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/images/notams/notams22/hesh.jpgSharm El-Sheikh “the bay of the Sheikh†is one of the most popular holiday destinations at the Red Sea, and the second biggest airport in Egypt. Handling up to 9.5 million passengers per year with its new remarkable terminal 1 and the terminal 2 extension, the airport is busier than ever. Visit Egypt now in MSFS! Features Detailed airport scenery of Sharm El-Sheikh (HESH / SSH)Includes terminal 1 and terminal 2 extensionUpdated to feature latest changes at the airportOptimized for great performance and visual results in MSFSCompatible with all known add-onsManual includedSystem Requirements Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 CPU (Core 2 Quad advised)RAM: 2 GBDirect X 9 compatible Graphics Card with 512 MB or higherMicrosoft Flight Simulator (MSFS 2020)Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7/8/10/11Purchase FSDG - Sharm El-Sheikh for MSFS See all FSDG scenery here See all Aerosoft products here
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River Cruises - The Nile Part 3 By Derek Swanson 6 May 2009 Luxor to The Mediterranean Sea The Nile is 4,132 miles long and has two major tributaries, the White Nile and Blue Nile. The previous two flights covered the route from Luxor to Khartoum and the course of the Blue and White Niles from Khartoum to their respective sources in Ethiopia and Uganda. This flight completes the series, following the Nile north from Luxor to its delta at the Mediterranean Sea. The distance covered in this flight is much less than the previous two, being only around 430 nautical miles. Since the default FS2004 scenery in this area is rather bland, I strongly recommend the installation of three freeware files - Egypt scenery, Khartoum Airport and Egypt mesh. I also used FScene Europe, and an FS2002 river width enhancement NEWRIVER.ZIP. Luxor airport (HELX) sits in a wide green plain flanked on either side by mountains and desert. As you leave Luxor to the north, FS2004 has a defect that shows a gap in the river's flow. A little further on there is a bridge which offers a challenge to fly under. The river here deviates from its northerly direction via semi-circular curve, similar to what we have seen several times in the previous flights. After you pass two non-flyable bridges you encounter an unexpected "lump" of high ground to the east. Although it includes a few small valleys, it's not as entertaining as would first appear. The very flat terrain with few trees and other high objects is however good for fast low level flight across the populated areas. The river narrows slightly nearing the town Asyut and has several Islands linked by bridges to the river banks. Asyut International airport (HEAT) is 13 nm west of the river valley and is rather sparse, but is visited by FS2004 AI airliners. En route to our next stop - Beni Suef (HEBF), large populated areas become much more common than in our previous flights and the land class shows a significant amount of farmland around the towns. About half way to Beni Suef we pass the dual runway airport of El Minya (HEOQ). This an FS2004 "special" - two long parallel runways set within the middle of a populated area with no taxiways, apron or airport buildings! Flying on at a medium altitude you can see Red Sea in the distance to the west, sitting between the Suez Canal in the north and the Gulf of Aqaba in the south The FS2004 airport at Beni Suef is even more bizarre than that at El Minya - two totally disconnected runways (nice & long though) with only a tower. To the north west of Beni Suef there is the unusual sight of three lakes, the largest being about 20 nm in length. Continuing north, just west of Hulwan (HEOF) you will see some sets of pyramids to the east, but these are not the Pyramids by the Sphinx, which are further north. Unless you're in a helicopter or a plane with a very robust undercarriage, there's nowhere to land here, but you can do a slow fly-past to view the sights. After the pyramids the large metropolis of greater Cairo looms on the horizon and this view is starkly different to the rural landscape seen so far. FS2004 lists a large number of airports in this area, many of which seem to be small strips. The most interesting airports are Cairo International (HECA) and Cairo Almaza (HEAZ) which are only 3 nm apart. Almaza is a military base with a single runway whereas the International has three runways in the shape of a letter "H" with the terminal buildings between the left and right 05 runways. FS2004 portrays the International as being on a raised platform with Almaza at a lower level. Since FS2004 has the Sphinx with its associated pyramids, this is a sight we should not miss. The nearest airport is Embaba (HEEM), on the west bank of the Nile and you can change here for a helicopter or other suitable vehicle to get you the 6.5 nm across town to Giza. Being a fan of WWII film Ice Cold in Alex, I chose an Austin K2 ambulance. Head 220 degrees from Embaba and you will see a trio of two large pyramids and one small one. The Sphinx is in front of the pyramids. Having landed on runway 05L at Cairo International (HECA), taxiing to the allocated gate took me 2 miles across the airport to the other side of the terminal and near runway 05R! This did however mean a much shorter trip to runway 34 for departure. Leaving Cairo to the north the river splits into a massive, crazed delta with three large lakes near the sea and streams feeding into the Suez Canal via the "Bitter Lakes". FS2004 really only depicts the river proper travelling north west through flat farmland to a rather uninteresting outlet into the Mediterranean Sea. To finish your flight with a landing you have few options; backtrack to Al Rahmaniyah (HEOP); return to Cairo; turn left to Alexandria International (HEAX) or my choice - turn right to Port Said (HEPS), which offers a harbor with a number of ships on which to practice low level attacks. This completes our Nile odyssey but if you've enjoyed these three "cruises" on the Nile then look out for some other airborne "river cruises" to follow. Happy Flying. Derek Swanson derek.swanson10@virgin.net Read about other River Cruises -
