Bmwdatacloud

RKK – URSS | Krasnodar — Sochi The route length was 174 NM. After arriving at the hotel and unpacking our belongings, we made a small plan to explore the city of Krasnodar. First of all, we visited Galitsky Park, named after the billionaire Sergey Nikolaevich Galitsky, the owner of the football club FC Krasnodar. He built this enormous park entirely with his own funds. And we would really like to share its beauty with you. The first photo will be from a bird’s-eye view. We also really liked the “Drop”. But let’s not dwell on that for too long. After spending a day in this city and coordinating our next flight, we headed to the airport where our aircraft was waiting for us. The weather did not let us down. The sky was clear. The morning in Krasnodar greeted us with soft southern light and the still-sleepy bustle of the big city. URKK 042030Z 03003MPS 7000 NSC 02/01 Q1024 R05R/CLRD70 TEMPO 0500 FG BKN003 RMK QFE765 Pashkovsky Airport was breathing calm: rare service vehicles were gliding across the apron, engines were rumbling somewhere in the distance, and the sky promised a good flying day. After the recent difficult landing approach, the weather seemed to be apologizing. A light haze over the city quickly faded, and by the time the engine was started, the horizon became clean and deep, as if it had just been wiped with fresh paint. Ahead of us were not just kilometers — ahead of us was the Greater Caucasus, mountains that for centuries have divided worlds, climates, destinies, and eras. We taxied to the runway. A short pause. A glance at each other. And again that familiar click inside — “let’s go.” Takeoff roll. Liftoff. Krasnodar remained below, gradually turning into a grid of streets and rivers. Beneath the wing, the Kuban River slowly stretched out — powerful, wide, and alive. It seemed to be seeing us off, confidently pointing the way toward the mountains. After takeoff, Anastasia admired the Krasnodar Reservoir, while I was busy with the climb and performing the turn. In the distance, the Caucasus Mountains could already be seen. Admiring the beauty, Anastasia was saying goodbye to Krasnodar Airport. And once again, the beautiful Black Sea welcomed us. During the approach, the beauty of the Caucasus Mountains greeted us again. Somewhere in the distance stood Mount Elbrus, with a height of 18,510 feet — the highest peak of Russia and Europe, provided that the boundary between Europe and Asia is drawn along or south of the Main Caucasian Ridge. On approach, Anastasia admired the views of the Olympic Village, where the 2014 Olympic Games were held. And here is the long-awaited landing. As soon as we vacated the runway after touchdown, a vehicle was waiting to escort us to our aircraft parking stand. The engine was shut down, and as usual, we headed toward the exit. So now let us show you the beauty and views of the airport. With respect, Mikhail & Anastasia ✈️❤️

DAY № 1 URFF-URKK Our round-the-world journey begins on the Crimean Peninsula, and to be completely precise — at Simferopol Airport named after Aivazovsky, located to the northeast of the city. The starting point can truly be called symbolic: a land with a thousand-year history, where every stone has seen more than any archive ever could. The first route of our journey will end at Pashkovsky Airport in the city of Krasnodar, Russian Federation, but that comes a little later. For now — let’s talk about the places we are about to pass over. Sevastopol — a city where history is always alive Sevastopol is the largest city in Crimea and one of the most important ports on the Black Sea. Its unique bays have made the city strategically important throughout all of history. Since its founding in 1783, Sevastopol has been the main base of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, and during the Cold War it was a closed city — difficult to access even with proper documents. But military history is only part of its biography. Over thousands of years, this land was inhabited by the Cimmerians, Taurians, Scythians, Sarmatians, Greeks, Romans, Goths, Genoese, and Venetians. During World War II, fierce battles took place around Sevastopol. The city was almost completely destroyed, but later rebuilt. Simply put, this is one of those cities you could write entire textbooks about — and still never fit all of its history inside. Krasnodar — a Cossack fortress that became a great city Krasnodar is located on the banks of the Kuban River. It was founded in 1793 as a military fortress built by the Cossacks. Originally, the city was called Yekaterinodar — “Catherine’s Gift,” in honor of Empress Catherine II. Over time, the fortress turned into a major trading center of southern Russia. During World War II, Krasnodar suffered severe destruction, but after the war it was restored and rebuilt, taking on the appearance we recognize today. First moments Just a few minutes before our first flight — a brief moment of introduction. In the photo below, you see us: Mikhail