|
Fly Around The World With Me 268 Individual Flights PART SIX |
Around The World Main Page
|
|
TRIP DETAILS: Click here to view a map of the trip. |
|
|
FLIGHT 160: July 25, 2003 Luga, Malta (LMML) Fontanarossa, Catania, (LICC) Italy The clock in your Cessna probably indicates that it’s a little past 9:00 on Friday morning, July 25, 2003 as we are beginning our “Tour-de-Europa”. We will be departing at 07:15 UTC or 09:15 local time. It’s already about +90F in the shade. And, this is another one of those instances where it takes almost as long to taxi to the staging area for takeoff as it does to fly to the destination – Catania, Italy. We’ll be flying at 11,000 feet across the Malta Channel on this 100 nm trip and we should arrive in Catania about 10:30 local time. Albeit we’ll be flying (as always) IFR, the landmark is conspicuous – head towards Mount Etna. We’ll be staying with some close friends of mine in Catania. FLIGHT 161: July 26, 2003 Fontanarossa, Catania, (LICC) Italy Palermo, (LICJ) Italy We spent a very pleasant evening at a wonderful café in Catania last evening. This morning, we’re on our way to Palermo, Italy, where we will spend the weekend – our friends will be driving there and meet us later this evening. Our flying time to Palermo will be about two hours as we cruise around the island passing over Reggio de Calabria. We’ll be flying at 7,000 feet and as we depart, we’ll have a great view of Mount Etna to our left. FLIGHT 162: July 28, 2003 Palermo, (LICJ) Italy Terme, Lamezia, (LICA) Italy It’s never easy to say “Goodbye” to close friends. However, this IS a trip around the world. And so, we leave Palermo and continue on our journey to Naples, with a stop along the way in Lamezia, Italy. It’s Monday morning about 8:30 and we’ll be flying at 7,500 on this 150 nm leg and as we fly across the Tyrrhenian Sea, we’ll be passing over the lovely islands of Lipari, Salina, Panarea and Vulcano en route. It is quite a beautiful site when departing Palermo – the cliffs are truly magnificent. We should arrive a little after 10:00. FLIGHT 163: July 28, 2003 Terme, Lamezia, (LICA) Italy Capodichino, Naples, (LIRN) Italy We had a great brunch at the airport and we’re now pressing onwards to Naples. It’s about 13:30 and we’ll be flying at 8,000 feet on this leg and we should arrive in Naples around 17:30. We are not going to fly directly to Naples – rather, we are going to fly north towards Potenza, then back eastwards over the Brindisi area, continuing north over Bari, then swing eastwards passing over Foggia and then into Naples. FLIGHT 164: July 29, 2003 Capodichino, Naples, (LIRN) Italy Urbe, Rome, (LIRU) Italy We spent a very pleasant evening in Naples and the staff at the Sea Hotel were fantastic. It’s 8:45 in the morning on Tuesday the 29th of July, 2003 and we’re finally on our way to Rome – something we have been very much looking forward to! We’ll be flying at 8,000 and we should arrive about 10:15. FLIGHT 165: August 1, 2003 Urbe, Rome, (LIRU) Italy Pisa, (LIRP) Italy Rome is a very special place – you could spend a year in this city and you still would not get enough! And, the past few days have been a lot of fun. But, our trip must continue. So, today, we’ll be flying to Pisa then on to Nice, France where we will be met at the airport by some friends of mine who live in San Remo, Monaco. Our trip to Pisa will be at 10,000 feet, and we’ll not be flying as the crow flies. Rather, we’ll be flying north to Perugia, then east to Ancona, north to Rimini and Forli, then turn westward to pass over Florence then into Pisa. Our flying time will be about 3 hours. FLIGHT 166: August 1, 2003 Pisa, (LIRP) Italy Nice, (LFMN) France We had a pleasant lunch at a small café, overlooking the Ligurian Sea. It’s now 14:15 and we’re continuing our trip to San Remo, Monaco. We’ll actually be flying into Nice, France