The 2024 Australia Rally...

[Bossspecops]

A CV-10! 

 

One of my FAVE aeroplanes ever, I love it! 

 

I like it so much I even tried to build a plastic model of one, and it's STILL being built after 10-15 years, one day etc.  

 

I finally reached Australia y'day, to much cheering and yelling at Derby as I checked in at Flight Ops there. THEN I went had a word with ATC as they let some gawp in a SAAB 340 backtrack down the runway as I was on finals! Landing OVER him was the only option as with her high thrust line, opening 'Austral Roses' throttles would have just shoved her nose down and INTO the 340!

 

 

But I got here anyway, and later today I'll trundle off down to Perth to meet the rest of you. 

[PhrogPhlyer]

21 hours ago, ViperPilot2 said:

Maybe the Sponsors will kick in some...

Leadbottom Rum offers to kick in a couple jugs so you can "Get the Lead Out!".

 

Oops, off topic... Again.

 

[Bossspecops]

En route to Perth it became clear I was going to run out of fuel yet AGAIN! There's something screwy about the engine modelling of this aircraft as the fuel burn rate looks OK, and the maths works fine just after reaching ToC, and then it all goes to pot. 

 

I'm dropping into Meekatharra (YMEK) to top up my tanks and I should be in Perth around 1830 GMT.

 

Fingers crossed. 

[jgf]

After what seems ages in the barren wastes of eastern Siberia and an overnight stay in Sakhalin I say goodbye to Russia.

 

Winter is Japan is much more inviting.

 

Tokyo in sight.  Navaids!  ILS!  Signs of life!

 

These taxi instructions do not seem prudent.

 

802 miles in 4hrs 21min.  Total distance to date 7502 miles;  think the plane and I are both due for an overhaul.

 

A good cleaning inside and out, oil change and tune-up, kick the tires, and the old girl should be ready to go.  I'll pass the time with sake and ..."entertainment".

 

Then off to RJKB, Okinoerabu.

[Airbasil_1]

Guys, i'm finally done with Part 1 of Port Augusta Photoreal for FS2004. 

If you want it, you can download it here. Klick (600MB) (about 240 Square Kilometers covered).
The download is to huge to be capable to upload it in the Library... so i have to share it like that. 

The Download is valid untill 19th of January 2024 and will expire then. If you only can download it later, please let me know, so i can reupload it again. 
Keep in mind, this is an unfinished coverage, as few parts are still missing and not covered and there's no Autogen with the Scenery as well... its Phototerrain only!

Have fun flying in and out of Port Augusta.
 

[Airbasil_1]

Another good news for today...

The RFDS arrived today at Port Augusta with the wetleased Jet, which they provide for the race to ramp up Air Service Liège's capacity! 
Three more Beds for Injured Patients and two more Seats for Emergency Doctors are available now.

Whilst the CJ1+ is flying from Perth and Jandakot to the western Destinations, ensuring the Safety of all Participants of the Race,
The Citation 550 Bravo CJ II is flying from Port Augusta to all eastern and southern Destinations, to ensure the safety of all Participants of the Race. 

Thanks Kit ( @Bossspecops ) and the whole RFDS Team for ferrying her to Port Augusta voluntarily.
Now we are complete and fully ready to start the race!

 

[Bossspecops]

Magic to see the RFDS Citation where it belongs. It was a busy but productive few days re-painting out that scheme. 

 

My mission is ACCOMPLISHED as 'Austral Rose' landed at Jandakot at 1845 GMT this evening. 

 

The last sector was 'interesting' as the fuel burn was all screwed, as had happened before and I had to land mid-way to refuel, but I got here eventually. Many interesting scenery items en route, and I really like this combination of Orbx and OzX scenery, not that I've ever been there for real of course. Talk about barren wastes................... 

 

 

Deciding to refuel was prudent as I only had 50 odd gallons in the tanks when I got to YMEK, and it was a nice looking place with a MASSIVE runway.

 

 

But nothing looked quite so good as the lovely fuel pump sitting there on the ramp! 

 

 

I passed some VERY strange scenic areas between there and Jandakot, this was just one of them.....

