. Today we're getting a real early start (5:45) and we'll get as much of the trip behind us as we can. In other words, today is a TRAVELING day! First stop - Tatry, Slovakia. We'll be cruising at 12,000 feet and we should arrive just in time for breakfast. Reports still indicate MORE choppy air - even at 12,000 feet. We have reports of a very low ceiling on Final.

 

FLIGHT 099: May 6, 2003 - 10:10
Tatry - Poprad (LZTT), Slovakia
L'vov - Lwow-Lemberg (UKLL), Ukraine

We had a wonderful breakfast at the airport and now it's time to bid them adieu and plow onwards to Lvov, in the Ukraine. It's a little after 10:00 and our flying time to Lvov should be about 2 hours for this 150 nm trip. Once again --- choppy air! Incidentally, the approach into Tatry made me a little homesick - the terrain looks very much like the lower Sierra Nevada hills. In any case, it will be a long time and many more flights before we get back to California. So, let's rock on our 99th flight!

 

FLIGHT 100: May 6, 2003 - 14:45
L'vov - Lwow-Lemberg (UKLL), Ukraine
Balti - (LUBL), Moldova

Flight #100 Tarrah! May 6, 2003 14:45 - Lvov, Ukraine to Balti, Maldova! We arrived in Lvov a little after noon, had a great lunch at the airport, topped-off the tanks, checked out the aircraft, emptied our bladders and we're set to go. The choppy air seems to have let up and now we have thunderstorms in the area! Oh well, that's life. Our trip is about 190 nm as the crow flies... about 220 nm for us. Therefore, we'll arrive mid afternoon local time. We'll be cruising at 11,000 all of the way. So --- buckle up!


 

 

FLIGHT 101: May 6, 2003 - 17:45
Balti - (LUBL), Moldova
Bucharest - Baneasa (LRBS), Romania

It's May 6, 2003, in the late afternoon and we're heading to our final destination for today - Bucharest, Romania. We'll be flying at 14,000 and we ought to arrive around 19:30. It looks like a spectacular evening for flying and we should see a great sunset. We've made reservations at the Bucharest Marriot Grand Hotel in the downtown area. We'll stay in Bucharest until Saturday morning, the 10th of May. There's a lot to see in Bucharest.


 

FLIGHT 102: May 10, 2003 - 06:00
Bucharest - Baneasa (LRBS), Romania
Sofia - Vrazhdebna (LBSF) Bulgaria

It's just coming up on 06:00 on May 10, 2003 and we're leaving Bucharest, Romania and heading for Sofia, Bulgaria. A flight instructor told us that we can expect some low cloud cover en route to Sofia. We'll be flying at 12,000 feet and we should arrive about 07:30 where we will drop in for some breakfast and head on to Belgrade, Yugoslavia.

 

FLIGHT 103: May 10, 2003 - 11:00
Sofia - Vrazhdebna (LBSF) Bulgaria
Belgrade - (LYBE), Yugoslavia

It's Saturday May 10th, 2003, just before 11:00 and we're leaving Sofia, Bulgaria on our way to Belgrade Yugoslavia. We should arrive in Belgrade about 13:30. We'll be flying a 10,000 feet on the 200 nm trip. There's a low cloud cover that should clear up as we approach our destination. We'll grab some lunch in Belgrade, fill up the tanks and press onwards to Budapest, Hungary. Up-up-and away!

 

FLIGHT 104: May 10, 2003 - 16:00
Belgrade - (LYBE), Yugoslavia
Budapest - Ferihegy (LHBP), Hungary

We arrived in Belgrade just before 14:00 and had a great lunch at the airport lounge. We're now on our way to Budapest, Hungary. It's Saturday May 10, 2003 and it just about 16:00. We'll be flying at 10,000 on this flight and we should arrive in Budapest around 17:45. One of the local pilots was telling us that it will take longer to taxi to the general aviation area at the Ferihegy airport in Budapest, than it will to fly there. Anyway, let's fly the friendly skies!

 

FLIGHT 105: May 10, 2003 - 19:30
Budapest - Ferihegy (LHBP), Hungary
Slovenj Gradec - (LJSG), Slovenia

It's May 10, 2003 about 19:30 and we're leaving Budapest, Hungary for Slovenj Gradec, Slovenia where I have some very close friends. We'll spend the next couple of days visiting them. We'll be cruising at 8,000 feet and we should arrive a little after 21:00. Once again, it will take longer to taxi to runway 31R than to fly to our destination. Well, not really - it just seems that way! It's a beautiful evening for flying - should be a great sunset. Incidentally, the runway we'll be landing at has NOTHING in the way of IFR! But, it's a clear evening so we'll put her down nice and easy.


 

 

FLIGHT 106: May 12, 2003 - 06:30
Slovenj Gradec - (LJSG), Slovenia
Zagreb - Pleso (LDZA), Croatia

It's Monday May 12, 2003 and we just spent a fantastic weekend visiting my friends in Slovenj Gradec. It's about 6:30 and we're getting an early start on our trip today to Pleso airport in Zagreb, Croatia, Sarajevo and Pristina Yugoslavia. We should arrive in Zagreb a little past 7:00, where we will grab some breakfast and press onwards.

 

FLIGHT 107: May 12, 2003 - 10:25
Zagreb - Pleso (LDZA), Croatia
Sarajevo - (LQSA), Bosnia and Herzegovina

Our 150 nm trip to Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina will take about one hour and twenty minutes at an altitude of 11,000 feet. It should be pretty smooth flying today except for some reported choppy air on approach into Sarajevo. After we take care of the paperwork and have a few cups of coffee, we'll press on to Pristina, Serbia.

 

FLIGHT 108: May 12, 2003 - 13:45
Sarajevo - (LQSA), Bosnia and Herzegovina
Pristina - (BKPR), Serbia

We'll be departing Sarajevo about 13:45 en route to Pristina and we'll be flying at 11,000 feet. You had better get on the throttle on take off, there's a 4,000 foot mountain range we need to climb over on the way out, so don't dilly-dally around! Our flying time to Pristina should be a lttle less than 90 minutes over some very mature rolling hills near Berane - quite lovely actually.


 

FLIGHT 109: May 12, 2003 - 17:30
Pristina - (BKPR), Serbia
Istanbul - Ataturk (LTBA), Turkey

It's about 17:30 and we're on our way to Istanbul, Turkey. Our trip will take us east over Serbia, just North of Macedonia and into Bulgaria. We head eastwards over Sofia then down towards Plovdiv. As the sun begins to set we'll be entering Turkey. Then it's almost a straight-shot of about 120 nm directly to Istanbul. We'll be able to see the huge Black Sea on approach and the Marmara Sea on final. We should arrive in Istanbul on a beautiful, clear evening.


 

FLIGHT 110: May 16, 2003 - 06:30
Istanbul - Ataturk (LTBA), Turkey
Skopje - (LWSK), Macedonia

It’s Friday, May 16, 2003 about 06:30 in the morning and we’re leaving Yesilkoy airport in Istanbul, Turkey on our way to Skopje, Macedonia. Wow – Istanbul – what a neat place to visit. We stayed at the Berr Hotel for the past few days. This four star family run hotel takes a lot of pride in offering its guests a relaxing & charming "home away from home" in Istanbul's old city – really a nice place. We’ll be flying at 12,000 feet on our trip and we should arrive about 10:30. Our trip will take us over the Thrakiko Pelagos strait, directly towards the Makedonia airport in Thessaloniki, Greece. Then, about 40 km east of Makedonia, we’ll head northwest to Skopje.

 

 

FLIGHT 111: May 16, 2003 - 14:30
Skopje - (LWSK), Macedonia
Ohrid - (LWOH), Macedonia

We had a delightful lunch at the Spa restaurant right at the Skopje airport. They were telling us that they serve about 100 meals per hour – we got our share! It’s coming up on 14:30 and we’ll be flying at 10,000 feet en-route to Ohrid. Incidentally, when climbing out of Skopje, don't dilly-dally around - 'cuz you're facing a 7,000 foot mountain about 8 miles from the airport. So get up and rock!

 

FLIGHT 112: May 16, 2003 - 17:00
Ohrid - (LWOH), Macedonia
Tirana - Rinas (LATI), Albania

Just a short stop in Ohrid and we’re on our way to Rinas airport in Tirana – currently the only passenger airport in Albania. We’ll be flying at 10,000 and the skies are clear with unlimited visibility so we should get a great view of Lake Ohrid with its majestic cliffs on the way out. We’re departing just about 17:00 so we should arrive in Albania right around 17:45.

 

FLIGHT 113: May 16, 2003 - 18:45
Tirana - Rinas (LATI), Albania
Athens - (LGAV), Greece

Well, we have arrived at the Rinas airport in Tirana, Albania right around 17:35. We can now say that we visited Albania. We’ll stretch our legs and depart at 18:45 en route to Athens, Greece. We’ll be flying at 11,000 feet and we should arrive just after sunset to a spectacular full-moon, night time view of Athens! Let’s rock!

 

FLIGHT 114: May 24, 2003 - 05:45
Athens - (LGAV), Greece
Pafos - Pafos Intl (LCPH), Cyprus

We spent a wonderful time in Athens. There’s so much to see, we could have easily spent a year and seen little. We depart Athens on Saturday May 24, 2003 at 05:45 and we’ll be flying over the beautiful Greek isles on this long trip.

 

FLIGHT 115: May 24, 2003 - 14:00
Pafos - Pafos Intl (LCPH), Cyprus
Beirut - Beirut Intl (OLBA), Lebanon

We’ll spend a few hours here, top off the tanks, grab a bite to eat and around 14:00, we’ll press onwards to Beirut and then on to Tel Aviv. We have received reports of some light choppy air on approach. We’ll be flying at 9,000 feet – mostly over water.

 

 

FLIGHT 116: May 24, 2003 - 15:45
Beirut - Beirut Intl (OLBA), Lebanon
Tel Aviv - Ben Gurion (LLBG), Israel

We’re now heading on to Tel Aviv. It’s 15:45 and we’ll climb to 6,000 feet for the journey so we can see the terrain. We should arrive in Tel Aviv just in time for some dinner. We’ll spend the next week in Israel making some hop-scotch visits around this tiny country, then depart for Amman, Jordan next Friday – May 30, 2003. We’ll be staying at the Crown Plaza Hotel that is about 7 miles from the airport. Yeah, I know, it’s a five star hotel… to hell with the expense!


 

FLIGHT 117: May 30, 2003 - 06:30
Tel Aviv - Ben Gurion (LLBG), Israel
Amman - Queen Alia Intl (OJAI), Jordan

It’s 6:30 on May 30, 2003 and we’re continuing our trip around the world. We had a great time in Israel but regrettably it is time to move on. Here’s another case where we will seem to spend about as much time taxiing as we do flying. Getting to runway 26 at Ben Gurion International from the general parking area is quite a hike! And, when we land at Queen Alia International in Amman, Jordan, we’ll experience the same kind of hike! We’ll be flying at 5,000 feet and we’ll pass just north of the Dead Sea as we make our way to Amman.


 

FLIGHT 118: May 30, 2003 - 11:15
Amman - Queen Alia Intl (OJAI), Jordan
Kuwait City - Kuwait Intl (OKBK), Kuwait

It’s 11:15 and we’re on our way to Kuwait City. We’ll be flying at 11,000 on this leg of our trip. We ought to arrive in Kuwait City in a little over 4 hours. There will be a little chop along the way. The trip will take us over Saudi Arabia – avoiding Iraq at this very unstable time in history – what a tragedy. In any case, we’re on our way.

 

FLIGHT 119: June 1, 2003 - 07:00
Kuwait City - Kuwait Intl (OKBK), Kuwait
Dammam - King Fahd Intl (OEDF), Saudi Arabia

We spend a couple of pleasant days in Kuwait City – there’s a lot going on! So, here we go again, it will take longer to taxi to the runway than to fly to Dammam… well not really, but it seems that way. And wait until we get to Dammam, it’s about a 20 minute hike to the General Aviation area. Anyway, we’ll be flying at 9,000 feet and there are reports of some nasty wind sheer along the way. Incidentally, this is going to be a very long day – lots of flying!


 

FLIGHT 120: June 1, 2003 - 11:00
Dammam - King Fahd Intl (OEDF), Saudi Arabia
Bahrain - Bahrain Intl (OBBI), Bahrain

We arrived in Dammam about 8:45, cleared customs and grabbed some breakfast at the airport. It’s now just coming up on 11:00 and we’re on our way to the island country of Bahrain. The flying time will be about 40 minutes… about the same as the taxiing time! We’ll be flying at 5,000 feet and should arrive about 11:45. We’ll practically do a touch-and-go on our way to Qatar, Dubai and Oman.