where some friends who live in San Remo will pick us up at the airport and we’ll spend the weekend in Monaco. We’ll be flying at 12,000 feet and our trip will take us northwest to Genoa, then north to Torino so we can see the snow-capped mountains of western Italy, then southwards to Nice. We should arrive about 17:00. FLIGHT 167: August 4, 2003 Nice, (LFMN) France Palma de Mallorca, (LEPA) Spain It’s about 6:45 on Monday August 4, 2003 and we’re leaving Monoca and Nice, France for the island of Palma de Mallorca, Spain. We’ll be flying at 12,000 on this 3 hour trip. We’re going to take the scenic route – northwest towards St. Auban and Pierrelatte, then head south and fly over Marseille/Provence and then on to Mallorca. FLIGHT 168: August 4, 2003 Palma de Mallorca, (LEPA) Spain Madrid, (LETO) Spain Now this is an island paradise where we’d like to spend about a year! But, as always, we need to keep moving onwards. So, now that we’ve enjoyed the fantastic scenery and cuisine, it’s off to Madrid at 11,000 feet. It’s about 12:45 and we should arrive in Madrid about 16:00. We’ll be flying due west towards Valencia, then northwest into Madrid. It’s a perfect day for flying – not a cloud in the sky, no wind, no weather. However, there are reports of some coastal fog over Valencia and thunderstorms over Madrid. We’ve made reservations to stay at the Arosa hotel downtown. FLIGHT 169: August 5, 2003 Madrid, (LETO) Spain Lisbon, (LPPT) Portugal We spent the evening in Madrid nearby the airport at the Arosa hotel. We’re now heading onwards to Lisbon, Portugal. It’s now about 8:15 on August 5, 2003 and we should arrive in Lisbon about 10:15. The weather is pretty miserable, however, indications are that the skies will clear as we head towards Lisbon. As we approach our destination airport, we’ll see the 25th of April bridge – one of the largest suspension bridges in the world. It kind’a looks like the Golden Gate bridge on steroids! FLIGHT 170: August 5, 2003 Lisbon, (LPPT) Portugal Francisco Sa Carneiro, Porto, (LPPR) Portugal We’ve enjoyed a pleasant lunch at the Lisbon airport and it’s now about 14:15 and we’re continuing on our trip to the city of Porto, Portugal where we will be met by some long standing friends of mine. We’ll spend the night in Porto, then press onwards in the morning. Our flying time will be about 1:30 at 10,000 feet. The current temperature in Lisbon is +100F in the shade – I can’t wait to get airborne to cool off! FLIGHT 171: August 6, 2003 Francisco Sa Carneiro, Porto, (LPPR) Portugal Merignac, Bordeaux, (LFBD) France We spent a very pleasant evening with our friends in Porto and it’s time to move on. It’s about 7:30 in the morning and we’re heading to Bordeaux, France, then on to Cognac, France – two places I have always wanted to visit (for obvious reasons). Our trip to Bordeaux will be about 460 nm, and we’ll be flying at 10,000 feet. We should arrive around 12:30. Except for some low-level cloud cover and intermittent thunderstorms below us, it should be a rather smooth flight. FLIGHT 172: August 6, 2003 Bordeaux, (LFBD) France Cognac – Brie-Champniers, (LFBG) France As agreed upon, you get to pilot this short flight to Cognac – I’ve been enjoying Bordeaux wine and I am in no condition to fly. In other words, this is a 75 nm solo-flight. THEN – it’ll be your turn to savor the local beverages. It’s 20:30 in the early evening, it’s a balmy +80F and it's as clear as a bell. We should arrive about 20:30 and be heading into a sunset on runway 280. FLIGHT 173: August 8, 2003 Cognac, (LFBG) France Channel Islands, (EGJJ) UK Wednesday evening and yesterday noon we enjoyed the best-of-the-best in terms of French wines! Today we’re off to Jersey in the Channel Islands. It’s dawn, on Friday August 8, 2003 and we’ll be cruising at 12,000 feet to the islands. Our trip will take us north over Poitiers, westwards