 

 

But soon the big city landscape of Perth and its airport hove into view.

 

 

I'm not quite sure I bothered to pay the landing fees at Jandakot as the whole area is covered in lakes and rivers and I could have put down almost anywhere!

 

 

Turning left over those lakes brought Jandakot into view at last.

 

 

And soon I was on my final finals!  I love the sight of my own shadow down there on my left.

 

 

And at long last G-AUST was there where she should be ready for the Rally in 3 days time.

 

The final figures for my ferry flight are pretty mind blowing :-

 

Total miles flown = 10928

 

Total hours flown = 75.7

 

Total fuel burnt (approx) = 2359 galls or 14154 lbs

 

Average speed = 143 kts

 

Average fuel burn = 4.7 galls/mile or 187 lbs/hr (both of which sound terrible to me, but that's aviation life for you)

 

I had a great time on the flight, went to some interesting places and learnt how NOT to fly the Sealand! It's so unstable that it's almost impossible to fly any distance without using the autopilot, so that's what I'll be doing on the Rally, come what may.

 

See you all on the start line. 

 

[ViperPilot2]

5 hours ago, jgf said:

After what seems ages in the barren wastes of eastern Siberia and an overnight stay in Sakhalin I say goodbye to Russia.

 

Winter is Japan is much more inviting.

 

Tokyo in sight.  Navaids!  ILS!  Signs of life!

 

These taxi instructions do not seem prudent.

 

802 miles in 4hrs 21min.  Total distance to date 7502 miles;  think the plane and I are both due for an overhaul.

 

A good cleaning inside and out, oil change and tune-up, kick the tires, and the old girl should be ready to go.  I'll pass the time with sake and ..."entertainment".

 

Then off to RJKB, Okinoerabu.

 

Treat yourself to a nice Meal and a comfortable Hotel. Maybe some Teppanyaki, perhaps?

 

I'd like to try a Capsule Hotel sometime... 

 

[jgf]

Adios Narita

 

see you later Tokyo

 

Had hoped for a sedate sightseeing trip down Japan, but RKJB is "located on the island of  Okinoerabujima in the town of Wadomari, Ōshima District, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan";  800 miles over open ocean, near Okinawa.  About 15000 people mainly in two towns, most of the island is part of a national park, though not a major tourist destination, it is one of the few places you can legally swim with whales.

 

And why, no matter where in the FS world you are, ATC will invariably vector you to land on the runway opposite the direction from which you approach.

 

An easy landing

 

just don't overshoot

 

872 miles in 5:15

 

Refuel, and on to RPLI in north Philippines.  I'm getting closer.

 

 

[Airbasil_1]

10 minutes ago, jgf said:

Had hoped for a sedate sightseeing trip down Japan, but RKJB is "located on the island of  Okinoerabujima in the town of Wadomari, Ōshima District, Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan";  800 miles over open ocean, near Okinawa.  About 15000 people mainly in two towns, most of the island is part of a national park, though not a major tourist destination, it is one of the few places you can legally swim with whales.

And here you can get RKJB - Muan Airport Scenery if needed: Klick and enjoy!

[jgf]

8 minutes ago, Airbasil_1 said:

And here you can get RKJB

 

Thanks!  Japan is one of the areas I've built up with all the scenery I can find (occasionally downloading unknown files from Japanese sites ...I neither read nor speak the language).

[jgf]

32 minutes ago, ViperPilot2 said:

Treat yourself to a nice Meal

 

Ah, you don't have to sell me on Asian cuisine;  whether Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Thai, or whatever, I can eat it every day.  (Christmas dinner was stir-fry beef and vegetables.)

[TomPenDragon]

The Daily Update

(Cue The Cult’s, “She Sells Sanctuary”)

 

Elias Pacheco: “Hello and welcome to our Daily Update for the 12^th of January, 2024. Race Day is fast approaching. We are down to our last weekend to prepare, and teams are working furiously to get their aircraft and pilots ready for a long and grueling run to Sydney for the ‘76, and then to Cairns if they opt to fly the Combined route.

