I recall, during my (bygone) FSX days, I'd acquired almost all of Orbx's little airports made for the NZ-SI and NZ-NI islands. In New Zealand, exploring the small airports and their vicinities, is always rewarding in terms of spectacular scenery. The big two airports Auckland (NZAA) and Christchurch (NZCH) are wonderful too, but the small ones are special. 

Here is a small NZ airport (NZMK) serving the town of Motueka, New Zealand, the scenery of which I'd picked up from the MSFS2024 Marketplace, a while ago, but had not yet had a chance to explore (it's indeed a nicely rendered add-on scenery of NZMK Aerodrome; see a few images of it below). So, here we go, as I lift off Runway 20 of NZMK, and do a short trip overflying the mountainous ranges located to the west of Motueka. No matter where they are, the Mountains of New Zealand, speaking purely as a virtual (but seasoned) traveler...🙂..., I've always found to be exquisitely beautiful. These mountains, though not as high as the European Alps, the South American Andes, or the North American Rockies; are characterized by rugged beauty of their own, and accompanied by alpine landscapes, rivers and valleys. The (picturesque) ridges and wrinkles of these mountains (see images below), I find particularly fascinating. 

To conclude my trip of today, I've landed on the waters of Tasman Bay, after tracking the shoreline, to the east of Motueka. The town of Motueka is located near the mouth of the Motueka River, on the west coast of Tasman Bay. You can spot the Motueka River in my shot #s (5/6/7). 

For my choice of conveyance, I've gone back to one of my MSFS2024 favorites, the (unique-looking) turboprop-powered Dornier Seastar, touted to be the world's most advanced amphibious aircraft. The Seastar is equipped with non-Garmin based cockpit avionics, featuring Honeywell's Primus Epic 2.0 suite, that had debuted in the Pilatus (light business jet) PC-24. The user interface of Epic 2.0 operates slightly differently from the Garmin systems but suited me perfectly...🙂... helping me navigate through the (zigzag) set of custom waypoints of my flight plan (see MFD and EFB maps). 

Hope you enjoy this collection of images of the Dornier Seastar, flying up and around the town of Motueka, on the northern shores of the South Island of New Zealand, a most beautiful part of the world where one (yours truly included), never gets tired of flying (virtually)...🙂...

Thanks for viewing...!

Fine set of shots !

cheers 😉

Nice shots. "Moteuka" rang a bell for me...it's the hops variety in some of my recently consumed craft beers. 🙂

16 hours ago, pmplayer said:

Fine set of shots !

cheers 😉

Thank you, pmplayer. Appreciated the comment...🙂...

 

3 hours ago, John F said:

Nice shots. "Moteuka" rang a bell for me...it's the hops variety in some of my recently consumed craft beers. 🙂

Thanks...! That's the difference between a food (or drink) critic and connoisseur and a food (or drink) consumer ...🙂...I am also a fan of craft beers, but I can hardly recall their cryptic names beyond the first encounter ...🙂...forget about their constituents...

Anyway, you're absolutely correct that many (American) craft beers (and IPAs) use Motueka hops...didn't know that...I asked AI about my favorite, Lagunitas Little Sumpin, if it uses Motueka hops, and got a response as follows:

"No, Little Sumpin does not use Motueka hops. The Motueka hop is known for its citrus, lemon/lime, and tropical fruit aromas, which are not part of the flavor profile for Little Sumpin..."...

Oh well...I was a bit disappointed...🙂...Nonetheless, every time I go for my favorite IPA, I would be now thinking about my flight in Motueka (NZ) in a Dornier Seastar...🙂...

Cheers...!

Great set of photos! I'm still on MSFS2020...plenty of good, freeware airports for the NZ Islands.

13 hours ago, rmeier said:

Great set of photos! I'm still on MSFS2020...plenty of good, freeware airports for the NZ Islands.

Thank you, rmeier. Yes, I've seen the plentiful NZ small town airports in the library, but unfortunately, I don't have access to them on my Xbox...🙂...one of the drawbacks for me...

I will look for a few more for myself...

Lovely shots and a great part of the world for sure. Speaking of Hops you can see a large stand of them in that 4th screenshot, this area is packed w orchards many growing hops.

5 minutes ago, deeknow said:

Lovely shots and a great part of the world for sure. Speaking of Hops you can see a large stand of them in that 4th screenshot, this area is packed w orchards many growing hops.

Thanks, Dean...! Spoken by a native, always good to hear...🙂...

I was frankly wondering what those peculiar things were...that looked like a row of trimmed hedges to the untrained eyes...🙂...

[There you go, John, that's what goes into your craft beverages of choice ...🙂...]

Such a Unique Aircraft...Well Designed for Water Landings.

On 6/12/2025 at 8:51 AM, badaboom said:

Such a Unique Aircraft...Well Designed for Water Landings.

Thanks for the note...!

Agree, a nice, unique, and modern Amphibian to fly in our SIM. I believe it is an MSFS2024 exclusive aircraft...

Always been a fan of the Dornier classics of the yesteryears (the gigantic Do X Flying Boat certainly comes to mind), aircraft that were no stranger to featuring engines in the overhead position, as on this one ...

(BTW, in your reply, I see Sean Connery, from, I think, The Hunt for Red October...🙂...though not fully sure if it's just an Ad on my computer or really part of your signature. I made a reference to the former James Bond in my latest post...🙂...)