FSX-SE A visit to the “End of the Road”, Homer, Alaska...(I)...

[P_7878 6,612]

[I find small town airport sceneries fascinating...so, I picked up a couple of airport add-ons from the Orbx's ongoing SALE...here is my account from a (virtual) visit to the small-town airport (PAHO) of Homer, at the tip of Kenai Peninsula, in Southern Alaska...This is Part I...in Part II, I'll show a few scenes from within and around the airport itself...]

Homer is a small city on Kachemak Bay, on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula, named after Homer Pennock, a gold miner who established the first development on the Homer Spit (see next). A focal point and famous geographical landmark of the town is the Homer Spit, a long strip of continuous (and naturally formed) land, jutting ~5 miles out into Kachemak Bay...The brochures tout, "Homer — At the “End of the Road” – The Adventure Begins"...BTW, “End of the Road” refers to the fact that just to the south of the extended spit of Homer township, and past the rugged mountains outlining the southern front of the Kachemak Bay on Alaska's Kenai Peninsula...lies Gulf of Alaska, and thereafter, directly southward, begins the endless water mass of the Pacific Ocean...spanning all the way to the last frontier of the Earth, the Antarctica...

Regarding how the Spit was geologically formed, different theories exist (whether by the powerful tidal currents of the Bay or by the now-retreated (nearby) glaciers...see shots below of the glaciers...) ...Anyway, the Spit has become an iconic site of the town, now, in modern times, lined up with shops, art galleries, restaurants, and pristine beaches...and, of course, surrounded on all sides by scenes of spectacular natural beauty...including the glacier-laden peaks of those rugged Kenai Mountains......

This Orbx scenery, in addition to the main airport, has depicted the Beluga Lake Seaplane Base (5BL) used for floatplane operations, from which, for this post, I've lifter off, on the NE waters of the Bay, with my PBY Catalina...an a/c that needs no introduction, rather peculiar looking, but a most versatile and historically significant aircraft in the history of aviation. I've chosen, here, the paint of the Royal Danish Air Force (RDAF)...look for the flag on the tail fin.

Taking off NE (see shots), following a (tight) clockwise (racetrack) pattern, flying right over the mountain glaciers, at 5,000 to 6,000 feet altitude, (see shots), I have finally turned around over the Bay back NE for landing on Rwy 4 of PAHO airport. This Rwy has LOC/DME approach, but no vertical (GS) guidance, so, the bulky Catalina proved a bit handful and finicky...🙂...for this virtual flyer...during the manually controlled final descent to the Rwy... especially in the (ever-prevailing) whimsical winds of the Kachemak Bay...But I carefully, "directed myself to the numbers" and managed to land my a/c precisely on the Number (4) ... (please see touchdown shot). (BTW, the PAHO Rwy designation was changed just last year from (3/21) to (4/22). In fact, airports worldwide have been, in recent years, scrambling to (likewise) rename their Rwys due the fact that North Magnetic Pole (been lately in the news), has been shifting away rather sharply, from the Canadian North towards Siberia...at about 55-60 kms a year...) ...

This (short) sightseeing flight was good fun...and I hope you enjoy these pictures from my tour... (especially if you're not a native (nor familiar) with Alaska) ...which I'm not either...but I know a few here surely are...🙂...

Thanks for your interest...!!

[AS (PBY Catalina), Orbx (Homer Airport, PAHO, AK)]

[Alaska738 8,411]

Great set of shots! 🙂 

[John F 2,423]

Nice series. The two approach shots are really wonderful.

John

[pmplayer 9,469]

These are top shots 👍🏽

cheers 😉

Edited April 16, 2022 by pmplayer

[P_7878 6,612]

Folks: Thanks much for the responses...!!

[johnbow72 2,722]

Great flight out to the "Spit" , been there several times in RL .

[P_7878 6,612]

Thanks for the comment, johnb, always glad to hear from someone who has actually visited the sites of my virtual fancy...🙂....!