From Rome to Venice - Cities, Churches and Beaches

[Viking01 183]

Rome to Venice – small airports in northern Italy

 

We fly from Rome to Venice, across the Italian peninsula, and along the Adriatic Coast. We land mostly at smaller airports.

The deviation from the rule is our departure airport, Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci Fiumicino International Airport (LIRF). It is Italy's busiest airport and the biggest one of the two airports serving Rome. We overfly the city of Rome – the Eternal City - with its overwhelming number of sights before landing at Urbe (LIRU). This airport is mainly used for aeroclubs, flight schools, and air taxi flights. We leave the metropolitan area of Rome and head northwest. We land at the Aviosuperficie Santo Stefano (LIRK), just south of the Lago di Bracciano (Lake Bracciano). It is one of the major lakes of Italy and has volcanic origins.

We continue north and pass two points of interest. The first one is the Village of Bagnoregio [WP2]. The Civita di Bagnoregio is an outlying village of the comune of Bagnoregio. The only access is a footbridge from the nearby town, with a toll introduced in 2013. Because of the toll, communal taxes were abolished in Civita and nearby Bagnoregio. And because of its unstable foundation that often erodes, Civita is famously known as "the dying city". It is one of "The most beautiful villages of Italy".

The second one is the Cathedral of Orvieto (Duomo de Orvieto) [WP3]. Situated in a position dominating the town of Orvieto which sits perched on a volcanic plug, the cathedral's façade is a classic piece of religious construction, containing elements of design from the 14th to the 20th century, with a large rose window, golden mosaics and three huge bronze doors, while inside resides two frescoed chapels decorated by some of the best Italian painters of the period with images of Judgment Day. The cathedral has five bells, dating back to the Renaissance, tuned in E flat.

Our next stop is the airport San Egidio (LIRZ), serving the city of Perugia. Perugia’s history dates back to the Etruscan period and is one of Italy’s cultural and artistic centers.

Just 5 miles east we overfly the Basilica di San Francesco D’Assisi [WP4]. The Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Order of Friars Minor Conventual in Assisi, a town in the Umbria region in central Italy, where Saint Francis was born and died. It is a papal minor basilica and one of the most important places of Christian pilgrimage in Italy. With its accompanying friary, Sacro Convento, the basilica is a distinctive landmark to those approaching Assisi. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000. The basilica, which was begun in 1228, is built into the side of a hill and comprises two churches (known as the Upper Church and the Lower Church) and a crypt, where the remains of the saint are interred. The interior of the Upper Church is an important early example of the Gothic style in Italy. The Upper and Lower Churches are decorated with frescoes by numerous late medieval painters from the Roman and Tuscan schools and include works by Cimabue, Giotto, Simone Martini, Pietro Lorenzetti, and possibly Pietro Cavallini. The range and quality of the works give the basilica a unique importance in demonstrating the outstanding development of Italian art of this period, especially if compared with the rest of Christian Europe. The church was heavily damaged by an earthquake in 1997.

Now we fly for about 50 miles northeast and pass over the Santuario della Casa di Loreto [WP5]. The Basilica della Santa Casa (English: Basilica of the Holy House) is a Marian shrine. The basilica is known for enshrining the house in which the Blessed Virgin Mary is believed by some Catholics to have lived. Pious legends claim the same house was flown over by angelic beings from Nazareth to Tersatto (Trsat in Croatia), then to Recanati, before arriving at the current site. The basilica is also known for enshrining the Madonna and Child image of "Our Lady of Loreto". Pope Benedict XV designated her under this title as patroness of air passengers and auspicious travel on 24 March 1920. Pope Pius XI granted a Canonical Coronation to the venerated image made of Cedar of Lebanon wood on 5 September 1922, replacing the original Marian image consumed in fire on 23 February 1921.

We overfly the city of Ancona and land at Falconara airbase (LIPY). Now we follow the Adriatic Coast and land at Fano (LIDF).