towards Nantes, then north passing Rennes and down into the islands. We should arrive about 9:30. FLIGHT 174: August 8, 2003 Channel Islands, (EGJJ) UK Paris, (LFPO) France It’s 16:45 and we’ve spent the past few hours filling our plane and stomachs and taking in the scenery. We’re now going to head off to Paris for the weekend. We’ll be flying at 7,000 feet to Orly – it’s not quite as busy as Charles De Gaulle airport. We should arrive in Paris about 18:45. We have confirmed reservations at the Hotel Splendid in downtown Paris. FLIGHT 175: August 12, 2003 Paris, (LFPO) France Brussels, (EBBR) Belgium It’s Tuesday, August 12, 2003 at 6:45 in the morning and we’re leaving Paris for Brussels. We got to the airport early to avoid the rush hour traffic. The weather has been blistering hot over the past few days. Over 3,000 people in France alone have died with the intense heat! Our flying time to Brussels will be about 2 hours - we should arrive about 8:45 where we'll grab some breakfast (maybe Belgium Waffles --- ha) and then head onwards to Tavaux airport in Dole, France. FLIGHT 176: August 12, 2003 Brussels, (EBBR) Belgium Tavaux, Dole (LFGJ) France It’s now 13:30 and we’re departing for Tavaux airport in Dole in the Dijon area. This will be about a two and a half hour flight, meaning we should arrive about 16:00. Once again, we’ll top off the tanks and our tummies and then press on to Geneva – a short hop of about 70 kts. FLIGHT 177: August 12, 2003 Tavaux, Dole (LFGJ) France Geneva, (LSGG) Switzerland It’s now 18:15 and we’re departing for Geneva. It’s a relatively short flight of about 85 miles so we should arrive just before 19:00. We have reports of some pretty choppy air coming off of the Swiss Alps and there are also reports of thunderstorms around Lake Geneva. We’ve made reservations to stay at the Best Western Hotel Astoria. FLIGHT 178: August 13, 2003 Geneva, (LSGG) Switzerland Sion, (LSMS) Switzerland It’s Wednesday, August 13, 2003 at 8:15 in the morning and we’re heading into the “hills”. This is a very short flight the way the “crow-flies”. So, if you listen to ATC, they’ll give you the direct approach. However, I have created a flight plan that goes on a more scenic route – down Lake Geneva, past Lausanne, northeast to Bern, then “in the back door” to Sion, passing over some 10,000 “hills”. So, if you want the scenic route, “Cancel IFR” and follow the route in the GPS. Otherwise, let ATC guide you to Sion. Incidentally, besides the intermittent thunderstorms in the Geneva area, it’s pretty choppy up there! We should arrive in Sion about 9:30 if you take the scenic route! FLIGHT 179: August 13, 2003 Sion, (LSMS) Switzerland Lugano, (LSZA) Switzerland It’s Wednesday, August 13, 2003 about 16:45. We elected to take the scenic route and arrived here in Sion about 9:35. We had a delightful breakfast, took in some of the scenery, had a late lunch and now we’re on our way to Lugano to spend a few days with my brother who lives there. We’ll be climbing to 15,000 on this leg, so break out the oxygen! Right after lift-off, get over to the right and hug the hills, because ATC will have you turn left – not a pretty sight if you haven’t got enough airspace! And, on this flight, you’ll be very happy we’ve got a Cessna 182T – Turbo! Get on it and climb as quickly as possible because we’ve got to clear some pretty awesome mountains! We’ll be in Lugano around 17:30. FLIGHT 180: August 16, 2003 Lugano, (LSZA) Switzerland Bergamo, (LIME) Italy It was a real delight visiting Tony and his family – we had a ball. It’s now 9:45 in the morning on Saturday August 16, 2003 and we’re off to Bergamo to meet some friends of mine. We’ll arrive in Bergamo about 10:30 where we will spend the weekend. FLIGHT 181: August 18, 2003 Bergamo, (LIME) Italy Innsbruck, (LOWI) Austria It’s 6:45 in the morning on August 18, 2003 and we’re