RTW 07 - Hawtah -- Muscat - The AVSIM Screen Shots Forum

April 23Apr 23

Hello everybody, and welcome on board!

After a couple of days in the middle of the desert, it’s time to fire up the engine again. Today, we’re heading all the way east — from Hawtah, a small airfield operated by Saudi Aramco, to Muscat in Oman. Flight time was 4:40 hours, and honestly… it was a boooooring one. I’ve seen the desert and sand in all their variations — and that’s exactly what I’m going to show you.

Before leaving the air-conditioned airport office, let’s take a quick look at the flight plan. Originally, I had planned to follow the Silk Road eastbound. But due to the current war situation and the closure of Russian and Ukrainian airspace, I had to divert far to the south before turning east. That’s why I now have to cross the Arabian desert.
Today, we need to stay well clear of the Persian Gulf — and of course the Strait of Hormuz. So, we’ll remain mostly within Saudi Arabian airspace, with the United Arab Emirates to the north, before entering Oman. From there, we’ll cross the Hajar Mountains and begin our descent into Muscat.
And of course — never go flying on an empty stomach. Today’s choice: dates.

Avgas was surprisingly cheap — apparently supplied via a nearby pipeline. So I topped up the wing tanks and the center tank, completed the walkaround and…

…took off with a 12-knot crosswind.

The wind was a bit tricky today. We had an annoying headwind — the last thing you want when flying over such a dull landscape.

But our plane does look beautiful, doesn’t it?

A pipeline with several pump stations stretching through the desert.

According to Windy, conditions are much more favorable at higher altitudes. So we climbed to 16,000 ft until we finally picked up a tailwind. At this altitude, fuel burn is about 7.6 gallons per hour. With 90 gallons on board, we could almost fly forever today.

Sand, sand, sand… everywhere you look. It really gets monotonous!

Two hours later, the scenery changed slightly — but in the end…

…it’s still just sand.

If you take a closer look at the horizon, you can spot the Persian Gulf — just a thin bluish line in the distance.

After three hours of flying, we finally approach the Hajar Mountains in Oman.

It’s great to see something other than flat desert!

Nature can be surprisingly artistic at times.

Thirty minutes to go!

Due to the current situation, traffic in Oman is quite light, so we were cleared for a visual approach. Here we are entering right downwind for Runway 08R — the airport is already visible on the horizon.