 

 

FLIGHT 121: June 1, 2003 - 12:45
Bahrain - Bahrain Intl (OBBI), Bahrain
Doha - Doha Intl (OTBD), Qatar

We arrived in Bahrain around 11:45, did our metaphorical touch-and-go (so we can say “we were there”) and we’re now on our way to Doha, Qatar. We’ll be flying at 11.000 feet, on a very nice, clear day and we should arrive at the general aviation area in about an hour’s time. We’ll grab some coffee and head onwards to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (“UAE”).

 

FLIGHT 122: June 1, 2003 - 13:35
Doha - Doha Intl (OTBD), Qatar
Dubai - Dubai Intl (OMDB), United Arab Emirates

We arrived in Doha, did another metaphoric touch-and-go, and we’re on our way to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (“UAE”). It’s just past 13:30 and we’ll be flying again at 11,000 on this 225 nm trip. We should arrive at the General Aviation area about 15:00 local time. Once again, we will not be long on the ground…. just long enough to say, “We’ve been there!”

 

FLIGHT 123: June 1, 2003 - 15:30
Dubai - Dubai Intl (OMDB), United Arab Emirates
Muscat - Seeb Intl (OOMS), Oman

We arrived in Dubai about 15:00, got some refreshments, picked up some snacks and we’re on our way to Seeb International airport in Muscat, Oman, where we have reservations at the Grand Hyatt. We’ll spend a few days in Oman then carry on to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Today, we will be flying at our customary 11,000 feet and should arrive late afternoon. We have reports of very poor visibility on approach.

 

FLIGHT 124: June 4, 2003 - 09:45
Muscat - Seeb Intl (OOMS), Oman
Riyadh - King Khaled Intl (OERK), Saudi Arabia

It’s 9:40 and we spent a wonderful few days in Oman. We’ll be cruising at 11,000 feet on our way to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Once we get to King Khaled airport in Riyadh, it will (once again) take about 15 minutes to taxi to the General Aviation area. We should end up parked in our spot about mid-afternoon. We have reservations at the Sheraton Riyadh Hotel and Towers and we’ll spend a couple of days there.


 

FLIGHT 125: June 7, 2003 - 06:00
Riyadh - King Khaled Intl (OERK), Saudi Arabia
Jeddah - King Abdulaziz Intl (OEJN), Saudi Arabia

It’s 6:00 and we spent the past few days in Riyadh simply resting up. Today, we’ll be cruising at 10,000 feet over to Jeddah, then on to Sanaa International in Sanaa, Yemen. We’ll then proceed onwards to our final destination for today - Asmara, Eritrea. As we approach Jeddah and the Red Sea, we will be able to see the beginning of the Tihamah mountain chain surrounding Mecca off to our left. I suppose you will not be surprised to learn that at another Saudi Arabian airport, it will take a considerable amount of time to get to the General Aviation area --- how about 20 minutes? Oh well – at least it is in close proximity to the fuel depot, where we will fill up, grab some brunch and head on to Sanaa, Yemen.

 

FLIGHT 126: June 7, 2003 - 12:45
Jeddah - King Abdulaziz Intl (OEJN), Saudi Arabia
Sanaa - Sanaa Intl - (OYSN), Yemen

We stopped long enough to have a bite to eat, top-off-the-tanks, grab some snacks and we’re on our way to Sanaa International airport in Sanaa, Yemen. It’s 12:45 and we’ll be flying at 15,000 feet on the 500 nm trip, and we should arrive in Sanaa late afternoon – assuming we ever get to the runway – another 20 minutes taxiing escapade! We’ll simply make a “pit-stop” in Sanaa, then press onwards to Asmara, Eritrea – our final destination for today.

 

FLIGHT 127: June 7, 2003 - 18:20
Sanaa - Sanaa Intl - (OYSN), Yemen
Asmara - Asmara Intl (HHAS), Eritrea

We’ve grabbed some grub and some fuel and now we’re on to our final destination for today - Asmara, Eritrea. It’s about 18:20 and it’s going to be about a 350 nm trip. We've received reports of thunderstorms en route, but we'll be flying above most of it at 16,000. Although it would be easy to think of Asmara (the Eritrean capital) solely as an Italian built colonial city, its origins actually reach back some 700 years. Since coming under Eritrean control in 1991 it has been undergoing a rapid improvement in infrastructure. Asmara is possibly the safest African capital for travelers and one of the cleanest cities in Africa. The streets are elegantly lined with palms and a string of boutiques and restaurants reminiscent of southern Italy.

[Kurusca 19]

PART FIVE

 

 

FLIGHT 128: June 9, 2003 - 06:00
Asmara Intl.(HHAS), Eritrea
Khartoum (HSSS), Sudan

It's just coming up on 6:00 in Asmara and we're on the road again! Today was my wife's birthday, so I sent her some flowers via the Internet and told her we were about to tour Africa. It's about a 3:40 flight to Khartoum, Sudan and we'll be tracking the Nile on approach. We'll be flying at 16,000 feet so we can obtain a reasonable ground speed. We ought to arrive about 9:40 where we will grab some coffee, gas-up and double back to Djibouti.

 

FLIGHT 129: June 9, 2003 - 10:30
Khartoum (HSSS), Sudan
Ambouli (HDAM), Djibouti

It's 10:30, we've dropped in to Khartoum, and now we're on a 720 nm trip back eastward to Djibouti. We'll be flying at 17,000 feet. We should arrive in Djibouti around 15:00. We will be spending the night at the Sheraton Djibouti Airport Hotel, located approximately 6.5km from the airport.

 

FLIGHT 130: June 10, 2003 - 07:20
Ambouli (HDAM), Djibouti
Bole Intl. Addis Ababa (HAAB), Ethiopia

It's 7:20 and we're on our way to Bole Intl airport in Addis Abeba, Ethiopia. Okay, we're going balistic on this flight. We'll be flying at 20,000 feet on this 300 nm trip. The runway is 7624 feet above sea level. On approach to the area, we can expect light turbulence as we climb up over the 9,000 + mountains surrounding Addis Abeba. We'll top-off-the-tanks, grab a late breakfast, and head onwards to Mogadishu, Somalia – about an 800 nm trip.

FLIGHT 131: June 10, 2003 - 11:15
Bole Intl, Addis Ababa (HAAB), Ethiopia
Moi Intl, Mombasa (HKMO), Keyna

We've topped-off-the-tanks, grabbed a late breakfast, and we're now heading onwards to Mombasa, Keyna – about an 930 nm trip. It's currently 11:15 as we depart on our trip and we should arrive about in Mombasa early evening. We'll be passing over Lake Turkana in the North-Western part of Kenya as we turn southwards towards our destination. We have made reservations to stay at the Exelsior Hotel in Mombasa – about 45 km from the airport. This is another LONG trip – so ensure the mixture, manifold pressure and prop-pitch are set right-on-the-nose! All things being equal, the unnerving "Low Fuel" indicators will not appear as we approach Mombasa.

 

FLIGHT 132: June 11, 2003 - 08:30
Moi Intl, Mombasa (HKMO), Kenya
Moroni Hahaia (FMCH), Comoros

It’s June 11, 2003, about 8:30 in the morning and we’re on our way to the tiny island country of Comoros. We’ll be flying at 11,000 all of the way and our “customized” flight plan will take us over Chake Chake airport in Pemba, Tanzania, over Zanzibar (and I simply could not resist flying over “Mafia” Tanzania) en route to Prince Said Ibrahim airport in Moroni, Comoros. Our flying time will be about 4 hours.

 

FLIGHT 133: June 11, 2003 - 15:30
Moroni Hahaia (FMCH), Comoros
Seychelles Intl (FSIA), Seychelles

It's June 11, 2003, about 15:30 in the afternoon and we really want to get to the Seychelles Island – a place we have been looking forward to visiting for quite a while. So, we're going to press onwards into the evening. We'll be cruising at 13,000 feet and should arrive mid-evening in some light thunderstorms and choppy air.

 

FLIGHT 134: June 15, 2003 - 07:20
Seychelles Intl (FSIA), Seychelles
Mauritius Intl. (FIMP)

Paradise on Earth is what they call the Seychelles. Seemingly forgotten, out in the middle of the Indian Ocean, a thousand miles from Africa, this archipelago of more than a hundred islands stretches for hundreds of miles. We had a ball. Mauritius is another of those select place names that conjure the exotic…a place that you may not be able to find immediately on the map, but that you just know that when you do, it will have been worth your while. So – we're heading that way today! It's going to be another one of those marathon trips, so pack our lunches with lots of stuff! We will be flying at 9,000.



 

 

FLIGHT 135: June 18, 2003 - 06:45
Mauritius Intl. (FIMP)
St. Denis (FMEE), Reunion

We had a marvelous stay at the Merville Beach hotel in Mauritius – walking distance from Port-Louis, the capital of Mauritius. Albeit we'd love to stay in paradise, it's time to move on. It's Wednesday, June 18, 2003 about 6:45 and we'll be flying to Gillot airport in St. Denis, Reunion. Regrettably, we'll spend just a few hours in Reunion, then we'll press onwards to Ivato airport in Antananarivo, Madagascar. We'll be flying this leg at 8,000 feet on this 120 nm trip and we should arrive in St. Denis around 8:15.

 

FLIGHT 136: June 18, 2003 - 12:00
St. Denis (FMEE), Reunion
Ivato Intl(FMMI), Antananarivo, Madagascar

We can now say we visited Reunion – albeit only for about 3 hours. It’s now just past noon and we’re on our way to Ivato International airport in Antananarivo, Madagascar. We’ll be flying at 14,000 and we should arrive late afternoon. We’ve made reservations to stay at the Hilton Madagascar – only about 4 miles from the airport. It’s been a long day (in fact a long few days) of flying, so we’ll get a good sleep and head out early tomorrow morning for the mainland. PS. Do NOT trust the glideslope on this approach! I would suggest that you turn off the auto-pilot and land the aircraft yourself.

 

FLIGHT 137: June 19, 2003 - 06:15
Ivato Intl(FMMI), Antananarivo, Madagascar
Lilongwe (FWKI), Malawi

We had a great meal at the Hilton Madagascar hotel last evening and rested-up well. It's early dawn and we have another long day ahead of us. We'll be flying at 14,000 feet to Lilongwe International airport in Lilongwe Malawi. Our trip will take us over Angoche Mozambique (just south of Nampula), over Cuamba and then into Malawi. As we pass over Club Makokola, the massive Lake Nyasa will come into view. It's about an 875 nm trip. The runway surface at Lilongwe is at an altitude of 4,035 feet.


 

FLIGHT 138: June 23, 2003 - 06:45
Lilongwe (FWKI), Malawi
Johannesburg Intl.(FAJS), Johannesburg, South Africa

Malawi rightly deserves the title 'The Warm Heart Of Africa' – for this is a nation whose people thrive on smiles and friendliness. We stayed at Le Meridien Capital hotel - the largest in Malawi and had a wonderful time over the past few days. It's now Monday, June 23, 2003 and we're on our way to Johannesburg, South Africa. It's about 06:45 and we'll be flying over Zambia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Botswana en route. We'd really like to stop in all of these nations, but time is marching on. So, maybe on our next trip around the world! We'll be flying at 14,000 and this will be another very long flight - so, get the mixture set just right and be sure to close the cowl to keep the engine toasty warm. As I figure it, the Low Fuel indicators will illuminate as we approach the destination airport.



 

FLIGHT 139: June 25, 2003 - 06:15
Johannesburg Intl.(FAJS), Johannesburg, South Africa
Matsapha (FDMS), Manzini, Swaziland

We spent a couple of wonderful days in Johannesburg. We stayed close by the airport at the Emperor Hotel at Caesars; an appropriate place to stay since my last name is Cezar. We spent the first evening at one of the oldest bars in Johannesburg – the Radium Beer Hall. This establishment seems to attract an interesting mix of locals and visitors like us, which proved to be an interesting evening out to say the least. We're now heading to Swaziland, Lesotho and then on to our final destination for today - Cape Town, South Africa. We'll be flying at 15,000 feet.


 

FLIGHT 140: June 25, 2003 - 13:20
Matsapha (FDMS), Manzini, Swaziland
Moshoeshoe Intl (FXMM), Maseru, Lesotho

Swaziland is a small, beautiful country. It's surrounded by the Republic of South Africa on three sides and by Mozambique on the east. We've landed in Manzini - the major commercial center. It's a pity we cannot spend more time here exploring, however, it's off to Lesotho and then on to Cape Town, South Africa. It's now 13:20 local time and we'll be flying at 14,000 feet!

 

FLIGHT 141: June 25, 2003 - 16:15
Moshoeshoe Intl (FXMM), Maseru, Lesotho
Cape Town (FACT), South Africa

We will simply touch down, top-off-the-tanks, and head on down the road! It's coming up on 16:15 and we're on the last leg of this trip today… another long day. We'll be flying to Cape Town at 16,000 feet and we should arrive around 21:00. So, bring lots of snacks please! It should be smooth sailing most of the way, although we have received reports of strong easterly headwinds (30-40 kts) and some choppy air as we approach Cape Town.