Our next stop is the Aviosuperficie Torraccia (LIJV). This is the only airfield in the Republic of San Marino. We land at Runway 34 and depart Runway 16! Located on the northeastern side of the Apennine Mountains, San Marino is the fifth-smallest country in the world and covers a land area of just over 61 km2 (23+1⁄2 sq mi), with a population of 33,660 as of 2022. San Marino is a landlocked country; however, its northeastern end is within ten kilometers (six miles) of the Italian city of Rimini on the Adriatic coast. The country's capital city, the City of San Marino, is located atop Monte Titano, while its largest settlement is Dogana, within the municipality of Serravalle. San Marino's official language is Italian. The country derives its name from Saint Marinus, a stonemason from the then-Roman island of Rab in present-day Croatia. Born in 275 AD, Marinus participated in the rebuilding of Rimini's city walls after their destruction by Liburnian pirates. Marinus later founded an independent monastic community on Monte Titano in 301 AD; thus, San Marino lays claim to being the oldest extant sovereign state, as well as the oldest constitutional republic. Uniquely, San Marino's constitution dictates that its democratically elected legislature, the Grand and General Council, must elect two heads of state every six months. Known as the Captains Regent, they serve concurrently and with equal powers. The country's economy is mainly based on finance, industry, services, retail, and tourism. It is one of the wealthiest countries in the world in GDP per capita, with a figure comparable to the most developed European regions. Despite this fact, ranking 44th, its Human Development Index score is the lowest in Western Europe. Its healthcare system ranked third in the first-ever World Health Organization analysis of the world's health systems.

We overfly the City of San Marino [WP6], head back to the coast, and land at Rimini AB (LIPR). Sprawling along the Adriatic Sea, Rimini is situated at a strategically important north-south passage along the coast at the southern tip of the Po Valley. It is one of the most notable seaside resorts in Europe, with a significant domestic and international tourist economy. The first bathing establishment opened in 1843. The city is also the birthplace of the film director Federico Fellini, and the nearest Italian city to the independent Republic of San Marino.

Next, we reach Forli (LIPK). The town is an important agricultural center. Back at the coast, we land at Ravenna (LIDR). Although it is an inland city, Ravenna is connected to the Adriatic Sea by the Candiano Canal. It is known for its well-preserved late Roman and Byzantine architecture, with eight buildings comprising the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Early Christian Monuments of Ravenna". Because of the high concentration of mosaics, the city has been associated with workshops and schools teaching mosaics, and is often given titles like the "capital of mosaics".

Heading north we land at the Aviosuperficie Valle Gaffaro (LIGP) and continue for the City of Venice [WP8], with many points of interest. We circle the city and finish our flight at the Lido, a narrow island, at the small airport San Nicolo (LIPV).

Flight plan: The flight plans are available here.

Aircraft: The flight has 330 miles and 10 landings. The shortest runway has a length of 1545 feet. I will be in the A2A Comanche. Please fly what you like.

 

Additional scenery: There are 7 freeware add-ons available:

https://flightsim.to/file/14653/lirz-perugia-san-francesco-d-assisi-umbria-international-airport

https://flightsim.to/file/22099/lidf-fano

https://flightsim.to/file/48499/lidr-aeroporto-di-ravenna

https://flightsim.to/file/6698/ligp-aviosuperficie-valle-gaffaro

https://flightsim.to/file/7081/venice-lido-airport-san-nicolo-lipv

https://flightsim.to/file/61614/lirf-rome-fiumicino-international-airport

https://flightsim.to/file/3534/li-rm04-avios-santo-stefano-anguillara-sabazia-rm-italy

For a limited time, the package is available here.

Rome (LIRF) is available as payware from MK Studios.

 

Time and Weather
For takeoff on Saturday, set the simulator at 1:00 pm local for February 10, 2024.
We typically prefer real weather.

Multiplayer Particulars
Date and time: Saturday, February 10, 2024. 1900 UTC
AVSIM Discord Server: https://discord.gg/K5Vy6UxWNm  - AVSIM GROUP EVENTS-SAT. COM1
Microsoft Flight Simulator Multiplayer: United States East server.

If you want to help others enjoy the multiplayer experience, don't forget to enter your aircraft details on the multiplayer spreadsheet (linked here). Please be kind enough to enter the title exactly as it stands in the title=”xxx” line of the aircraft.cfg file. Your courtesy will save others a lot of time and effort. Thanks!
 

[MM 426]

This looks to be a wonderful excursion.

Subscribers to the “Beautiful Models of the World” package will want to remember to activate Rome Uribe [LIRU] and Rimini [LIPR]. Others may like the freeware Rimini [LIPR] by Pille83.

[Viking01 183]

Thanks for adding Rimini Mike, I missed that airport...☹️

[Viking01 183]

After a note from Mike, I rechecked FANO (LIDF) and found that trees cover the runway. So I suggest not tu use this addon. Mike (and other users at flightsim.to) found pink textures at Ravenna (LIDR). I do not see them but you may want to check and turn the addon off.

Thanks Mike!