on our way to Innsbruck Austria. Our route will take us due north towards St. Gallen so that we can fly over the tiny country of Liechtenstein en route to Innsbruck. To do this, head 45 degrees (instead of 25 degrees) at waypoint LSZR507, then head 15 degrees to St. Gallen (wink-wink). ATC will no doubt nag you to get back on course, but at least you will have seen Liechtenstein. We’ll be flying at 15,000 feet and should arrive about 8:30. The heat wave has not yet let up in Europe – it’s over +90F this early in the morning. And, it’s muggy! Can’t wait to get airborne! We’ll experience some choppy air over the Alps and we’ll be battling 20-25 knot winds from the east. There are reports of light thunderstorms in the Innsbruck area. FLIGHT 182: August 18, 2003 Innsbruck, (LOWI) Austria Vienna, (LOWW) Austria Well, the weather has cleared and the skies are blue! We’re on our way to Vienna. It’s now 11:30 and we’ll be flying at 12,000 feet and should arrive in Vienna around 13:15. Our trip will take us over Salzburg and Linz and then direct into Vienna where we will spend the evening. FLIGHT 183: August 19, 2003 Vienna, (LOWW) Austria Frankfurt, (EDDF) Germany We spent an extremely pleasant evening in Vienna – what a beautiful city. It’s 7:30 in the morning on August 19, 2003 and we’re on our way to Frankfurt, Germany. The heat has let up a bit (which is good news). However, the winds are really gusty this morning – from 15 to 30 kts. Our trip will take us north over Prague and then west southwest over Nurnberg and then up into Frankfurt. Except for battling 20 kts headwinds, the flight should be pretty uneventful. We’ll be flying at 7,000 feet and should arrive in Frankfurt around 11:30. FLIGHT 184: August 19, 2003 Frankfurt, (EDDF) Germany Schiphol, Amsterdam, (EHAM) The Netherlands We’ve enjoyed our lunch, walked around the massive Frankfurt airport and now we’re on our way to the Netherlands by flying due west to Luxembourg then north to Amsterdam. I have created a flight plan that will do a loop-de-loop around Luxembourg that’ll give us a good look at the area. Once again we’ll be flying at 7,000 feet and we should arrive about 19:30. We’ll spend the night in Amsterdam and head out in the morning for Denmark via Hamburg. FLIGHT 185: August 20, 2003 Schiphol, Amsterdam, (EHAM) The Netherlands Hamburg, (EDDH) Germany Our flight will take us northeast from Amsterdam towards Groningen, then due east to Karlshofen, Germany and finally into Hamburg. We’ll be cruising at 9,000 feet this morning and we should arrive in Hamburg about 12:30. FLIGHT 186: August 20, 2003 Hamburg, (EDDH) Germany Copenhagen, (EKCH) Denmark We arrived in Hamburg a little past noon hour, had some lunch (… could it have been a hamburger???) and now we’re continuing our trip today to Denmark. We’ll be flying at 5,000 feet on this 150 km leg. We should enjoy a 15-20 knot partial tailwind en route and arrive just past 18:15. FLIGHT 187: August 21, 2003 Copenhagen, (EKCH) Denmark Stockholm, (ESSA) Sweden It’s just approaching 7:00 in the morning on August 21, 3003 and we’re leaving Copenhagen, Denmark for Arlanda airport in Stockholm Sweden. We’ll be cruising at 11,000 feet and we should arrive in Stockholm about 9:45. It’s a pleasant +72 degrees and we should have a relatively smooth flight once we are at our cruising speed. FLIGHT 188: August 21, 2003 Stockholm, (ESSA) Sweden Gardermoen, Oslo, (ENGM) Norway We’ll be flying at 10,000 feet on our two hour thirty minute flight to Oslo; meaning we will arrive about 16:00. Except for some high clouds, this should be a very pleasant and uneventful flight. When we arrive, we’ll gas up, grab some food and head onwards to Flesland airport in Bergen, Norway where we will spend the evening. FLIGHT 189: August 21, 2003 Gardermoen, Oslo, (ENGM) Norway Bergen, (ENBR) Norway It’s a beautiful summer’s evening