 

FLIGHT 142: June 30, 2003
Cape Town (FACT), South Africa
Hosea Kutako Intl (FYWH), Windhoek, Namibia

The past 5 days in Cape Town were indescribable. The high spot was our evening out at the Café Riteve, Hatfield St, Gardens where comedienne Tracy Klass had us rolling on the floor! The food was great, the evenings delightful – could have spent a year! But, alas, all good things must come to an end. It's early Monday morning (just before 6:00) June 30, 2003 and we're on our way to Hosea Kutako Intl, Windhoek in Namibia. The weather looks great and it should be as smooth as a baby's behind at 15,000 feet. Let's rock!

 

 

 

 

FLIGHT 143: June 30, 2003 - 10:45
Hosea Kutako Intl (FYWH), Windhoek, Namibia
Lusaka Intl (FLLS), Lusaka, Zambia

Well, I believe this is turning into the longest day of continuous flying since we left California. We got here about 30 minutes ago, we've made the necessary "pit stops", filled our stomachs and we're on our way to Zambia. We'll be flying at 11,000 over mostly expansive savannah grassland, dominated in parts by tall elephant grass. In fact, not very interesting from the air. We will be flying over this kind of terrain until mid-afternoon. We will be passing over Botswana en route.

 

FLIGHT 144: July 10, 2003 - 06:00
Lusaka Intl (FLLS), Lusaka, Zambia
Bujumbura Intl (HBBA), Bujumbura, Burundi

We spent the last 10 days at the Protea Hotel Lusaka Safari LD in Zambia. It was a very pleasant stay and the rate was only $30 per night. We needed the rest after all of that traveling. We just learned that President Bush is going to be visiting Entebbe, Uganda tomorrow. As it works out, we're going to be there at the same time. So, let's get in our wild mustang and get an early start. It's just coming up on 6:00 and we'll be heading north to Burundi, Rwanda and then on into Entebbe, Uganda. We'll be cruising at 15,000 and flying along Lake Tanganyika for a good part of the way.

 

FLIGHT 145: July 10, 2003 - 14:00
Bujumbura Intl (HBBA), Bujumbura, Burundi
Gregoire Kayibanda Intl (HRYR), Kigali, Rwanda

We've stopped here in Burundi just long enough to grab a bite to eat at the airport café, top off the tanks and press onwards to Rwanda. We'll be cruising at 11,000 feet on this rather short trip (by our standards). There'll be a one hour time shift.

 

FLIGHT 146: July 10, 2003 - 17:30
Gregoire Kayibanda Intl (HRYR), Kigali, Rwanda
Entebbe Intl (HUEN), Uganda

Once again we've stopped just long enough to say "we were there" and proceed down the line to our destination for today – Entenne, Uganda. Flying altitude – 11,000 once again. It's now 17:30 here in Kigali and we should arrive in Entebbe about 19:00. There are reports of thunder showers in the Entebbe area. We have reservations at the Kampala Sheraton Hotel, about 22 miles from the airport.

 

FLIGHT 147: July 12, 2003 - 05:45
Entebbe Intl (HUEN), Uganda
Bangoka Intl (FZIC), Kisangani, Congo (DRC)

Well, we got to see the US President's Air Force One (a little bigger than our plane) and spent a couple of evenings at the Kampala Sheraton Hotel. It's very early Saturday morning, July 12, 2003 and we're on our way to M'vengue airport in Franceville, Gabon, with a fuel-stop in Kinangani, Congo. We'll be cruising at 16,000 feet.


 

 

FLIGHT 148: July 12, 2003 - 11:30
Bangoka Intl (FZIC), Kisangani, Congo (DRC)
Nsimalen Intl (FKYS), Yaounde, Cameroon

We’ve topped off the tanks, and we’ve topped off our tummies, and it’s onwards we go to Yaounde, Cameroon. We'll be cruising at 12,000 feet. Our flight will take us over the city of Banqui in the Central African Republic. This is another of those VERY long trips… so keep a close eye on fuel consumption and ensure the cowls are closed to keep her nice an toasty warm - after all, even with a logged flight plan, the last thing we need is a 3-point landing in front of a 3,000 pound tiger! We’ve confirmed reservations to stay at the Yaounde Hilton Hotel in the center of town. We’ll stay there until Monday.


 

FLIGHT 149: July 14, 2003 - 08:30
Nsimalen Intl (FKYS), Yaounde, Cameroon
Douala Intl (FKKD), Douala, Cameroon

We enjoyed a well-deserved rest this weekend at the lovely Hilton Hotel – Africa is a BIG continent. Today, we're going from Cameroon to Cameroon. That is to say, we're going to fly southwest towards Libreville, Gabon, thereby passing over Equatorial Guinea, turn westwards and head towards Sao Tome International, then north to fly over Principe, continuing north towards Malabo and then east to our destination for today – Douala, Cameroon. We'll be flying at 8,000 so we can get a better view of the islands and we should arrive in Douala around 09:30 with thunderstorms in the area. We have made reservations to stay at the Meridien Hotel in Douala. It looks like another beautiful "equatorial" day for flying. It's about 8:30 and it's +69F outside!


 

FLIGHT 150: July 15, 2003 - 06:15
Douala Intl (FKKD), Douala, Cameroon
N'djamena (FTTJ), Chad

It's a pleasant +75F at 6:15 in the morning and we're on our way to Chad. Chad is a developing country in north central Africa with one of the lowest per capita incomes in the world and the country faces challenges in the areas of political stability and economic development. We contacted the Embassy of the Republic of Chad in Washington and were told we do not need an entry visa if we're dropping in for fuel. It's going to be about a 7-hour trip. As we're flying east, we'll be battling 20kts+ headwinds, so our ground speed will be pretty much the same as our airspeed. As we turn north, we'll gain a little momentum. Except for some reported electrical storms and some choppy air in northern Cameroon and in the N'djamena area, it should be pretty smooth sailing most of the way. We should arrive in N'djamena about 11:15 local time. We'll grab some food and fuel and press onwards to Abuja, Nigeria.


 

FLIGHT 151: July 15, 2003 - 16:00
N'djamena (FTTJ), Chad
Nnamdi Azikiwe Intl (DNAA), Abuja, Nigeria

We've filled the tanks and our tummies and we're on our way to Abuja, Nigeria where we have made reservations to stay at the Nicon Hilton, Abuja. We'll be flying over the southern part of Niger en route. In addition to our passports, we needed (and acquired) our visas (for $100 bucks each) in advance from the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in Washington before leaving the US. We'll spend the night in Abuja and head onwards to Liberia tomorrow. It's just coming up on 16:00. We'll be flying at 16,000 feet. The outside temperature at 10,000 feet will be a pleasant +50F, so let's keep the windows open and enjoy the flight. Incidentally, we'll have about a 15kt tailwind so we'll be getting a good ground speed.



 

 

FLIGHT 152: July 16, 2003 - 06:30
Nnamdi Azikiwe Intl (DNAA), Abuja, Nigeria
Ouagadougou (DFFD), Burkina Faso

It's just coming up on 6:30 AM and we're on our way to Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. We'll be flying at 6,000 feet today so as to get a better look at the terrain and passing over three other countries en route – Benin, Togo and Ghana. The cockpit temperature will be pleasantly in the mid-sixties most of the way and it should be a pretty smooth flight until we head northwards towards Burkina Faso as run into the ITCZ (Inter Tropical Collision Zone) again, where it we will get really bounced around for a while. We have reports of thunder showers in Ouagadougou.

 

FLIGHT 153: July 16, 2003 - 14:30
Ouagadougou (DFFD), Burkina Faso
Lungi Intl (GFLL), Freetown, Sierra Leone

It’s just coming up on 14:30, it's raining like mad, and we’re on our way to Lungi Intl, Freeport, Sierra Leone. This is another one of those marathon days of travel. We’ll be flying at 8,000 feet. We’re still battling the ITCZ (Inter Tropical Collision Zone), however, we’ll escape it en route and things ought to settle down for a very pleasant (but long) flight. We’ll actually be in 5 different countries as part of this trip – Burkina Faso, Mali, the Ivory Coast (Cote dIvoire), Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. We have made reservations at the Cape Sierra Hotel in Freeport. There is no direct commercial air service by local carriers in this developing country that has gone through years of civil unrest – although, peaceful, successful, nationwide elections were held in May 2002. We’ll be heading out tomorrow for Cape Verde.


 

FLIGHT 154: July 17, 2003 - 15:30
Lungi Intl (GFLL), Freetown, Sierra Leone
Amilcar Cabral (GVAC), Cape Verde

 

WE SLEPT IN - it's about 15:30 and we're about to embark on a trip to a place we have been really looking forward to visiting – Cape Verde. We'll be leaving Sierra Leone and flying over Guinea and Senegal en route to Cape Verde. We'll be flying at 10,000 feet. As we approach Cape Verde, we will be flying headlong into a pacific-Atlantic sunset – ought to be beautiful. The weather has cleared, and except for some expected coastal fog and strato- clouds, it looks like a great day for flying – so let's fly the friendly skies!

 

FLIGHT 155: July 21, 2003 - 06:30
Amilcar Cabral (GVAC), Cape Verde
Dakar (GOOY), Senegal

We arrived in Cape Verde last Thursday evening and spent a wonderful time on thi beautiful island. It's now Monday, July 21, 2003 about 6:30 in the morning and it's already +75F. We're about to embark upon another marathon day – Cape Verde to Dakar, Senegal, top off the tanks, grab some lunch and press onwards to the north to the Canary Islands. Our trip to Dakar will be at 9,000 and except for low-level marine cloud cover, we ain't goin'a see much! We will be fighting headwinds of 20-30 kts most of the way. We have a report of a less than 1,500 foot ceiling on approach!

 

FLIGHT 156: July 21, 2003 - 14:00
Dakar (GOOY), Senegal
Gran Cararia (GCLP), Canary Islands

We arrived in Dakar about 09:15 (as expected), filled up the tanks and our tummies and we're on our way to Gran Carania in the Canary Islands. We'll be flying at 7,000 feet over Mauritania and Dakhla and Laayoune (formerly Western Sahara). We're going to see if 7,000 feet is a little less choppy than 9,000. This is going to be a LONG flight. And, at 7,000, it'll be a comfortable +60F, so we can have an open-window flight and sniff the ocean air along the way. This will be one of the longest flights in this trip around the world. The LEFT FUEL and RIGHT FUEL warning lights will likely appear on final approach as we drop below 70 pounds of fuel.


 

FLIGHT 157: July 23, 2003 - 06:00
Gran Cararia (GCLP), Canary Islands
Casablanca (GMMN), Morocco

We arrived in the Canary Islands on Monday and spent a great day yesterday taking in the scenery. It would be great to spend a month here, however we need to get on to Europe as soon as possible – there's much to see there as well. It's Wednesday morning just after 6:00 and we're on our way to Casablanca – like in the movie! However, we're going to take the long way there by cruising over Madeira, Portugal en route. We will spend the afternoon and evening in Casablanca.

 

FLIGHT 158: July 24, 2003 - 06:00
Casablanca (GMMN), Morocco
Tunis (DTTA), Tunisia

We arrived in the Casablanca yesterday afternoon after a very long flight. As a result, we got to the hotel and crashed! We simply stayed at the Sheraton at the airport and got a good rest. It's now just after 6:00 in the morning and we have an exceptionally long day ahead of us – Casablanca to Tunis, then on to Malta. We'll be flying at 11,000 feet on this 900 km trip to Tunis, flying over Algeria en route. We'll follow to Morocco Mountains all the way – i.e., stay north of the sand! Except for a 9-10 kt wind from the NE and some low-level Mediterranean marine clouds, it looks like a great day for flying. So --- let's rock!


 

FLIGHT 159: July 24, 2003 - 17:30
Tunis (DTTA), Tunisia
Malta (LMML)

We arrived in the Tunis a few hours ago, and now we're on the final leg of our trip today – Malta! This will complete our tour of Africa, albeit we did not get to go everywhere we wanted – like Egypt - maybe next time! It's about 17:30 and our flying time should be about 1 hour at 7,000 feet and we'll arrive at about the same time we took-off because of a one hour shift as though going west, even though we are going east – go figure! It's going to be nice to get airborne and get to room temperature – it's a sweltering +98F in the shade! En route, we'll be passing about 15 km south of the island of Pantelleria, Italy, where there's a military airbase.

[Kurusca 19]

PART SIX

 

 

FLIGHT 160: July 25, 2003 - 09:00
Luga, Malta (LMML)
Fontanarossa, Catania, (LICC) Italy

It’s a little past 9:00 on Friday morning, July 25, 2003 as we are beginning our “Tour-de-Europa”. It’s already about +90F in the shade. And, this is another one of those instances where it takes almost as long to taxi to the staging area for takeoff as it does to fly to the destination – Catania, Italy. We’ll be flying at 11,000 feet across the Malta Channel on this 115 nm trip. Albeit we’ll be flying (as always) IFR, the landmark is conspicuous – head towards Mount Etna. We’ll be staying with some close friends of mine in Catania.