 

“Let us take a look at our world travelers, to whom half a circumnavigation is just another friendly fly-in. As of last report, jgf is at his last stop in Russia, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. An auto racer with decades of experience on the track, his use of power and mixture settings to wring the last iota of efficiency from his Staggerwing has increased its range to nearly a thousand miles. Most impressive, sir!

 

“Bossspecops is nearly to Perth. He had a frightening incident coming into Derby, when Air Traffic Control cleared him to land and at the same time sent a Saab 340 down the runway for takeoff. Does AI no longer stand for, ‘Artificial Intelligence,’ and instead means, ‘Absolute Idiocy’ now? A little professionalism, please! We could’ve lost Kit, and how many souls aboard the Saab almost virtually perished?

 

“He is now in Meekatharra for fuel, and is hoping to make Perth by this evening. Being a Friday night, I wonder if the racers will take a break from their preparations to throw him a warm Australian welcome?

 

“Melo965, as far as we can tell, is still waiting for the paint to dry on his Chippie. I’ve made a couple of stopovers in Darwin in my time and, while it’s a nice town, just waiting to get his aircraft into the air again and heading toward Perth seems as dull as, um, watching paint dry. I don’t envy you, Melo.

 

“If you hear the drone of an engine through my microphone, that’s because I’m reporting from 16,500 feet up, heading west, having just touched down in Bankstown to complete my scouting tour of the 1976 route. I’m not taking the route home – instead, I’m following the rather sparse VOR’s, for a planned distance of 1,775 miles. Inspired by jgf, I’m using high mileage techniques to try to make it without stopping.

 

“I’m going to take a moment of personal privilege and tell you a little about this aircraft. I live in the same airport community as does Mr. Thomas PenDragon. We’re friends. My dogs love him more than they do me – at least that was how they acted when they heard his Cherokee coming in before dawn, fresh from his and Reymundo Harrison’s win in the Route 66 Rally. I was giving the dogs their early-morning walk at the time.

 

“After the dogs finished mobbing him and his wife, Jessica, we went to the airport’s Astral Dome FBO for a spot of breakfast. He told me about the rally, and how the club that organized the race, Club Chachapoya, could use some proper media coverage. One thing that Jessica, Tom, and I share is a love of endurance racing, and the idea came about of modeling the effort after that sport’s premier broadcaster, Radio LeMans. I believed then, and am more convinced of it now, that they asked me to head their, “Radio Chachapoya,” because I’m retired and have the time. It certainly wasn’t because of my extensive experience in media; I have none.

 

“I thought it was just talk, so I accepted. A couple of weeks later, I find Tom in the Astral Dome again during the morning walk, and he tells me Club Chachapoya’s next event is going to be in January, in Australia of all places. And he told me that Tao Taoftedal, whose expertise at procurement I did not know at the time, had convinced Piper to give us a brand-new M-Class as a prize for winning the last event in a Cherokee. The plane would go to Radio Chachapoya – me – if I would fly it to the event. How could I say no?

 

“So, at dawn on January 1^st, 2024, I left my perrhijos in the loving arms of Jessica and Tom, and took his rather hot Seneca to Lock Haven to pick up the aircraft. That is such an impressive airplane: uprated engines, high-thrust props, turbonormalized into the 20’s… I was half tempted to skip the stop at Piper and take it all the way to Perth.

 

“The poor Piper people were none too pleased to see me, seeing as they got dragged into work on New Year’s Day by some Marketing muckety-muck who was sitting warm and cozy in front of his fireplace. I’m fortunate to hold an Omni license, which lets me fly anything from two-seat trainers to military-spec jets. They send me up for a checkride in an M600 turboprop first. What a magnificent machine! The latest in glass cockpit technology. We take her up to her service ceiling, 30K. A little lower and she trues out above 270 knots. Amazing!

 

“And on the way to Pennsylvania, I had worked out a flight plan to Perth that was more than 13,000 miles. And I never liked the sound of a turboprop, especially a single. On the long descent, I knew I wouldn’t be able to stand it for that long a flight. So I ask the good people of Piper if they’ve got a good-performing piston single. We take an M350 up. Lower and slower, but with a G1000NXI suite optioned out with synthetic vision, shirtsleeves pressurization up to her 25,000-foot service ceiling, FIKI, and an engine note that’d make the gods smile. She’s a spectacular aircraft. Just not for me.