and Anastasia. Our route ran along the southern coast of Crimea. Naturally, this was a VFR flight. UKFF UKKA 4444N03333E 4440N03333E 4438N03332E 4436N03328E 4435N03325E UKSV 4433N03325E 4430N03331E UKCMY UKOYS 4424N03350E 4424N03352E 4424N03354E 4424N03356E 4424N03359E 4424N03401E 4425N03404E UK5XW 4426N03407E 4430N03410E 4430N03414E 4431N03415E 4432N03416E 4433N03419E 4435N03421E 4436N03422E 4439N03424E 4440N03425E 4442N03426E 4443N03428E 4444N03431E 4444N03432E 4446N03436E 4447N03441E 4449N03445E 4449N03451E 4449N03455E 4450N03458E 4450N03502E 4453N03508E 4500N03522E 4514N03610E 4519N03628E 4519N03629E 4517N03631E 4514N03635E 4511N03637E URKK And then the long-awaited moment finally arrived — the moment when you taxi toward the runway, saying goodbye to the airport behind you. On the way to the runway, I noticed a Mi-8 calmly parked on the apron. It looked like a helicopter that had already seen everything life could throw at it and was simply waiting for its next group of tourists for another mountain tour. I couldn’t help but smile to myself: well, some fly people on short sightseeing trips… and some are getting ready to go around the world. And there it was at last — the long-awaited runway. As the saying goes, we crossed ourselves for luck… and pushed the throttle forward to start the takeoff roll. While flying the departure pattern, we got one last chance to look at the airport we wouldn’t be seeing again for a long time. Our journey had only just begun, and yet we were already full of adrenaline and great emotions. And at last, the first landmarks appeared. Allow me to introduce Chersonesus. Flying over Chersonesus feels especially atmospheric, because it’s not just ruins by the sea — it’s a city with more than 2,500 years of history. It was founded by the ancient Greeks, later ruled by the Romans and Byzantines, and according to tradition, this is where Prince Vladimir was baptized. In other words, a place where triremes were once built, wine was traded, and debates about democracy took place later became one of the ключевых points in the history of all Rus’. From the air, you can clearly see how the ancient city is literally woven into the coastline of the Black Sea: straight streets, remnants of walls, the amphitheater, basilicas. It’s especially fascinating to realize that two and a half thousand years ago philosophers in tunics walked over these very stones — and now a modern airplane calmly passes above them. History in a single frame — only instead of sails, there’s the sound of an aircraft engine. Continuing our flight along the coastline and passing over the city of Yalta, we see the famous Bear Mountain. The locals like to say that the bear simply lay down here one day… and fell asleep. During the flight over Crimea, the weather decided to show some character: strong turbulence began, the aircraft was being tossed noticeably from side to side, and at times it felt like we were being lightly thrown above the sea itself. At one point, Anastasia even spilled the coffee we had taken with us twice — now we have our own “coffee traces of turbulence” as part of the report. But despite the shaking and the small everyday mishaps, it didn’t spoil the experience at all. On the contrary, the flight became even more vivid and memorable: Crimea beneath the wing, the sun, the sea, and the feeling of a real journey that no turbulence could overshadow. And now we finally reached the city of Alushta, a place that has also left a noticeable mark in history. On October 10, 1894, at the “Golubka” dacha in Alushta, the future Emperor Nicholas II, then still Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich, met his bride for the first time on Russian soil — Princess Alix of Hesse-Darmstadt. Later, on February 1, 1945, Joseph Stalin arrived in Crimea and then continued his journey by car to Koreiz via Alushta, where he made a stop for rest at the former dacha of General Golubov, also called “Golubka.” It was here that he met with the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Flying over Sudak, it is impossible not to notice the powerful outlines of the Sudak Fortress — like a stone ship frozen on the вершине above the sea. Its walls were built by the Genoese in the 14th century on the site of even older Byzantine fortifications, when Sudak, then known as Soldaia, was an important trading hub on the route between Europe and the East. Merchants, caravans, ships, gold, wine, silk, and spices once converged here. The fortress survived sieges, earthquakes, and the change of rulers, until in 1475 it was captured by the forces of the Ottoman Empire. From the height of the flight, its strict geometry is especially clear: towers, the Consular Castle, and long crenellated walls descending toward the sea. And at this moment the contrast is strongly felt — once there were the sounds of battles and the clash of weapons here, and today an aircraft quietly passes over the same stones, while the ancient fortress calmly watches it go, a