 

FLIGHT 161: July 26, 2003 - 09:00
Fontanarossa, Catania, (LICC) Italy
Palermo, (LICJ) Italy

We spent a very pleasant evening at a wonderful café in Catania last evening. This morning, we’re on our way to Palermo, Italy, where we will spend the weekend – our friends will be driving there and meet us later this evening. Our flying time to Palermo will be about two hours as we cruise around the island passing over Reggio de Calabria. We’ll be flying at 10,000 feet and as we depart, we’ll have a great view of Mount Etna to our left.

 

FLIGHT 162: July 28, 2003 - 08:30
Palermo, (LICJ) Italy
Terme, Lamezia, (LICA) Italy

It’s never easy to say “Goodbye” to close friends. However, this IS a trip around the world. And so, we leave Palermo and continue on our journey to Naples, with a stop along the way in Lamezia, Italy. It’s Monday morning about 8:30 and we’ll be flying at 11,000 on this leg and as we fly across the Tyrrhenian Sea, we’ll be passing over the lovely islands of Lipari, Salina, Panarea and Vulcano en route. It is quite a beautiful site when departing Palermo – the cliffs are truly magnificent.


 

FLIGHT 163: July 28, 2003 - 13:30
Terme, Lamezia, (LICA) Italy
Capodichino, Naples, (LIRN) Italy

We had a great brunch at the airport and we’re now pressing onwards to Naples. It’s about 13:30 and we’ll be flying at 12,000 feet on this leg. We are not going to fly directly to Naples – rather, we are going to fly north towards Potenza, then back eastwards over the Brindisi area, continuing north over Bari, then swing eastwards passing over Foggia and then into Naples.

 

 

 

FLIGHT 164: July 29, 2003 - 08:45
Capodichino, Naples, (LIRN) Italy
Urbe, Rome, (LIRU) Italy

We spent a very pleasant evening in Naples and the staff at the Sea Hotel were fantastic. It’s 8:45 in the morning on Tuesday the 29th of July, 2003 and we’re finally on our way to Rome – something we have been very much looking forward to! We’ll be flying at 6,000 feet.


 

FLIGHT 165: August 1, 2003 - 08:00
Urbe, Rome, (LIRU) Italy
Pisa, (LIRP) Italy

Rome is a very special place – you could spend a year in this city and you still would not get enough! And, the past few days have been a lot of fun. But, our trip must continue. So, today, we’ll be flying to Pisa then on to Nice, France where we will be met at the airport by some friends of mine who live in San Remo, Monaco. Our trip to Pisa will be at 11,000 feet, and we’ll not be flying as the crow flies. Rather, we’ll be flying north to Perugia, then east to Ancona, north to Rimini and Forli, then turn westward to pass over Florence then into Pisa.


 

FLIGHT 166: August 1, 2003 - 14:15
Pisa, (LIRP) Italy
Nice, (LFMN) France

We had a pleasant lunch at a small café, overlooking the Ligurian Sea. It’s 14:15 and we’re continuing our trip to San Remo, Monaco. We’ll actually be flying into Nice, France where some friends who live in San Remo will pick us up at the airport and we’ll spend the weekend in Monaco. We’ll be flying at 16,000 feet and our trip will take us northwest to Genoa, then north to Torino so we can see the snow-capped mountains of western Italy, then southwards to Nice.



 

FLIGHT 167: August 4, 2003 - 06:45
Nice, (LFMN) France
Palma de Mallorca, (LEPA) Spain

It’s about 6:45 on Monday August 4, 2003 and we’re leaving Monoca and Nice, France for the island of Palma de Mallorca, Spain. We’ll be flying at 12,000 on this 3 hour trip. We’re going to take the scenic route – northwest towards St. Auban and Pierrelatte, then head south and fly over Marseille/Provence and then on to Mallorca.



 

FLIGHT 168: August 4, 2003 -12:45
Palma de Mallorca, (LEPA) Spain
Madrid, (LETO) Spain

Now this is an island paradise where we’d like to spend about a year! But, as always, we need to keep moving onwards. So, now that we’ve enjoyed the fantastic scenery and cuisine, it’s off to Madrid at 16,000 feet. It’s about 12:45. We’ll be flying due west towards Valencia, then northwest into Madrid. It’s a perfect day for flying – not a cloud in the sky, no wind, no weather. However, there are reports of some coastal fog over Valencia and thunderstorms over Madrid. We’ve made reservations to stay at the Arosa hotel downtown.

 

FLIGHT 169: August 5, 2003 - 08:15
Madrid, (LETO) Spain
Lisbon, (LPPT) Portugal

 

We spent the evening in Madrid nearby the airport at the Arosa hotel. We’re now heading onwards to Lisbon, Portugal. It’s now about 8:15 on August 5, 2003. The weather is pretty miserable, however, indications are that the skies will clear as we head towards Lisbon. As we approach our destination airport, we’ll see the 25th of April bridge – one of the largest suspension bridges in the world. It kind’a looks like the Golden Gate bridge on steroids!


 

FLIGHT 170: August 5, 2003 - 14:15
Lisbon, (LPPT) Portugal
Francisco Sa Carneiro, Porto, (LPPR) Portugal

We’ve enjoyed a pleasant lunch at the Lisbon airport and it’s now about 14:15 and we’re continuing on our trip to the city of Porto, Portugal where we will be met by some long standing friends of mine. We’ll spend the night in Porto, then press onwards in the morning. We'll be flying at 11,000 feet. The current temperature in Lisbon is +100F in the shade – I can’t wait to get airborne to cool off!

 

FLIGHT 171: August 6, 2003 - 07:30
Francisco Sa Carneiro, Porto, (LPPR) Portugal
Merignac, Bordeaux, (LFBD) France

 

We spent a very pleasant evening with our friends in Porto and it’s time to move on. It’s about 7:30 in the morning and we’re heading to Bordeaux, France, then on to Cognac, France – two places I have always wanted to visit (for obvious reasons). Our trip to Bordeaux will be about 460 nm, and we’ll be flying at 11,000 feet. Except for some low-level cloud cover and intermittent thunderstorms below us, it should be a rather smooth flight.



 

FLIGHT 172: August 6, 2003 - 20:30
Bordeaux, (LFBD) France
Cognac – Brie-Champniers, (LFBG) France

As agreed upon, you get to pilot this short flight to Cognac – I’ve been enjoying Bordeaux wine and I am in no condition to fly. In other words, this is a 75 nm solo-flight. THEN – it’ll be your turn to savor the local beverages. It’s 20:30 in the early evening, it’s a balmy +80F and it's as clear as a bell. We should arrive about 21:20 and be heading into a sunset on runway 280 in a light summer thundershower.

 

FLIGHT 173: August 8, 2003 - 07:00
Cognac, (LFBG) France
Channel Islands, (EGJJ) UK

Wednesday evening and yesterday noon we enjoyed the best-of-the-best in terms of French wines! Today we’re off to Jersey in the Channel Islands. It’s dawn, on Friday August 8, 2003 and we’ll be cruising at 8,000 feet to the islands. Our trip will take us north over Poitiers, westwards towards Nantes, then north passing Rennes and down into the islands.

 

FLIGHT 174: August 8, 2003 - 16:45
Channel Islands, (EGJJ) UK
Paris, (LFPO) France

It’s 16:45 and we’ve spent the past few hours filling our plane and stomachs and taking in the scenery. We’re now going to head off to Paris for the weekend. We’ll be flying at 7,000 feet to Orly – it’s not quite as busy as Charles De Gaulle airport. We have confirmed reservations at the Hotel Splendid in downtown Paris.

 

FLIGHT 175: August 12, 2003 - 06:45
Paris, (LFPO) France
Brussels, (EBBR) Belgium

It’s Tuesday, August 12, 2003 at 6:45 in the morning and we’re leaving Paris for Brussels. We got to the airport early to avoid the rush hour traffic. The weather has been blistering hot over the past few days. Over 3,000 people in France alone have died with the intense heat! We'll grab some breakfast (maybe Belgium Waffles --- ha) and then head onwards to Tavaux airport in Dole, France.

 

 

 

FLIGHT 176: August 12, 2003 - 13:30
Brussels, (EBBR) Belgium
Tavaux, Dole (LFGJ) France

It’s now 13:30 and we’re departing for Tavaux airport in Dole in the Dijon area. We'll be flying at 9,000 feet. Once again, we’ll top off the tanks and our tummies and then press on to Geneva – a short hop of about 70 kts.


 

FLIGHT 177: August 12, 2003
Tavaux, Dole (LFGJ) France - 18:15
Geneva, (LSGG) Switzerland

It’s now 18:15 and we’re departing for Geneva. It’s a relatively short flight of about 85 miles so we should arrive just before 19:00. We have reports of some pretty choppy air coming off of the Swiss Alps and there are also reports of thunderstorms around Lake Geneva. We’ve made reservations to stay at the Best Western Hotel Astoria.



 

FLIGHT 178: August 13, 2003 - 08:15
Geneva, (LSGG) Switzerland
Sion, (LSGS) Switzerland

 

It’s Wednesday, August 13, 2003 at 8:15 in the morning and we’re heading into the “hills”. This is a very short flight the way the “crow-flies”. So, if you listen to ATC, they’ll give you the direct approach. However, I have created a flight plan that goes on a more scenic route – down Lake Geneva, past Lausanne, northeast to Bern, then “in the back door” to Sion, passing over some 10,000 foot high “hills”. So, if you want the scenic route, right after ATC assigns runway 25 at Sion, “Cancel IFR”, climb to 12,500 feet and follow the route in the GPS. Otherwise, let ATC guide you to Sion. Incidentally, besides the intermittent thunderstorms in the Geneva area, it’s pretty choppy up there! We should arrive in Sion about 9:30 if you take the scenic route!

 

FLIGHT 179: August 13, 2003 - 16:45
Sion, (LSGS) Switzerland
Lugano, (LSZA) Switzerland

It’s Wednesday, August 13, 2003 about 16:45. We elected to take the scenic route and arrived here in Sion about 9:35. We had a delightful breakfast, took in some of the scenery, had a late lunch and now we’re on our way to Lugano to spend a few days with my brother who lives there. We’ll be climbing to 15,000 on this leg. Right after lift-off, get over to the right and hug the hills, because ATC will have you turn left – not a pretty sight if you haven’t got enough airspace! Also, when ATC tells you to turn left to a heading of 100 right after takeoff, acknowledge but delay the turn until you reach the mountain dead-ahead. We’ve got to clear some pretty awesome mountains when we loop back over the airport! On approach into Lugano, execute the approach checklist on base, then have me start the visual approach once we're on a heading of 175 degrees... it's a hell-uv-a drop into Lugano!

FLIGHT 180: August 16, 2003 - 09:45
Lugano, (LSZA) Switzerland
Bergamo, (LIME) Italy

It was a real delight visiting Tony and his family – we had a ball. It’s now 9:45 in the morning on Saturday August 16, 2003 and we’re off to Bergamo to meet up with some friends of mine. We’ll spend the weekend in Bergamo.


 

FLIGHT 181: August 18, 2003 - 06:45
Bergamo, (LIME) Italy
Innsbruck, (LOWI) Austria

It’s 6:45 in the morning on August 18, 2003 and we’re on our way to Innsbruck Austria. Our route will take us due north towards St. Gallen so that we can fly over the tiny country of Liechtenstein en route to Innsbruck. To do this, head 45 degrees (instead of 25 degrees) at waypoint LSZR507, then head 15 degrees to St. Gallen (wink-wink). ATC will no doubt nag you to get back on course, but at least you will have seen Liechtenstein. We’ll be flying at 15,000 feet and should arrive about 8:30. The heat wave has not yet let up in Europe – it’s over +90F this early in the morning. And, it’s muggy! Can’t wait to get airborne! We’ll experience some choppy air over the Alps and we’ll be battling 20-25 knot winds from the east. There are reports of light thunderstorms in the Innsbruck area. We'll likelt be landing on runway Visual 8... it's a challenge!

 

FLIGHT 182: August 18, 2003 - 11:30
Innsbruck, (LOWI) Austria
Vienna, (LOWW) Austria

Well, the weather has cleared and the skies are blue! We’re on our way to Vienna. It’s now 11:30 and we’ll be flying at 13,000 feet. Our trip will take us over Salzburg and Linz and then direct into Vienna where we will spend the evening. On departing from Innsbruck, acknowledge but IGNORE all of the ATC directives. Simply make your way around the mountains until you can get back on the GPS route.