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River Cruises - The Nile Part 2 By Derek Swanson 30 April 2009 The White Nile The Nile is 4,132 miles long and has two major tributaries, the White Nile and Blue Nile. The previous flight covered the route from Luxor to Khartoum. This flight traces the White Nile from Khartoum to its source at Lake Victoria in Uganda. Since the default FS2004 scenery in this area is rather bland, I strongly recommend the installation of three freeware files - Egypt scenery, Khartoum Airport and Egypt mesh. I also used FScene Europe, and an FS2002 river width enhancement NEWRIVER.ZIP. Leaving Khartoum (HSSS), the river is easy to follow with its many midstream islands. The surrounding terrain continues to be sandy and barren for the first few miles and although it does become greener as you move south, it remains flat and rather featureless. Renk (HSRN) is the first airport on our route, over 200 miles south of Khartoum and has a grass strip of just over 1000m, so choose your plane carefully if you intend to land here. The river continues to be broad with midstream islands for most of the trip to Renk and given the rather uninteresting terrain you may choose to set the autopilot and advance the sim rate. The next airport is Malakal (HSSM) which is near a small town of the same name and is a little more civilized than Renk, having an asphalt runway of around 1800m. After Malakal the Nile starts a westerly deviation. This stretch of river includes a series of interconnecting lakes and significant areas of green vegetation, with tributaries arising from these areas on both sides of the river. As the Nile bends south again, the green terrain fades back to a more arid nature. After the section with the lakes, the Nile is rendered by FS2004 as a thin ribbon which at times is broken, although its path can still be traced through the broad plain in which it sits. A little further on the river seems to disappear altogether but if you keep flying south with the GPS map open you can follow the valley bed until the river re-emerges after a second lake complex. From here to the next airport - Bor (HSBR) - the river sits in a very wide bed flanked by luscious green terrain. Once again the river bed is filled with a series of lakelets, perhaps representing the river in a dry season. Bor is rendered in FS2004 as a short dirt strip so for a better landing place you must wait until you reach Juba (HSSJ) 80nm miles further south. Note that if you are landing at Bor it has a 1300m dirt runway with a telegraph pole and a street light directly in line with the south runway which you need to clear on take-off !! About 50nm north of Juba there is a large island in the middle of the river - a good navigation marker. 13nm north of Juba there is a solitary hill - the first seen on this flight - and portends the higher ground we'll encounter later. FS2004 depicts Juba sitting in a box-shaped depression so care is needed on approach to avoid overshooting the runway on landing and avoiding the "hump" after takeoff. Beyond Juba the White Nile narrows again and in the distance the hills appear that mark the border with Uganda. There are a few more dirt airstrips on your route if you wish to take advantage of them but real destination is Entebbe (HUEN), on the shore of Lake Victoria - the source of the White Nile. Just before the Ugandan border, the Nile once again reverts to a ribbon which is joined by tributaries from the higher ground. Just past the first peak the river takes a south-westerly curve around the high ground, so at the first "fork", take the stream to the right - going south, even though this appears to be the smaller of the two. There are several other "forks" to navigate over the next few miles and each time the southerly and westerly route should be taken. A lake soon appears on the horizon and this is the bearing to take. If you follow the river closely it bends a number of times but eventually leads to the lake. The GPS map can be of assistance in navigating this area. From here you follow the valley, passing a few more small lakes until the very large Lake Albert is reached. Once again, using the GPS map at an appropriate zoom level can help with navigation down this valley. At the point where the wide outflow from Lake Albert appears, the elevation mesh makes it look as though the river we've been following feeds into the lake rather than flows out from it, but such is FS2004! A little while after the two bridges (which sadly, are too low to fly under), the lake proper is reached and although the White Nile does flow out of Lake Albert, this is not the true source. There is a ribbon river which joins Lake Albert from the left at the narrow point of the junction of Lake Albert and the Nile outflow. This is the next bit of river to follow as it originates from Lake Victoria a few miles to the east. The ribbon soon becomes a much wider river which is easy to follow. With real weather enabled I encountered some unexpected low cloud with thunder and lightning at this point. I also encountered another bridge and happily, this one was flyable. When the next set of lakes is reached, you must keep to the right to find the outflow (actually the inflow) at the far end, then follow the narrow channel between the oddly shaped island and the right bank. The GPS map is a good help navigating this bit and there are another couple of ribbon-river sections before you reach the vast expanse of Lake Victoria. Entebbe is a few miles west of our entry point to the lake and the airport sits on one of the many peninsulas that protrude into the lake. Although classed as an "International" airport this is not suggested by FS2004's rendition, although runway 17 does have an ILS (better scenery is available). Landing here is very satisfying, knowing that you're at the end of a very long journey. Our Nile odyssey is not yet, however, complete. We've yet to fly the final section, Luxor to the Mediterranean Sea... Happy Flying. Derek Swanson derek.swanson10@virgin.net Read about other River Cruises -