 

“So I give Tom a call to ask him if I could just use his Seneca. He tells me that the plane’s a prototype and is awaiting an engine upgrade, so it wouldn’t be available in time for me to make it to Perth by the 15^th. He hangs up and calls Tao, who calls Bill The Fourth, who heads development at the family firm, who calls Tim Conrad, head of Piper’s Performance Planes – Piper’s skunkworks.

 

“Within a half-hour, the factory’s lot’s half-full with cars. Mr. Conrad called in every one of the Piglets, which is what the performance team members call themselves. Tim even brings his team’s mascot, a sweet Shepherd named BenPuppy.

 

“Tim and I sit down and talk, in marked contrast to the suits from Marketing who simply shoved me into the left seat of the 600 as soon as I stepped off the wing of the Seneca. “He asks me what has been my favorite GA aircraft to fly and I answer without even having to think about it: a Piper Saratoga.

 

“This starts the suits snickering, and with good reason. The Saratoga was a chimera of an airplane. The fuselage was adapted from the Seneca, which was adapted from the Cherokee Six/Lance. Whoever designed the wing must have been looking at a Warrior’s wings while playing with a Stretch Armstrong. And the flaps are manual, taken right off a Cherokee. It takes a lot of up-trim to get it off the ground, and is sloppy as heck once it finally unsticks. Landing it’s like landing a warbird – you’ve got a long nose that doesn’t let you see the airfield, let the airspeed drop below 80 and it sinks like a stone, wants to be flown onto the runway…

 

“But a Saratoga was the first plane that I bought new. I still remember the smell. I bought and sold many an aircraft over the years, but always kept her. She was the plane I moved to Mexico in. I cried the day I traded her in for a Lancair Audi.

 

“And Tim and the Piglets smile, and he says, ‘We’ve got one.’ And they lead me to the factory floor, back to the corner with the giant A.A. Milne character painted on the wall. And as we’re walking, Tim explains that they were trying to develop a low-cost alternative to the M-Series, using blueprints from a Saratoga so they wouldn’t spend money on design. Instead of using metals, they 3-D printed the spars and skins and all else in spun carbon – carbon fiber’s much lighter, much tougher younger brother. Instead of shaving weight, they beefed up all the parts until she weighed as much as an aluminum Saratoga – so the plane’s nearly indestructible. ‘The plane’ll break you long before you break the plane,’ one of the Piglets – sorry, I’ve forgotten your name – said.

 

“The Piglets of Piper’s Performance Planes are nothing if not competitive. They were not satisfied with producing a low-cost, cabin-class, six-seat single, they wanted the folks on the M350 team to eat their contrails. So, to overcome the Saratoga’s greater drag than her descendant, they replaced the Lycoming with a PFM400 – the twin-turbocharged, 400-horse monster from Porsche that powers the new Porsche Mooneys.

 

“The M350 is ultra-modern. The Piglets painted their Saratoga in a 2+2 striped 70’s retro scheme. The office is retro as well: Digital analog gauges, with the reliability and service life of digital but the look of the old analog instruments they replace. Primary avionics are matched Silver Crown navcoms, a KR87 ADF with standby, and a KFC225 AFCS. These are rounded out by an ARC 400 DME – knowing this lot, I wouldn’t be surprised to see someone in a Cessna wondering where the hole in their panel came from – and two modern additions from Garmin, a GPS500 in the right side of the stack, and a GI275 EIS on the far left of the panel. Below this is a Garmin GTX320 transponder.

 

“The color of her interior can be said to be a very light tan or a dirty cream, depending on your eyes and the time of day. But it’s glove-soft leather. Like most Pipers, the seats are short, with shoulder rests instead of headrests. But they manage to balance sporty stiffness with armchair cushiness better than any other Piper I’ve flown.