 

FLIGHT 183: August 19, 2003 - 07:30
Vienna, (LOWW) Austria

Frankfurt, (EDDF) Germany

We spent an extremely pleasant evening in Vienna – what a beautiful city. It’s 7:30 in the morning on August 19, 2003 and we’re on our way to Frankfurt, Germany. The heat has let up a bit (which is good news). However, the winds are really gusty this morning – from 15 to 30 kts. Our trip will take us north over Prague and then west southwest over Nurnberg and then up into Frankfurt. Except for battling 20 kts headwinds, the flight should be pretty uneventful. We’ll be flying at 12,000 feet.




FLIGHT 184: August 19, 2003 - 16:45
Frankfurt, (EDDF) Germany
Schiphol, Amsterdam, (EHAM) The Netherlands

We’ve enjoyed our lunch, walked around the massive Frankfurt airport and now we’re on our way to the Netherlands by flying due west to Luxembourg then north to Amsterdam. I have created a flight plan that will do a loop-de-loop around Luxembourg that’ll give us a good look at the area. We’ll be flying at 6,000 feet. We’ll spend the night in Amsterdam and head out in the morning for Denmark via Hamburg.



 

FLIGHT 185: August 20, 2003 - 10:30
Schiphol, Amsterdam, (EHAM) The Netherlands
Hamburg, (EDDH) Germany

Our flight will take us northeast from Amsterdam towards Groningen, then due east to Karlshofen, Germany and finally into Hamburg. We’ll be cruising at 9,000 feet this morning.


 

FLIGHT 186: August 20, 2003 - 12:10
Hamburg, (EDDH) Germany
Copenhagen, (EKCH) Denmark

We arrived in Hamburg a little past noon hour, had some lunch (… could it have been a hamburger???) and now we’re continuing our trip today to Denmark. We’ll be flying at 5,000 feet on this 150 km leg. We should enjoy a 15-20 knot partial tailwind en route.

 

FLIGHT 187: August 21, 2003 - 07:00
Copenhagen, (EKCH) Denmark
Stockholm, (ESSA) Sweden

It’s just approaching 7:00 in the morning on August 21, 3003 and we’re leaving Copenhagen, Denmark for Arlanda airport in Stockholm Sweden. We’ll be cruising at 11,000 feet. It’s a pleasant +72 degrees and we should have a relatively smooth flight once we are at our cruising speed.


 

 

 

FLIGHT 188: August 21, 2003 - 09:55
Stockholm, (ESSA) Sweden
Gardermoen, Oslo, (ENGM) Norway

We’ll be flying at 10,000 feet on our two hour thirty minute flight to Oslo; meaning we will arrive about 16:00. Except for some high clouds, this should be a very pleasant and uneventful flight. When we arrive, we’ll gas up, grab some food and head onwards to Flesland airport in Bergen, Norway where we will spend the evening.

 

FLIGHT 189: August 21, 2003 - 20:15
Gardermoen, Oslo, (ENGM) Norway
Bergen, (ENBR) Norway

It’s a beautiful summer’s evening and despite fighting 20-25 knot headwinds on this last leg for today, we should have a great flight. And, we’ll be flying straight into a northern hemisphere sunset on our 10,000 foot elevated trip while cruising over low-level cloud cover. We’ve made arrangements for late arrival at the Golden Tulip Rainbow Hotel near the Bergen airport.

 

FLIGHT 190: August 22, 2003 - 09:15
Bergen, (ENBR) Norway
Sumburgh, (EGPB) UK

This is not too much of a surprise – we’re leaving Bergen, Norway for Sumburgh, UK and already it’s beginning to rain! It’s seems the minute one mentions UK, it begins to rain – ha! In any case, it’s a pleasant +60F at 9:15 in the morn, and we’ll be flying at 6,000 on this short trip to Sumburgh. The winds a gusty from 240 at about 10 kts and we’ll be battling 25 to 35 knot headwinds most of the way.

 

FLIGHT 191: August 22, 2003 - 14:15
Sumburgh, (EGPB) UK
Aberdeen, Scotland, (EGPD) UK

We arrived in Sumburgh a little past 11:30 and it’s now just coming up on 14:15 and we’re on our way to Aberdeen, Scotland where we will spend the evening. The winds are gusting and the temperature is around +55F degrees. We’ll be cruising at 6,000 feet. Our trip will take us towards Kirkwall, then south over Wick and down into Aberdeen.


 

 

 

FLIGHT 192: August 23, 2003 - 08:00
Aberdeen, Scotland, (EGPD) UK
Manchester, England, (EGCC) UK

It’s Saturday morning about 8:00 and we’re going on a real sight-seeing tour of the UK. Our destination for today is Shoreham in the south of England. The first leg of our trip will be at 7,000 feet and will take us over Scone and Dundee, then south over Edinburgh, continuing south to Tweed, then due west to Prestwick. We then will head southeast towards New Galloway and continue eastwards to Carlisle. From there we will head due east to Newcastle, south over Teesside, York and Church Fenton, and head west past Leeds Bradford, Pole Hill into our first leg destination - Manchester. There are reports of intermittent, but extremely low cloud-cover near Manchester.



 

FLIGHT 193: August 23, 2003 - 14:00
Manchester, England, (EGCC) UK
Shoreham, England, (EGKA) UK

We depart runway 24R and then turn southwest over Whitegate and continue down the road to Tetenhill, where we turn east again, past the East Midlands, past Fenland and over to Norwich. Then it’s southwest to Cambridge, over to Bourn, Castlemill and over to Cranfield. We then turn south and head directly for Shoreham. We’ll be cruising at 6,000 feet on this leg. We’ll spend a couple of days in Shoreham visiting friends.



 

FLIGHT 194: August 26, 2003
Shoreham, England, (EGKA) UK
Dublin, (EIDW) Republic of Ireland

We had a very pleasant stay in Shoreham visiting our friends. It’s dawn on Tuesday, August 26, 2003 and we’re heading for Dublin Ireland. Our trip will take us northwest over Farnborough, Compton and west towards Lyneham. Then northwest again passing just west of Gloucestershire and then head 310 all the way to Dublin passing over Montgomeryshire as we leave England. We’ll be flying at 11,000 over low cloud cover most of the trip and we should arrive just before 9:00. We’ll grab some breakfast at the airport and continue on to Belfast via the Isle of Man.


 

FLIGHT 195: August 26, 2003 - 15:00
Dublin, (EIDW) Republic of Ireland
Belfast, (EGAA) Northern Ireland

Well, we stuffed our faces and we’re off to Belfast, via the Isle of Man (the scenic route). This is a relatively short flight and we’ll be flying at 3,000 feet. We’ll spend the early afternoon in Belfast, then head on to Vagar in the Faroe Islands where we will spend the evening.
 

 

FLIGHT 196: August 26, 2003 - 18:00
Belfast, (EGAA) Northern Ireland
Vagar, (EKVG) Faroe Islands

It only took us about 15 minutes by bus to get downtown. “Well Hello Dare Now” was the phrase most heard during our afternoon excursion. We enjoyed a late lunch and we’re back at the airport determined to get to the Faroe Islands this evening. We’ve made reservations at the Hotel Hafnia and described it as a late arrival. We’ll be cruising at 10,000 feet. We can expect a remarkable sunset on approach into Vagar in light rain!


 

FLIGHT 197: August 27, 2003 - 15:30
Vagar, (EKVG) Faroe Islands
Reykjavik, (BIRK) Iceland

Vagar Airport, the international airport in the Faroes, is located on the island of Vágoy. We were told that a tunnel link is under construction but because this is yet to be completed, we enjoyed a short ferry crossing to get to our hotel. We didn’t arrive at the hotel until 23:30, so we didn’t see very much of the islands on arrival. However, this morning we took a run around and took in the local fare. It’s now 15:30 and we’re on our way to Reykjavik, Iceland. Our flying time will be about 3:30 at 12,000 feet. We’ll be battling 30-35 knot headwinds most of the way. We have made reservations to stay at the Hotel Loftleidir Reykjavik.

 

FLIGHT 198: August 28, 2003 - 06:00
Reykjavik, (BIRK) Iceland
Narsarsuaq, (BGBW) Greenland

The Hotel Loftleidir in Reykjavik is rated ninth-best based on 6 sources, but you could have fooled us – it was GREAT! It’s just coming up on 6:00 and we’re on our way to Greenland. Except for a 20-25 knot headwind, our 675 km trip ought to be a pretty uneventful flight – the skies look very friendly. We should arrive in Narsarsuaq, Greenland about 7:30 local time (considering the 3 hour time zone shift). This is a very long 4 and a half hour flight, so make sure the cowls are firmly closed, the engine is nice, warm and cozy and keep the airspeed about 150 knots – let’s conserve fuel!

 

FLIGHT 199: August 28, 2003 - 12:10
Narsarsuaq, (BGBW) Greenland
Goose Bay, Newfoundland, (CYYR) Canada

During the summer, South Greenland lives up to its name of “green land”. It’s just past noon hour. We’ve stretched our legs, filled our tummies and topped off the tanks. Now, we’re heading onwards to Goose Bay, Newfoundland. This is another 675 km trip, only this time we’ll probably be fighting stronger headwinds. So, once again, let’s conserve fuel! Incidentally, clearing customs in Goose Bay required prior notification and we took care of that from the UK last week, so it ought to go smoothly. Besides which – I’m Canadian! We have made reservations to spend the evening at the North Hotel in Goose Bay.

 

 

 

FLIGHT 200: August 29, 2003 - 06:15
Goose Bay, Newfoundland, (CYYR) Canada
Dorval Airport, Montreal, (CYUL) Quebec

Finally, we’re on our way to my hometown – Montreal, Quebec, Canada. I was born in the city of Verdun on the island of Montreal too many years ago to mention. We’ll be flying at 6,000 feet southwest towards Sept-Isles (Seven-Islands), then up the mighty St. Lawrence river, passing over Rimouski and Quebec City, then over what is called the “South Shore” towards the island of Montreal. As we pass over the island, you will see off to the left the sports center, the downtown area and St. Joseph’s Oratory atop the “mount real”.

[Kurusca 19]

PART SEVEN

 

 

FLIGHT 201: September 1, 2003 - 06:15
Dorval Airport, Montreal, Quebec, (CYUL) Canada
Taunton, Massachusetts, (KTAN) USA

We will get an early start on our trip to Taunton, Massachusetts, by departing Montreal’s Dorval airport at 6:15 on Labor Day in the US. We’re heading to Taunton because that’s where my wife was born and we’ll drop in to see the “fam”. Incidentally, Dorval airport, is another one of these brilliantly designed facilities, that mandates almost as much time to get from the General Aviation area to the take-off staging area, as it does to fly to your destination (well it seems like it) – it’s a dumb design! Except for some gusty winds here and there, it’s a relatively nice morning for flying and the temperature is already +66F. We’ll be flying at 7,000 feet.


 

FLIGHT 202: September 1, 2003 - 19:15
Taunton, Massachusetts, (KTAN) USA
Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, (KMVY) USA

 

We spent a great time with the “fam” over lunch and made the afternoon round-trip visit. We’re going to head on to Martha’s Vineyard where we have made reservations to stay at the Surfside Hotel – just 15 minutes from the airport. The weather is fine and our late evening meal should be enjoyable. We’ll get an early start in the morning for the Bahamas with a couple of stops along the way.


 

FLIGHT 203: September 2, 2003 - 06:45
Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, (KMVY) USA
First Flight, North Carolina, (KFFA) USA

Indeed, the meal was great at the Surfside Hotel Captains Table Restaurant. Today we’re going to do something “special”. We’re going to fly down the coastline to North Carolina – IFR destination “First Flight Airstrip”. That’s right, where the Wright Brothers made their first flight. We’ll fuel up and rest our legs then head over to Bermuda.
 

 

FLIGHT 204: September 2, 2003 - 14:20
First Flight, North Carolina, (KFFA) USA
Bermuda (TXKF)

Here we are where the Wright Brothers did their thing! We’ve had some lunch and topped of the tanks. It’s about 14:20, and we’re pressing onwards to Bermuda at 11,000 feet. We’ll be receiving favorable tailwinds of about 20 knots, so we should make good time to Bermuda. Bermuda is reporting low cloud cover in the 2,000 to 4,000 foot range. We’ve made reservations to stay at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess hotel, about 30 minutes from the airport.

 

 

 

FLIGHT 205: September 3, 2003 - 07:00
Bermuda (TXKF)
Nassau International, (MYNN) Bahamas

Well, best laid plans! We were going to spend a few days in Bermuda. However, there’s news of Hurricane Fabian gaining strength off the coast of the Virgin Islands, and it’s heading due north. So, it’s time to get out of here! The prudent thing would be to fly back to North Carolina, however, we can make the Bahamas with an estimated 100 pounds of fuel in reserve. It’s about an 7 hour 30 minute flight – meaning we’ll arrive about 12:30 with the one hour time shift. We’ll be cruising at 11,000. We’ll be fighting 15-20 knot winds to start, then, we should garner some favorable tailwinds towards the end of our trip. We have reports of thunderstorm activity near Nassau. So, let’s get going.