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River Cruises - The Nile Part 1 By Derek Swanson 23 April 2009 Khartoum And The Blue Nile The Nile is 4,132 miles long and has two major tributaries, the White Nile and Blue Nile. The Blue Nile is the major contributor by water volume and the White Nile has the most distant source. The White Nile emanates from Lake Victoria in Uganda and flows north through southern Sudan. The Blue Nile starts at the south end of Lake Tana in Ethiopia, passing into Sudan from the southeast. The two tributaries meet near the Sudanese capital Khartoum then flowing north through Egypt, the Nile ends in a large delta that empties into the Mediterranean Sea near Alexandria. With such a great distance to cover it's sensible to fly the Nile in sections and this flight starts at Luxor and terminates at Khartoum, the confluence of the two tributaries. Since the default FS2004 scenery in this area is rather bland, I strongly recommend the installation of three freeware files - Egypt scenery, Khartoum Airport and Egypt mesh. I also used FScene Europe, and an FS2002 river width enhancement NEWRIVER.ZIP. Luxor International Airport (HELX) sits close to the Nile in a fertile area surrounded by desert. Leaving south, the river is wide and easy to follow. Although mostly flat all the way to the area of the Aswan Dam, there are hills either side of the river plain which rises gently. Although there are small villages and islands dotted along the river, the landscape is generally rather boring until the Aswan Dam so you may wish to set the autopilot and enhance the sim rate to speed your progress. There is a small and rather desolate airport at Daraw (HEON) with the next one at Aswan (HESN), just beyond the upper Aswan Dam. Aswan has a single 3,400m runway with an ILS but is also surrounded by drab desert. With the additional Egypt scenery installed, you will see both lower and upper dams as you approach Aswan, as well as the benefits of more attractive land class and autogen (including yachts) just before the lower dam. Beyond the upper dam there is a vast elongated lake about 80 miles long and 17 miles across. As you reach the far end of the lake there are straits that lead into Lake Nasser and the nearby airport of Abu Simbel (HEBL). With the additional scenery installed you will see the two rock temples of Abu Simbel on the approach to runway 33. Leaving Abu Simbel much of the terrain remains featureless and barren with only the occasional road or river tributary, so once again you may choose to set the autopilot and enhance the sim rate. The next landing place is Dongola (HSDN) in Sudan and as you approach this area your will see the occasional patch of green with autogen villages. The airport itself is rendered in FS2004 as tarmac strip surrounded by houses and a few trees, but with no airport buildings or services. Fortunately, there are no trees hindering your approach or take off. It is still about 250 miles to Khartoum and shortly after Dongola the Nile veers to the east and begins a long "S" shaped south and west before reaching Khartoum. There are three airports en-route - the only real features to see other than the occasional green patch at the river's edge. The first is at Ed Debba (HSDB), just at the point where the river turns north east. It's a 1400m gravel strip so don't try landing anything too big! The second, Merowe (HSMR), is another 1400m gravel strip appearing just before the river turns south again. In this area the size and frequency of green areas start to increase as you progress towards Khartoum. The third airport is Atbara (HSAT) which is to the west of the quite a large city of the same name. The confluence of the two Nile sources is well defined in FS2004 and the city of Khartoum stands out starkly in comparison to the barren terrain encountered so far. Khartoum airport (HSSS) is to the left as you approach the city and the freeware upgrade improves the default, the additional buildings combining with the city's autogen to give a very positive feeling of arriving back in civilization. We now follow the Blue Nile departing Khartoum to the east and which will take us to the source at Lake Tana in Ethiopia. The Blue Nile remains quite broad all the way to the lake by Tamazine airport (HSDZ) but at the south end of this lake, FS2004 depicts the river as a thin ribbon and remains like this all the way to Lake Tana. As you progress, the shallow valley that the river sits in soon deepens and narrows at it meanders though the mountainous terrain. Following the river to the source becomes rather difficult from here on since there are many tributaries feeding in along the way and it's easy to follow one of these by mistake. The river curves slowly towards the north and the best way to follow its path is to keep the GPS map window open with the zoom set to a 150 mile radius, as this defines the valley leading to Lake Tana quite clearly. The terrain in now very green with a land class combination of cultivated and bush areas and the previously high mountains become more rounded and undulating as you travel north. Lake Tana comes into view a little way before you reach it and is a very large expanse of water. Bahar Dar airport (HABD) is near the outflow of the lake, but is a rather small and uninspiring place to land after such a long journey. So there you have it, air navigation of a large part of the River Nile. There are two further Nile cruises in this series; one tracing the White Nile from Khartoum to its source in Uganda and the other completing the Nile's journey from Luxor to Alexandria. Happy Flying. Derek Swanson derek.swanson10@virgin.net Read about other River Cruises -
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