 

“She could easily be mistaken for a mid-80’s Saratoga, up to the point you push the mixture forward, turn on the fuel pump, and turn the key all the way clockwise. Be sure to have the handbrake on when you do. There’s none of the quiet purr of the M350 or the hum of the old Lycoming. The engine is an aero-adapted version of the 992 GT3’s powerplant, and save for a silky smooth idle, sounds like a race car, with a full-throated roar. If you take heart medication, make sure you haven’t forgotten or don’t be anywhere near this Saratoga when she fires up. If you’re in the left seat, wait a minute and your pulse will synchronize with the plane’s.

 

“The Piglets’ Saratoga taxis easily. She has a Saratoga’s main, 51-gallon tankage, plus 21-gallon auxiliary tanks, for 144 gallons of fuel. This peculiar plane from the Piglets had only 14 hours on the Hobbs, despite having been completed in 2022. She had worked perfectly from the day of her first flight test, but everyone at Piper was afraid to fly her. Tim Conrad was in the right seat. He told me that, like all PFM engines, this one had been bench run-in, so there was no need to fly her any differently at 14 hours than I would at 50.

 

“He assured me that the motor, like the airframe, was bulletproof, but advised me to throttle back to 30” as soon as the turbos kicked in. She was every bit a Saratoga on takeoff – if your Saratoga’s equipped with JATO. Whatever I said when I throttled her up for the first time cannot be repeated on radio. The sloppiness on liftoff felt like home. Above 120, she stiffened into the sweetest ride in Piper’s fleet short of an Aerostar. At 140, she felt like a Cadillac CTS and climbed at 1,500 feet per minute. Pressurization and climate are fully automated and controlled by a phone app or an Etrex, so there’s nothing on the panel. Should anything happen to the system or the pressure hull, an alarm will alert you.

 

“Performance is very much in line with the M350, except for endurance. With the extra fuel and the PFM400’s frugality of thirst, she’ll spend seven hours in the air before you’ll need to come down again. Landing is very much like landing an original Saratoga, except that power settings are much more sensitive.

 

“To paraphrase The Beatles, ‘Do you believe in love at first flight?’ I didn’t before. I do now. This is not an aircraft for a novice pilot, or one who is not willing to learn her idiosyncrasies. You cannot dominate this plane. You must partner with her. If you do, she’ll reward you with the best flight hours you’ve ever had.

 

“I thought that with Tim sitting next to me during our checkride. Now, about to turn 100 hours on the Hobbs, I feel it even more strongly.

 

“My old Saratoga was registered as XB-AFM. When we ran a check, we saw that she was still registered. Neil Young’s ‘Long May You Run’ came to mind. This new bird is XB-AFN. If you want this one, you’re going to have to pry it out of my cold, dead hands, which will likely still be wrapped around the yoke.

 

“It has been a halfway-round-the-world, real world flight test. Hopefully, Piper will decide to make this aircraft. She doesn’t have a name yet – that’s up to the folks in Marketing, not the Piglets. How about, ‘Saratoga M992’?

 

“This just in: jgf has made it to RJKB, and is heading for the Philippines. And I will be seeing the Bosss when I land; he has arrived in Perth.

 

“And one last note: Be sure to check out our Aussie Correspondent’s new installment of, ‘Chachapoya Chronicles,’ wherever fine books and periodicals are sold, or online if you wish to save some trees.

 

“This is Elias Pacheco for Radio Chachapoya, with a belated, extended edition of the Daily Update, signing off. Have a great evening!”

[MAD1]

The Chachapoya Chronicle comment by your Aussie Correspondent

Technical note 1: it's The Chachapoya Chronicle, a newpaper, not 'Chronicles' as Elias states.

Technical note 2: Airbasil_1's scenary. The mountains he refers to are proabably the Flinders Ranges, I'll investigate and report. So guys, make sure you set your season to summer, RW we're in mid-summer, and those mountains never get snow (or only rarely, the odd flurry). (In NSW, I'll report on a scenic diversion for those interested to our 'Snowy Mountains', yes, real name, which gives a hint at their nature in winter. (Fact: more snow area than in Switzerland! Climate change is affecting them nowadays, the 'snow bunny' snow fields, good chalets, ski lifts, down-hill runs, might be threatened, and alas so would the 'apre ski' nightime fun.)

[taoftedal]

2 hours ago, TomPenDragon said:

He asks me what has been my favorite GA aircraft to fly and I answer without even having to think about it ...