 

FLIGHT 206: September 5, 2003 - 07:00
Nassau International, (MYNN) Bahamas
Turks and Caicos (MBPV)

Once again, we were planning on spending a nice relaxing few days in the Bahamas at the British Colonial Hilton of Nassau the Bahamas, in lieu of Bermuda. However, now we are looking at the weather forecast and there’s another hurricane named “Henri” that’s building up force on the west side of the Florida peninsula, so, here we go again. Let’s get out’ta here! We’ll continue our journey around the world ahead of schedule and call ahead to the Royal West Indies Resort in the Turks and Caicos and see if we can get in 3 days earlier than expected. We’ll fly on down to the Turks at 7,000 feet. The weather in the Turks and Caicos is reported as being fair with temperatures in the low 70s. We’ll stay on the islands until Friday– September 12.

 

FLIGHT 207: September 9, 2003 - 07:10
Turks and Caicos (MBPV)
Norman Manley Intl, (MKJP) Jamaica

There’s little doubt that we could have picked a better time of the year to traverse the Caribbean from the standpoint of weather – this is hurricane season. We had planned on staying in the Turks until Friday, however, there’s yet another “monster” building in the Leeward Islands – “Isabel”. Therefore, we’re going to move on – quickly. It’s a beautiful day in the Turks and it’s painful to depart. Nonetheless, it’s flying time! We’ll need to top off the tanks since we have been island hopping the past few days around the Turks and Caicos. We’ll be cruising at 12,000 feet en route to Jamaica. We should arrive at the Norman Manley International airport in Kingston mid-morrning, where we will fill our tummies and tanks and press on to the Caymans.

 

FLIGHT 208: September 9, 2003 - 13:45
Norman Manley Intl, (MKJP) Jamaica
Owen Roberts Intl, (MWCR) Grand Cayman

It’s now 13:45 on September 9, 2003 and we’re on our way to the Cayman Islands – Robert’s International airport on Grand Cayman to be exact. We’ll be flying at 10,000 on this leg. Our flying time will be about 2:45 in nice weather conditions, meaning we should arrive about 16:00. We’ve moved ahead our reservations at the Victoria House Hotel located on 350 feet of Cayman’s famous seven-mile beach. Regrettably, we’ll only be spending the night here – we need to get ahead of “Isabel”.


FLIGHT 209: September 10, 2003 - 06:30
Owen Roberts Intl, (MWCR) Grand Cayman
Port Au Prince, (MTPP) Haiti
San Juan, (TJSJ) Puerto Rico

Weather forecasters said it is possible that Isabel could reach near 145 mph (232 km/h) winds today. At 16:00 ADT yesterday, the Hurricane Center said Isabel was 930 miles (800 nm) east of the northern Leeward Islands, moving west-northwest near 14 mph (22 km/h). So, the way I have it figured, in 3 days we could be in a heap of trouble! We can either tie down the Bravo and hope the storm turns more northward, or make a run for Venezuela - I vote for the latter. This means we will need to simply do “fly-bys” over some of our intended destinations and cancel our hotel reservations. So, let’s fly directly to San Juan, Puerto Rico. Now this is a LONG flight – about 8 hours. And, despite the forecasted 10-15 knot headwinds, we should be able to make it without a fuel-stop along the way. If I’ve got it calculated correctly, we’ll still have about 90 pounds of fuel remaining when we reach San Juan. We’ll have thunderstorms to keep us entertained during the trip! We should arrive in San Juan a little past 15:00 local time – considering the one-hour time shift.


 

FLIGHT 210: September 10, 2003
Port Au Prince, (MTPP) Haiti
Santo Domingo, (MDSD) Dominican Republic

Fly-By…

 

FLIGHT 211: September 10, 2003
Santo Domingo, (MDSD) Dominican Republic
San Juan, (TJSJ) Puerto Rico

Fly-By…


 

FLIGHT 212: September 10, 2003 - 18:45
San Juan, (TJSJ) Puerto Rico
St. Thomas, (TIST) US Virgin Islands

We were unable to orchestrate a change in our reservations in San Juan and everything is booked-up. However, we were able to book rooms at the Anchorage Hotel in St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands. So, despite the fact that we have just completed an arduous eight-hour flight from the Cayman Islands, we needed to hop on our horse and make another sixty-mile trip to St. Thomas. We have grabbed a very late lunch and we’re now ready to head over to St. Thomas at 7,000 feet. We'll be staring at a wonderful moonrise en route!


 

FLIGHT 213: September 11, 2003 - 11:40
St. Thomas, (TIST) US Virgin Islands
Beef Island, (TUPJ) British Virgin Islands

Despite the news that Isabel is heading towards the upper Caribbean islands, I still think it would be prudent to get out of the area completely as soon as possible. So, I have been on the phone all morning changing our hotel reservations for our continuing trip. It’s now 11:40 and we’re on our way to Beef Island in the British Virgin Islands where we will grab some lunch. It’ll only take about 15 minutes to get there at 3,000 feet. And, it’s a lovely +85F outside!


FLIGHT 214: September 11, 2003 - 15:00
Beef Island, (TUPJ) British Virgin Islands
Wallblake, (TQPF) Anguilla

We had a very enjoyable lunch, we’ve topped off the tanks and now we’re on our way to Wallblake, Anguilla. Our flying time will be about one hour at 3,000 feet. It ought to be a very pleasant flight. We should arrive just in time for tea.


 

FLIGHT 215: September 11, 2003 - 18:30
Wallblake, (TQPF) Anguilla
St. Maarten, Princess Juliana Intl (TNCM) Netherlands Antilles

We had an opportunity to do some site seeing and visited the Wallblake House. Built in 1787, it is the oldest and only surviving plantation house on Anguilla. It is one of the few plantation houses in the Caribbean where the entire complex of buildings including the kitchen, stable and workers quarters have survived virtually intact. We’re now on our way at 2,000 feet to St. Maarten Island in the Netherlands Antilles, a 10 mile trip, where we will spend the evening. We have confirmed reservations at the Summit Resort. It’s just coming up on 18:30 and we should arrive in St. Maarten in about 25 minutes.


 

FLIGHT 216: September 12, 2003 - 06:45
St. Maarten, Princess Juliana Intl (TNCM) Netherlands Antilles
St. Kitts Island, (TKPK) St. Kitts and Nevis

We had a short but pleasant stay at the Summit Resort. We learned that the island’s name, St. Maarten was pronounced by the locals as Soualiga, or "Salt Island" after its main mineral deposit and we could see the remains of the Great Salt Pond near Philipsburg. We’re getting an early start. Our flying time to the Robert L. Bradshaw airport on St. Kitts, will be about 45 minutes. The weather looks good – so here we go!


 

FLIGHT 217: September 12, 2003 - 10:15
St. Kitts Island, (TKPK) St. Kitts and Nevis
St. Johns, (TAPA) Antigua and Barbuda

We had an interesting chat with the local aviators about island-hopping. And, we had this conversation over too many cups of coffee. Now - it’s flying-time. It’s about 10:15 and we’re on our way to V.C. Bird International airport in St. Johns, Antigua and Barbuda. We’ll be flying at 3,000 feet on the 50-mile trip.


 

FLIGHT 218: September 12, 2003 - 14:45
St. Johns, (TAPA) Antigua and Barbuda
Pointe-A-Pitre, (TFFR) Guadeloupe

We had a fantastic lunch at the Big Banana 17° 61° restaurant. The name 17° 61° comes from the longitude and latitude of Antigua & Barbuda. It’s now 14:45, and we’re on our way to Le Raizet airport in Pointe-A-Pitre, Guadeloupe. Our flying time will be about 45 minutes at 3,000 feet on a beautiful Caribbean day for flying. We have confirmed reservations at the Marigot hotel where we will spend the next few days and press onwards early Monday morning.
 

 

 

FLIGHT 219: September 15, 2003 - 06:00
Pointe-A-Pitre, (TFFR) Guadeloupe
Roseau, (TDCF) Dominica

We spent a very pleasant weekend at the Marigot hotel in Guadeloupe. It’s just coming up on 6:00 and we’re getting an early start on some serious island-hopping today. On this leg, we’ll be flying at 7,000 feet to Canefield International airport in Roseau, Dominica. It’s only about a 60 mile flight, so we should arrive about 6:45.


 

FLIGHT 220: September 15, 2003 - 07:30
Roseau, (TDCF) Dominica
Ft. De France, (TFFF) Martinique

We’ve had a chance to rap with the guys in the tower, share some stories and fill up on coffee. It’s about 7:30, and we’re continuing our trip to Martinique – about the same distance as the previous flight (50 miles). So, we should arrive about 8:45. We’ll climb up to 7,000 feet to see if we can avoid some of the low-level turbulence.

 

FLIGHT 221: September 15, 2003 - 11:15
Ft. De France, (TFFF) Martinique
Hewanorra Intl, St. Lucia (TLPL)

We enjoyed a fantastic Creole breakfast at the airport restaurant. In fact, it was exceptional. It’s about 11:15 and we’re continuing our trip to Hewanorra International airport in St. Lucia. Once again, this is about a 50-mile flight so we should arrive about noon. We’ll be flying at 6,000 feet. NOTE: Take care when taxiing to the strip – its pretty rough!


 

FLIGHT 222: September 15, 2003 - 14:50
Hewanorra Intl, St. Lucia (TLPL)
St. Georges, (TGPY) Grenada

We took a spin around the island and now we’re on our way to Port Salines airport in St. Georges, Grenada. We’ll be passing over the islands of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Union Island en route. It’s now 14:50 and we’ll be cruising at 8,000 feet.

 

FLIGHT 223: September 15, 2003 - 18:00
St. Georges, (TGPY) Grenada
Barbados (TBPB)

It’s now 18:00 and we’re about to embark on the final leg for today. Destination – Barbados, where we will spend the next few days. We’ll be cruising at 7,000 on this flight and we should arrive in Barbados about 20:20. There are reports of scattered thunderstorms in the Barbados area, but no precipitation. We ought to see a beautiful twilight at our 8 o'clock.



 

 

 

FLIGHT 224: September 18, 2003 - 09:30
Barbados (TBPB)
Trinidad and Tobago (TTCP)

It’s 9:30 Thursday September 18, 2003 and we’ve just spent a couple of fantastic days in Barbados – this is a “real” paradise! Alas, we’re on our way again. We’ll be flying to Trinidad and Tobago at 6,000 feet on this 190-mile trip. The weather looks good – a hell’uva a lot better than North Carolina! We should arrive about 10:15. On approach, we’ll see our next destination – the tip of Venezuela.

 

FLIGHT 225: September 22, 2003 - 08:30
Trinidad and Tobago (TTCP)
Maturin, (SVMT) Venezeula

We spend a fantastic long weekend at the Crown Point Beach Hotel in Trinidad and Tobago. It’s just coming up on 8:30 on Monday September 22, 2003 and we are continuing our trip around the world – heading for Maturin, Venezuela. We’ll be cruising at 8,000 feet on a pleasant day. The current temperature is about 90F degrees.


 

FLIGHT 226: September 22, 2003 - 11:00
Maturin, (SVMT) Venezeula
Cheddi Jagan Intl, (SYCJ) Guyana

We're going to stop just long enough to top off the fuel, enjoy some Venezuelan coffee and hit the friendly skies en route to Guyana. We’ll be flying at 11,000 feet on this 350-mile trip. But for bucking 10-15 knot headwinds, this ought to be a very smooth flight. We’ll grab some lunch, then head off late afternoon for Suriname.

 

FLIGHT 227: September 22, 2003 - 17:50
Cheddi Jagan Intl, (SYCJ) Guyana
Zandery, (SMJP) Suriname

We had a very enjoyable lunch at the Woodbine Hotel where we met a group of travelers from Canada. It’s now just approaching 18:00 and we’re on our last leg for the day – the J. A. Pengel International airport in Zandery, Suriname. Our flying time will be about 1:25 minutes at 5,000 feet. We’ll arrive just after dusk. We have confirmed reservations at the Hotel Torarica - located in Paramaribo, the capital of Suriname.

 

FLIGHT 228: September 23, 2003 - 07:30
Zandery, (SMJP) Suriname
Cayenne, (SOCA) French Guiana

It’s about 7:30 and we’re on our way to French Guiana – about a one hour thirty minute flight. We’ll be flying at 3,000 feet to get a better view of the area. It should be a pretty smooth flight, although there are reports of thunderstorms in the area of the Rochambeau airport in Cayenne, French Guiana.



 

 

FLIGHT 229: September 23, 2003 - 11:30
Cayenne, (SOCA) French Guiana
Val de Caes, (SBBE) Brazil

Since all private aircraft over-flying or landing for noncommercial purposes in Brazil must give 24-hour prior notice (to both the Department of Civil Aviation and to the airports of landing), we have indeed been given prior approval and we have the acknowledgements on board the aircraft during our flights into or across Brazilian territory. We’ve filled our tummies and the aircraft’s tanks and we’re off to Brazil – Val de Caes airport to be exact. It’s 11:30 and there is still thunderstorm activity in the area. We’ll be flying at 7,000 feet on this leg. We have confirmed our reservations at the Hotel Vila Rica Belem – about 15 minutes from the airport.