and despite fighting 20-25 knot headwinds on this last leg for today, we should have a great flight. And, we’ll be flying straight into a northern hemisphere sunset on our 9,000 foot elevated trip while cruising over low-level cloud cover. We should arrive in Bergen around 22:15. We’ve made arrangements for late arrival at the Golden Tulip Rainbow Hotel near the Bergen airport. FLIGHT 190: August 22, 2003 Bergen, (ENBR) Norway Sumburgh, (EGPB) UK This is not too much of a surprise – we’re leaving Bergen, Norway for Sumburgh, UK and already it’s beginning to rain! It’s seems the minute one mentions UK, it begins to rain – ha! In any case, it’s a pleasant +60F at 9:15 in the morn, and we’ll be flying at 6,000 on this short trip to Sumburgh. The winds a gusty from 240 at about 10 kts and we’ll be battling 25 to 35 knot headwinds most of the way. We should arrive in Sumburgh about 11:45. FLIGHT 191: August 22, 2003 Sumburgh, (EGPB) UK Aberdeen, Scotland, (EGPD) UK We arrived in Sumburgh a little past 11:30 and it’s now just coming up on 14:15 and we’re on our way to Aberdeen, Scotland where we will spend the evening. The winds are gusting and the temperature is around +55F degrees. We’ll be cruising at 6,000 feet and we should arrive in Aberdeen about 16:15. Our trip will take us towards Kirkwall, then south over Wick and down into Aberdeen. FLIGHT 192: August 23, 2003 Aberdeen, Scotland, (EGPD) UK Manchester, England, (EGCC) UK It’s Saturday morning about 8:00 and we’re going on a real sight-seeing tour of the UK. Our destination for today is Shoreham in the south of England. The first leg of our trip will be at 7,500 feet and will take us over Scone and Dundee, then south over Edinburgh, continuing south to Tweed, then due west to Prestwick. We then will head southeast towards New Galloway and continue eastwards to Carlisle. From there we will head due east to Newcastle, south over Teesside, York and Church Fenton, and head west past Leeds Bradford, Pole Hill into our first leg destination - Manchester. There are reports of intermittent, but extremely low cloud-cover near Manchester. We should arrive about 11:30. FLIGHT 193: August 23, 2003 Manchester, England, (EGCC) UK Shoreham, England, (EGKA) UK We depart runway 24R and then turn southwest over Whitegate and continue down the road to Tetenhill, where we turn east again, past the East Midlands, past Fenland and over to Norwich. Then it’s southwest to Cambridge, over to Bourn, Castlemill and over to Cranfield. We then turn south and head directly for Shoreham. We’ll be cruising at 6,000 feet on this leg and we should arrive about 17:15. We’ll spend a couple of days in Shoreham visiting friends. FLIGHT 194: August 26, 2003 Shoreham, England, (EGKA) UK Dublin, (EIDW) Republic of Ireland We had a very pleasant stay in Shoreham visiting our friends. It’s dawn on Tuesday, August 26, 2003 and we’re heading for Dublin Ireland. Our trip will take us northwest over Farnborough, Compton and west towards Lyneham. Then northwest again passing just west of Gloucestershire and then head 310 all the way to Dublin passing over Montgomeryshire as we leave England. We’ll be flying at 11,000 over low cloud cover most of the trip and we should arrive just before 9:00. We’ll grab some breakfast at the airport and continue on to Belfast via the Isle of Man. FLIGHT 195: August 26, 2003 Dublin, (EIDW) Republic of Ireland Belfast, (EGAA) Northern Ireland Well, we stuffed our faces and we’re off to Belfast, via the Isle of Man (the scenic route). This is a relatively short flight and we’ll be flying at 3,000 feet. We’ll spend the early afternoon in Belfast, then head on to Vagar in the Faroe Islands where we will spend the evening. Here is another instance where ATC will provide us a direct bearing to our destination just as we’re taking off. You can do that if you like, or, you can cancel