 

Yup ... those Piper folks are all right!   I'll bet Beechcraft would have made us buy our own hats ... 

[TomPenDragon]

24 minutes ago, MAD1 said:

it's The Chachapoya Chronicle, a newpaper, not 'Chronicles' as Elias states.

My mistake, sorry.  Glad to have a newspaper here.

[TomPenDragon]

22 minutes ago, taoftedal said:

I bet Beechcraft would have made us buy our own hats ... 

The hats I can afford.  Buying Bonanzas and Barons takes a chunk out of the ol' wallet, though.  Glad I'm in the Saratoga!

[jgf]

55 minutes ago, taoftedal said:

I'll bet Beechcraft would have made us buy our own hats ...

 

But I can do this

 

[jgf]

1 hour ago, MAD1 said:

make sure you set your season to summer, RW we're in mid-summer,

 

And, in FS2004 at least, if you have the Orbx themes, try this one (a bit windy but makes an interesting flight)

 

 

[ViperPilot2]

2 hours ago, jgf said:

 

And, in FS2004 at least, if you have the Orbx themes, try this one (a bit windy but makes an interesting flight)

 

 

 

This might help too, if you're using Themes like some of us are...

 

http://www.bom.gov.au/

 

It'll be fun to stick in something that replicates RW Wx this time. I downloaded a Package from the Library and haven't tried all of them yet, but a couple of the 'busy' ones mess with the Sim. So far, looks like it's hot and dry for the upcoming Week, with a slight chance of Showers late in the day.

 

Since the Locations we're flying to are sparse in the Accommodations department, I'm bringing an Esky with some essentials and am gonna 'rough it' every night. MAD1 can you add any insight as to what would be proper tucker to include in the esky? Gotta keep that Immersion Factor high, you know... 

 

5 hours ago, jgf said:

 

Ah, you don't have to sell me on Asian cuisine;  whether Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Thai, or whatever, I can eat it every day.  (Christmas dinner was stir-fry beef and vegetables.)

 

Grab me some Strawberry & Apple KitKats! 

 

 

[ScottishMike]

I bit of a reconnaissance of the eastern Basil route for those with FS9 and Voz 1.8 (does it start at YSBK Bankstown or YSCH (YCFS) Coffs harbour?)

YCFS Coffs Harbour:

 

YBNA Ballina:

 

YBCG Coolangata Gold Coast Intl.:

 

YBBN Brisbane Intl.:

 

YBRK Rockhampton:

 

YBMK Mackay:

Mackay makes me envious of those with sea landing capability, both the spots below are within walking distance of the airport:

 

YBTL Townsville:

 

And to finish at YBCS Cairns:

[Bossspecops]

30 minutes ago, ScottishMike said:

Mackay makes me envious of those with sea landing capability, both the spots below are within walking distance of the airport:

 

 

 

 

Exactly the reason why I'm flying an amphibian. 

 

Quite a few of the Eastern Route fields are fairly close to water, being it sea water or the fresher sort. 

[Airbasil_1]

Btw.

 

- for Ballina i have another scenery (converted from FSX/P3D by a guy named: Dedl in FS2004.Team forums…)

 

- for Coolangatta and Townsville, there's a Payware available from MFSG (at Simmarket) which i have installed (They look pretty impressive). 

 

Also MFSG is planning on doing Rockhampton next (little insider nearby). 

Can't wait to get that one. 

 

The Eastern Route, was actually planned to start in Cairns, running down to Hobart. With Stops at all major Airports inbetween such as at: Townsville, Mackay, Rockhampton, Brisbane, Coolangatta, Ballina, Grafton District, Coffs Harbour, Port Macquarie, Sydney, Wollongon, Canberra, Melbourne, Devonport, and from there in a Single Leg, down to Hobart. 

[taoftedal]

14 hours ago, jgf said:

But I can do this ...

 

A little friendly competition for Bosss ... no reason he should have all the fun!  Just don't try the JSMR thing ... 

[jgf]

1 hour ago, taoftedal said:

Just don't try the JSMR thing ...

 

Lol, yes, she's a floatplane not an amphib.