FLIGHT 230: September 24, 2003 - 10:00
Val de Caes, (SBBE) Brazil
Fortaleza, (SBFZ) Brazil

It’s 10:00 on Wednesday, September 24, 2003 and we’re on our way to the Pinto Martins airport in Fortaleza, Brazil – another long flight. We’ll be cruising at 7,000 feet and it looks like another great day for flying. The current temperature is about 85F degrees and at our cruising altitude it ought to be a comfortable 60F. We should arrive mid-afternoon. We will be spending the next couple of evenings at the Meliá Confort Fortaleza hotel - strategically located at the 'Volta da Jurema', a sophisticated area in Fortaleza, only minutes away from the city's gastronomical and leisure centers and close to the Pinto Martins International Airport.

 

FLIGHT 231: September 26, 2003 - 06:45
Fortaleza, (SBFZ) Brazil
Recife, (SBRF) Brazil

It’s just after dawn on Friday September 26, 2003 and we’re on our way to Recife – my most favorite city in the world. I cannot even begin to tell people how much I have enjoyed my various trips to this area. This is going to be a pleasant flight – just over 330 nautical miles. We’ll be flying at 5,000 feet on this leg. We have confirmed our reservations at the lovely Recife Palace Lucsim Hotel.

 

FLIGHT 232: September 29, 2003 - 09:15
Recife, (SBRF) Brazil
Salvador, (SBSV) Brazil

It’s just coming up on 9:15 on Monday, September 29, 2003 and we’re about to embark on our trip to Salvador, Brazil. We’ll be cruising at a comfortable 6,000 feet and the weather looks to be great. I am sad to leave Recife, since it is (as I have pointed out earlier) the one place in the world I really love. The people are great – the food is great – the music is great – the entire place is great. But, it’s time to leave paradise! We'll be following the Atlantic coastline for the entire flight to Salvador, so there air will be periodically unstable.

 

FLIGHT 233: September 29, 2003 - 15:00
Salvador, (SBSV) Brazil
Brasilia, (SBBR) Brazil

We had a great lunch and we’re now on our way to Brasilia – the capital of Brazil. It’s just coming up on 15:00 and our three-hour, forty-five minute flight should have us arriving about 18:00. There are reports of light rain in the capital. We have confirmed our reservations at the Kubitschek Plaza hotel – named after the founder of Brasilia, Juscelino Kubitschek.


FLIGHT 234: September 30, 2003 - 09:00
Brasilia, (SBBR) Brazil
Campo Grande, (SBCG) Brazil

It’s just coming up on 9:00 and we’re on our way to Campo Grande. We’ll be flying at 8,000 feet on this leg and we should arrive a lttle after noon – just in time for lunch.

 

FLIGHT 235: September 30, 2003 - 15:00
Campo Grande, (SBCG) Brazil
Campo Fontenelle, (SBYS) Brazil

We had a great lunch! We’ll be cruising at 9,000 feet en route to Campo Fontenelle in Piracununga. The weather looks fantastic and we should have a great flight. The forecast for Piracununga is 68F degrees! We’ll grab some dinner, then head on to our final destination – Rio!

 

FLIGHT 236: September 30, 2003 - 22:00
Campo Fontenelle, (SBYS) Brazil
Rio De Janeiro, (SBGL) Brazil

Well, it’s been a long day and we’ve traveled a great distance, but we’re anxious to get to Rio! It’s only another 230 miles the way the crows fly, so we’re going to press onwards. We’ll be staying at a friend’s place, so a late arrival is not a problem. We’ll be cruising at 13,000 on this beautiful evening. We'll arrive in Rio approaching midnight.

[Kurusca 19]

PART EIGHT

 

 

FLIGHT 237: October 6, 2003 - 06:30
Rio De Janeiro, Brazil (SBGL)
Sao Paulo, Brazil (SBSP)

Well, Rio is everything it promised – and then some. We arrived on the evening of September 30 and stayed with some close friends right on the Copacabana beach. It was a wonderful stay. We’re now begin our final chapter in our trip around the world in our Mooney Bravo. It’s about 6:30, just after dawn and the weather’s not all that great, but the flight should be uneventful in any case. It’s 70F degrees and humid. We probably won’t get off the ground till close to 7:00 since we still need to file our flight plan and taxi over to the end of this 13,300 foot runway - 28. We’ll be flying to Sao Paulo today at 10,000 feet.

 

FLIGHT 238: October 6, 2003 - 10:00
Sao Paulo, Brazil (SBSP)
Florianopolis, Brazil (SBFL)

We’ve had a great breakfast at the terminal and we’re pressing onwards to Hercilio Luz, International airport in Florianoplois. Once again we’ll be flying at 10,000 feet. We’ll grab some lunch, bid adieu to Brazil and head on to our final destination for today – Montevideo, Uruguay.

 

FLIGHT 239: October 6, 2003 - 16:00
Florianopolis, Brazil (SBFL)
Montevideo, Uruguay (SUAA)

Florianópolis is situated on the Island of Santa Catarina (the capital of the state of Santa Catarina) and has a landscape sprinkled with lakes, sand dunes, 42 beaches and small islands all along the coast. It is quite beautiful. This is a place we will need to revisit for sure. We must keep moving! Once again, we’ll be cruising at 10,000 feet on this long flight. It’s currently a comfortable room temperature (68F degrees) and the skies are overcast with light coastal clouds. We’ll get on top of this layer and we ought to see a magnificent sunset on this clear evening. We have contacted the Carrasco International Hotel in Montevideo and arranged for a late arrival.

 

FLIGHT 240: October 8, 2003 - 10:15
Montevideo, Uruguay (SUAA)
Buenos Aries, Argentina (SAEZ)

We arrived in Montevideo just after 20:00 on Monday and we stayed at the beautiful, five star Carrasco International Hotel built in 1999 – it’s quite remarkable. We spent last evening with some close friends and had a spectacular meal at the Radisson Montevideo Victoria Plaza Hotel. It’s now just past 10:00 on Wednesday, October 8, 2003 and we’re on our way to Buenos Aires – about a 125-mile jaunt. We will be flying at 6,000 feet and landing at the smaller Ezeiza International Ministro Pistarin airport in Buenos Aires. We will be spending a few weeks with some very close friends in Buenos Aires. My mouth is already watering just thinking about copiously speading chimmichurri sauce on a juicy Argentine steak!

 

FLIGHT 241: October 26, 2003 - 07:00
Buenos Aries, Argentina (SAEZ)
Comodoro Rivadavia, Argentina (SAVC)

The past few weeks have been a blast! We had a real nice time. It’s now just after 7:00 on October 26, 2003 and we’re about to embark on a 775 nm trip to Comodora Rivadavia in the south. We’ll be cruising at 8,000 on this leg. It should be smooth sailing for the most part. We'll be flying over low cloud cover a good part of the way. And, it’s warm enough (66F degrees) such that icing should not be a problem. The weather reports strong headwinds as we leave the local area, swinging to 15 kt tailwinds about 50 miles out, then back to headwinds as we approach Bahia Blanca. There are also reports of moderate to severe turbulence in the Bahia Blanca area. Just south of Viedma, we’ll be putting our life-jackets on as we traverse about 125 miles of water. As we approach Trelew, we can expect to battling very strong headwinds that’ll dramatically reduce our ground speed. However, according to the current radar images, the clouds will have cleared, meaning that we can rest easier knowing we don’t have to be concerned about icing as the outside temperature approaches 32F/0C degrees.


 

 

 

 

FLIGHT 242: October 27, 2003 - 09:10
Comodoro Rivadavia, Argentina (SAVC)
Carlos Ibanez Del Campo, Punta Arenas, Chile (SCCI)

Comodoro Rivadavia is nicknamed the “Capital of Eolic Energy” by the locals – wind-energy devices were everywhere to be seen. We spent the evening at a lovely motel on the Gulf of San Jorge, and we’re now on our way to Punta Arenas, Chile. This will be a about a 450 km trip and we’ll be flying at only 6,000 feet to avoid icing. It’s about 9:10 and we should arrive in Punta Arenas about 30-minutes past noon. It’s a fabulous day for flying and about the only degree of excitement will be opening the door when we reach the ramp.... brrrrrr! We have confirmed reservations at the Best Western Hotel Finis Terrae.


 

FLIGHT 243: October 28, 2003 - 06:00
Carlos Ibanez Del Campo, Punta Arenas, Chile (SCCI)
Puerto Montt, Chile (SCTE)

It took even longer to clear customs and immigration in Punta Arenas than it did when we left Comodoro Rivadavia. We hit the rack very early last night because we wanted to get an early start on the long day ahead of us. Our first leg will be about a 740-mile trip northwards, from Punta Arenas to Puerto Montt. It’s just coming up on 6:00 and we’ll be flying at 14,000 feet. We should arrive about noon. I have three messages Captain: 1) Bring food and plenty of coffee, 2) Make sure the cowls are closed and 3) Get ready for a long day! This is definitely going to be Pitot Heater time – the outside temperature at our cruising altitude will be well below freezing!

 

FLIGHT 244: October 28, 2003 - 15:00
Puerto Montt, Chile (SCTE)
Arturo Merino Benitez International, Santiago, Chile (SCEL)

We had a great lunch at the airport in Puerto Montt. The meal was called “Empanada” – a combination of meat, chicken or fish, with onions, eggs, raisins and olives inside a flour pastry. Fantastic! It’s now approaching 15:00 and we’ll carry on to Santiago. This will be about a 500 mile trip and looks like the flight will be very smooth. A heavy marine layer will develop around Temuco and stay below us until we reach Linares. We have confirmed reservations to stay at the Hotel Manquehue in the Santiago suburb of Las Condes.


 

FLIGHT 245: October 31, 2003 - 06:00
Arturo Merino Benitez International, Santiago, Chile (SCEL)
Cordoba, Argentina (SACO)

What can one say about Santiago? It’s a rockin’ town. It’s just coming up on 6:00 in the morning and we’ll be testing the specifications of our Mooney Bravo today, as we climb to 19,000 feet over the mountains to Cordoba, Argentina. In all likelihood, we'll need to leave the GPS route from time-to-time in order to maneuver around mountain peaks. We have reports of low-lying fog on approach into Cordoba.


 

 

FLIGHT 246: October 31, 2003 - 16:00
Cordoba, Argentina (SACO)
Silvio Pettirossi Intl, Asuncion, Paraguay (SGAS)

We had our special clearance to land in Cordoba as arranged when we left Comodoro Rivadavia last Monday. We’ve filled the tanks and our tummies and we’re continuing our trip today to Asuncion, Paraguay. We’ll be flying at 5,000 feet on this 500-mile trip. We have confirmed reservations at the Hotel Westfalenhaus that is only a few minutes away from the Airport as well as downtown.

 

FLIGHT 247: November 3, 2003 - 07:45
Silvio Pettirossi Intl, Asuncion, Paraguay(SGAS)
El Alto Intl, La Paz, Boliva (SLLP)

We spent a fantastic weekend in Asuncion and regretfully, we need to press onwards. Today we’ll be flying at 22,000. The airport itself is 13,310 feet above sea level… whew! This is another LONG flight – so the message is as always bring lots of coffee and snacks as well. We have reports of very turbulent air and thunderstorms approaching La Paz. It’s 07:45 and it’s a comfortable 76F degrees in Asuncion, but it’s going to get cooler in a hurry at our cruising altitude. So, let’s hop into our wild mustang – we’re going ballistic!

 

FLIGHT 248: November 4, 2003 - 07:45
El Alto Intl, La Paz, Boliva (SLLP)
Jorge Chavez Intl, Lima, Peru (SPIM)

It’s 07:45 and we’re on our way to Lima, once again at 22,000 feet. This flight plan has us traveling about 600 miles. We have much the same weather as we had upon our arrival - thunderstorms and very rough air in the area. As a result of the shifting winds, getting up to our cruising flight level will be problematic. So, since the length of runway 10 is over 13,000 feet, ignore my "Rotate" callout and use ALL of the runway to get the airspeed up to about 110 knots, then lift the nose. Irrespective of the assigned ATC climb out altitude, climb up to 15,000 feet, let the aircraft level off and get the airspeed once again up to approximately 110 knots. Then, continue our climb out. We will experience some pretty choppy air throughout the first part of this flight. Other than that, we’re good to go ballistic! We have confirmed our reservations at the Best Western Embajadores hotel.


 

FLIGHT 249: November 5, 2003 - 08:45
Jorge Chavez Intl, Lima, Peru (SPIM)
José Joaquín de Olmedo Intl, Guayaquil, Equador (SEGU)

It’s just after 08:45 and we’re on our way to Guayaquil, Equador. We’ll be cruising at 8,000 feet and except for the anticipated coastal cloud cover, it looks like a great day to fly the friendly skies!