the IFR flight plan as recommended by ATC and follow the flight plan as I have it laid out that will take us over the Isle of Man. The choice is yours to make --- Captain! FLIGHT 196: August 26, 2003 Belfast, (EGAA) Northern Ireland Vagar, (EKVG) Faroe Islands It only took us about 15 minutes by bus to get downtown. “Well Hello Dare Now” was the phrase most heard during our afternoon excursion. We enjoyed a late lunch and we’re back at the airport determined to get to the Faroe Islands this evening. We’ve made reservations at the Hotel Hafnia and described it as a late arrival. We’ll be cruising at 10,000 feet and we should arrive about 22:00. Incidentally, since I have flown into this airport before, here’s a NOTE OF CAUTION: There’s a mountain right smack-dab in the glide path on runway 31. So, PLEASE… clear it! FLIGHT 197: August 27, 2003 Vagar, (EKVG) Faroe Islands Reykjavik, (BIRK) Iceland Vagar Airport, the international airport in the Faroes, is located on the island of Vágoy. We were told that a tunnel link is under construction but because this is yet to be completed, we enjoyed a short ferry crossing to get to our hotel. We didn’t arrive at the hotel until 23:30, so we didn’t see very much of the islands on arrival. However, this morning we took a run around and took in the local fare. It’s now 15:30 and we’re on our way to Reykjavik, Iceland. Our flying time will be about 3:30 at 12,000 feet and we should arrive about 18:30 local time. We’ll be battling 30-35 knot headwinds most of the way. We have made reservations to stay at the Hotel Loftleidir Reykjavik. FLIGHT 198: August 28, 2003 Reykjavik, (BIRK) Iceland Narsarsuaq, (BGBW) Greenland The Hotel Loftleidir in Reykjavik is rated ninth-best based on 6 sources, but you could have fooled us – it was GREAT! It’s just coming up on 6:00 and we’re on our way to Greenland. Except for a 20-25 knot headwind, our 675 km trip ought to be a pretty uneventful flight – the skies look very friendly. We should arrive in Narsarsuaq, Greenland about 9:15 local time (considering the 2 hour time zone shift). This is a very long 6 hour flight, so make sure the cowls are firmly closed, the engine is nice, warm and cozy and keep the airspeed about 105 knots – let’s conserve fuel! FLIGHT 199: August 28, 2003 Narsarsuaq, (BGBW) Greenland Goose Bay, Newfoundland, (CYYR) Canada During the summer, South Greenland lives up to its name of “green land”. It’s just past noon hour. We’ve stretched our legs, filled our tummies and topped off the tanks. Now, we’re heading onwards to Goose Bay, Newfoundland. This is another 675 km trip, only this time we’ll probably be fighting stronger headwinds. So, once again, let’s conserve fuel! We should arrive about 18:00 local time with another one hour time shift. Incidentally, clearing customs in Goose Bay required prior notification and we took care of that from the UK last week, so it ought to go smoothly. Besides which – I’m Canadian! We have made reservations to spend the evening at the North Hotel in Goose Bay. FLIGHT 200: August 29, 2003 Goose Bay, Newfoundland, (CYYR) Canada Dorval Airport, Montreal, (CYUL) Quebec Finally, we’re on our way to my hometown – Montreal, Quebec, Canada. I was born in the city of Verdun on the island of Montreal too many years ago to mention. We’ll be flying at 6,000 feet southwest towards Sept-Isles (Seven-Islands), then up the mighty St. Lawrence river, passing over Rimouski and Quebec City, then over what is called the “South Shore” towards the island of Montreal. As we pass over the island, you will see off to the left the sports center, the downtown area and St. Joseph’s Oratory atop the “mount real”. We should arrive at Montreal’s Dorval airport about 13:30, where the last reports have it raining and gusty winds in the 10-12 knot range. Click here to view a map of the trip. |
Around The World Main Page