witness to more than a thousand years of history. During the flight, Anastasia kept opening her mouth in amazement and sometimes even forgot to close it, overwhelmed by such breathtaking beauty. As we were leaving Crimea, we wanted to see from above the famous Crimean Bridge connecting the peninsula with the mainland. After flying over the bridge and reaching the mainland, we were insanely hungry. Our stomachs were growling so loudly that we could barely even hear the engine anymore. As we were approaching Krasnodar, the weather seriously let us down. Visibility was practically zero. And finally, the long-awaited glide path appeared — and then the landing. After arriving on the apron, we headed toward the airport, where a taxi was waiting to take us to the hotel. There we would rest, take a walk around the city, and then continue our journey. After arriving on the apron, we headed toward the airport, where a taxi was waiting to take us to the hotel. There we would rest, take a walk around the city, and then continue our journey. With respect, Mikhail & Anastasia ✈️❤️

Greetings! For more than ten years, I hadn’t touched an aircraft yoke. The last time I launched MSFS 2004 was back in 2005. Back then, I dreamed of flying around the entire world in a small general aviation aircraft, without using time acceleration. But I never actually got around to doing it. After such a long stretch of time, I came across a YouTube video with stunning graphics — and it instantly brought back the dream of my youth. From this day on, I will be documenting my round-the-world journey. There will be stories, photo reports, and sometimes videos — in other words, it won’t be boring. The goal of my flight is not simply to fly over everything, but to visit every continent, see famous landmarks, meet friends, and experience the world along the way. And one evening, in the company of friends, I announced my decision. The next morning, still riding high on the support of my friends (and possibly a couple of overly optimistic toasts), I seriously set out to find that very airplane for our crazy adventure. And that’s when the first unexpected surprise hit me: my girlfriend, Anastasia, suddenly announced that she wanted to fly around the world with me. Well then — just like that, the round-the-world trip turned into a romantic expedition. So the two of us began the search for our perfect aircraft. After a short round of deliberation, our choice fell on the Cessna C400 Corvalis TT — fast, beautiful, stylish… in short, love at first sight. But, as often happens with dreams, reality decided to have a little laugh at our expense. In our region, the selection wasn’t just small — it was practically nonexistent. We found only one airplane. One. And it looked like it had already survived more than one world tour… and possibly a couple of apocalypses as a bonus. At a quick glance, it felt like it might fall apart right before our eyes. This wasn’t just an airplane — it was an open-air museum exhibit that, for some mysterious reason, was still officially listed as “operational.” And just when our hope was starting to slip into the category of “wishful thinking,” a true aviation-scale miracle happened. A friend called me and, in a completely casual tone, said that one company was being shut down due to bankruptcy… and their airplane was being sold at auction. I won’t lie — at that moment, the universe clearly winked at us from cruising altitude. After that, everything moved at takeoff speed. Within 24 hours, we gathered the documents, signed everything that could possibly be signed, and by some kind of aviation magic, we became the owners of this flying “treasure.” We didn’t even have time to properly panic — and suddenly, we had bought an airplane. So… Allow me to introduce the aircraft on which we will be flying around the world. The one and only. The destined one. The airplane that doesn’t yet know it’s about to see the whole world… and that we’re about to test it thoroughly And just like that, without even fully realizing that we had become airplane owners, the next quest began — packing our bags. After all, in just a few hours we would be heading out on our very first flight. I was convinced that for a round-the-world journey all I really needed was a navigation tablet and a good mood. Anastasia, however, insisted that without five dresses, three pairs of shoes, and “that one special blanket you absolutely need for watching sunrises”, we were not taking off. The negotiations were intense. Like true flight planners, we tried to calculate the center of gravity of our future happiness so the aircraft wouldn’t dive straight down under the weight of cosmetics. But the most important thing is — the suitcases eventually closed. And that alone felt like a small victory. So… We invite you to join us on this journey and follow the story of our flight with all the details — routes, adventures, stories, surprises, and everything in between. With respect, Mikhail & Anastasia ✈️❤️