 

 

FLIGHT 250: November 5, 2003 - 15:00
José Joaquín de Olmedo Intl, Guayaquil, Equador (SEGU)
Gerardo Tobar López Airport, Buenaventura, Columbia (SKBU)

We got to the airport on time, cleared customs and immigration, had some lunch and we're now continuing on to Columbia. We’ll be cruising at 9,000 on this trip. It is 14:55 and this is approximately a 420-mile flight, so we should arrive near sunset. We have reservations for the night at the Hotel Pacific Blue Ladrilleros, in downtown Buenaventura.


 

FLIGHT 251: November 6, 2003 - 12:45
Gerardo Tobar López Airport, Buenaventura, Columbia (SKBU)
Tocumen Intl, Panama City, Panama (MPTO)

We arrived in Columbia on schedule and spent the evening at the Hotel Pacific Blue Ladrilleros. We managed to sleep in after the long day yesterday. In fact, per our filed flight plan, we’ll be taking off at 12:45 for Panama City. This will be about a 360-mile flight and we’ll be flying at 10,000 feet. We should arrive about 15:30 local time. Since 95% of this trip will be over water, we'd better put our life jackets on at this time.

 

FLIGHT 252: November 6, 2003 - 16:45
Tocumen Intl, Panama City, Panama (MPTO)
Juan Santamaria Intl, San Jose, Costa Rica (MROC)

We managed to get in and out of customs quickly, got our flight filed easily and we’re on our way to San Jose at 15,000. It’s 81F degrees at 16:45 and we’re looking at about a 300-mile flight. The wind has died down completely. We should arrive just after dusk.

 

FLIGHT 253: November 7, 2003 - 07:10
San Jose, Costa Rica (MROC)
Augusto Cesar Sandino Intl, Managua, Nicaragua (MNMG)

We spent a pleasant evening at the Hotel Aeropuerto. This is a country that really deserves to be considered as THE place to live. Democracy and freedom abound. What a great country! Regrettably, we have to move on. We’ll be traveling at 12,000 this morning en route to Managua. It’s now about 07:10 as we depart on this 175-mile trip, so we should arrive about 8:40. The weather is fantastic - a perfect day for flying!


 

FLIGHT 254: November 7, 2003 - 11:45
Managua, Nicaragua (MNMG)
Toncontin Intl, Tegucigalpa, Honduras (MHTG)

We cleared customs, filled the tanks, filled our tummies, and we're ready to go! It’s now about 11:45 as we depart on this 130-mile trip to Tegucigalpa, so we should arrive around 13:00. We’ll be flying at 12,000 feet again. It's a beautiful day for flying!

 

FLIGHT 255: November 7, 2003 - 14:45
Tegucigalpa, Honduras (MHTG)
El Salvador Intl, San Salvador, El Salvador (MSLP)

The time is now 14:45, we’ve topped off the tanks and our tummies and we are on our way to San Salvador. This is a 110-mile trip and we’ll be flying at 8,000 feet. We should arrive about 16:00.

 

FLIGHT 256: November 7, 2003 - 17:15
San Salvador, El Salvador (MSLP)
La Aurora Intl, Guatemala City, Guatemala (MGGT)

The time is now 17:15, we’ve topped off the tanks and we are on our way to Guatemala City. This is another 110-mile trip and we’ll be flying at 12,000 feet. We should arrive at exactly the same time we took off - about 17:15 as a result of a one-hour time shift. We’ll spend the night in Guatemala City, then in the morning, we'll press on via Belize to Cancun, Mexico for a well-deserved rest.


 

FLIGHT 257: November 8, 2003 - 11:00
Guatemala City, Guatemala (MGGT)
Philip S. W. Goldson, Intl, Belize City, Belize (MZBZ)

A $9.00 cab ride, and we were at the Holiday Inn Guatemala. When we arrived, we were naturally very tired after a long day, so we ate in at the Los Comensales restaurant on the 2nd flooor of the hotel – the meal was outstanding. We then got to our rooms and… died! And, naturally, we slept in. So we’re here at the airport and it’s 11:00 as we leave for Belize City. It’s about a 220 mile trip so we should arrive about 13:50 local time, considering a one-hour time shift. We’ll be cruising at 11,000 feet on this leg.

 

FLIGHT 258: November 8, 2003 - 15:45
Belize City, Belize (MZBZ)
Cancun Intl, Cancun, Mexico (MMUN)

We had an opportunity to grab some lunch and speak with some of the locals about their city. We’re now going to complete our traveling for today by flying to Cancun, Mexico where we will spend the next few days chilling-out! We’ll be flying at 3,000 feet on the 225-mile journey. The current time is 15:45, meaning we should arrive in Cancun about 17:40. Incidentally, the METAR reports for this leg indicates that we'll be flying over a heavy marine layer for most of the flight.

 

FLIGHT 259: November 11, 2003 - 07:00
Cancun Intl, Cancun, Mexico (MMUN)
C P A Carlos Rovirosa Intl, Villahermosa, Mexico (MMVA)

We spent an awesome long weekend in Cancun. We’re now about to embark upon a 400-mile low-level trip to the C P A Carlos Rovirosa Intl airport, in Villahermosa. It’s now just coming up on 07:00, so we should arrive about 08:50 where we will grab some breakfast and head onwards to Mexico City. By the way, we’ll also be flying over water in the gulf for about 30 minutes, so break out the life jackets. Thankfully, the rising sun will be at out six!


FLIGHT 260: November 11, 2003 - 11:45
C P A Carlos Rovirosa Intl, Villahermosa, Mexico (MMVA)
Lic Benito Juarez Intl, Mexico City, Mexico (MMMX)

We had some great huevos rancheros at a small cantina near the airport. We’ve filled up on coffee and we’re on our way to Mexico City. We’ll be cruising at 16,000 feet... we're going balistic again! The time is currently 11:45, so we should arrive in Mexico City about 14:45. About one hour into our flight, we’ll again be flying over water in the gulf for about 60 minutes, so get out the life jackets one more time. By the way, as we make our final approach, we'll need to drop like a brick! 

 

FLIGHT 261: November 12, 2003 - 06:45
Lic Benito Juarez Intl, Mexico City, Mexico (MMMX)
General Juan N Alvarez Intl, Acapulco, Mexico (MMAA)

We spent the evening near the airport, because we planned on getting an early start this morning. We’ll be flying at 14,000 feet to Acapulco today – a beautiful day for flying. It’s just about 06:45 and the trip will be about 170 miles. We should arrive around 8:20, grab some breakfast and head on to Ixtapa – Zihuatanejo airport.

 

FLIGHT 262: November 12, 2003 - 10:30
General Juan N Alvarez Intl, Acapulco, Mexico (MMAA)
Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Intl, Zihuatanejo, Mexico (MMZH)

We had breakfast at the airport, and we’re continuing northward. We’ll be flying at 8,000 feet to Zihuatanejo, a 110 mile trip. Except for low level haze, it’s a beautiful, calm morning and a great day for flying. We’ll be flying over water for a good part of the trip, so let’s break out the life preservers. It’s about 10:30 so we should arrive just before noon hour.

 

FLIGHT 263: November 12, 2003 - 13:45
Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Intl, Zihuatanejo, Mexico (MMZH)
Don Miguel Hidalgo Intl, Guadalajara, Mexico (MMGL)

What can be better than a Mexican lunch? It’s 13:45 and we’re going balistic again... into the mountains to Guadalajara. Our flying time will be two hours on this two hundred mile flight and we should arrive at the general aviation parking area (after about 15 minutes of taxiing), at about 15:45. We’ll climb to 16,000 feet, head east to the mile-high city of Uruapan, then northeast to the other mile-high city of Guadalajara.

 

FLIGHT 264: November 12, 2003 - 17:30
Don Miguel Hidalgo Intl, Guadalajara, Mexico (MMGL)
Gen Rafael Buelna Intl, Mazatlan, Mexico (MMMZ)

I wouldn’t want to fly into Guadalajara without IFR on a bad night – yikes! Anyway, we’ve topped off the tanks and had some coffee and we’re on to our final destination after this long day of traveling – Mazatlan. It’s about a 200-mile flight and we’ll be flying as 14,000 after an extremely long taxi. I have no idea why they decided to put the small aircraft so far away from the main runway – dumb, dumber, dumbest! Anyway, it’s about 17:30, so we’ll arrive just after sunset, which by the way, ought to be pretty spectacular this evening as we fly northwest over Tepic, then on into Mazatlan with the help of favorable tailwinds.


FLIGHT 265: November 14, 2003 - 07:15
Gen Rafael Buelna Intl, Mazatlan, Mexico (MMMZ)
General Jose Ma Yenez Intl, Guaymas, Mexico (MMGM)

We spent the last couple of nights in Mazatlan and we had a great time experiencing the traditional folklore of Mexico. This morning we’ll be blasting of at 07:15 and we’ll be cruising at 10,000 feet on the 388-mile trip. I attempted to find the best altitude, with the least amout of clouds - 10,000 seemed to be the optimum. We will grab a late and leisurely breakfast, top off the tanks and press onwards to Tijuana.


 

FLIGHT 266: November 14, 2003 - 14:00
General Jose Ma Yenez Intl, Guaymas, Mexico (MMGM)
Abelardo L Rodriguez Intl, Tijuana, Mexico (MMTJ)

It’s now just coming up on 14:00 and we indeed had a great brunch in Guaymas. The tanks have been filled and we’re on our way to Tijuana – our last international destination on our trip around the world. We’ll be cruising at 14,000 feet on this 444-mile trip. The weather will be pretty fair, although there are reports of haze en route and a lot of clouds during the first hour or so. We’ll spend the night in Tijuana taking in the sites and head out tomorrow morning for San Diego to visit some friends this weekend.


 

FLIGHT 267: November 15, 2003
Abelardo L Rodriguez Intl, Tijuana, Mexico (MMTJ)
Lindbergh San Diego Intl, San Diego, California, USA (KSAN)

We’re finally heading back to the U.S.A. It’s been a long trip up through Central America and Mexico. We’ll be staying with some friends in San Diego and head home to Oceano on Monday morning. Are you ready? This will be about a 20-mile flight. It’s just after 10:15 in the morning, and we’ll arrive in San Diego at 11:00. We’ll get as high as 6,000 feet.

 

FLIGHT 268: November 17, 2003 - 11:30
Lindbergh San Diego Intl, San Diego, California, USA (KSAN)
Oceano, California, USA (L52)

We spent a very pleasant long weekend visiting with friends. Today we’ll be flying at 10,000 feet to Oceano – our final destination of this 365-day trip around the world. We’ll be airborne about 11:30 on this 230-mile final leg. Other than some 25-35 knot headwinds and some periodic blankets of cloud, it should be a pretty smooth flight. Just about all of this trip will be over water – cold water – so, break out the jackets! En route, we’ll be passing over Catalina Island and passing just east of San Clemente. We’ll then head inland towards Point Mugu and Oxnard, continuing northwards passing to the east of Santa Barbara, up over Santa Maria and then begin our descent down into Oceano. Regrettably, there will be a lot of haze today, which will steal part of the view. But I have to admit, even if there will be haze, seeing the Central Coast of California and the lovely Pismo Beach once again, after being away 356 days, will be a VERY pleasant site – HOME AT LONG LAST. It’ll be great to slide into the spa!


CONCLUSION
At long last, we've made our final landing in Oceano, California, from our odyssey around the world. It was a great voyage and I'm tremendously glad to have succeeded without losing a wheel or wingtip or any other of the myriad accidents that could have occurred! What a fantastic time we had. We were able to meet up with our old friends and made many new friends en route with whom we will keep in touch and perhaps meet again one day.

My wife was thrilled that the year-long journey was over. She insisted that I turn off the computer and we celebrated with a glass of nicely chilled champagne while soaking in the hot tub!

[Kurusca 19]

Sorry all for such long posts, i'm not familar with http coding to make them collapsible for each part and do it in one post.

 

Unable to edit original post to add in that the original requirements were also that NO TIME COMPRESSION was allowed.  All flights had to be done in real time.

[espent 1,389]

This is amazing. Thank you so much for this. I am sure it will give us a lot of inspiration for different flights.

The story he added to it makes it more special.

[hangar 658]

Thank you very much for taking the time to post this for all of us, much obliged!

[CaptMatto 238]

This is awesome!

I am definately using this as a basis for my own round world flight!

Hopefully I'll bump into some of you on the way!

[Lotharen 287]

Thanks for sharing this! I had plans to do something every similar and document my route to share with everyone. I was going to make much shorter flights, giving the pilot the choice of combining  2, 3 or 4 legs together if they have more time.

[Arrashona 14]

Thank you for sharing.  I was also looking at putting together a trip around the world for myself and found this to be very informative and helpful.

 

Matt