East Coast Time

I'm way way way far east now- all the way to Magadan, the city at the end of the M56 Kolyma Highway, also known as the Road of Bones. The city is by the Taui Bay, in the Sea of Okhotsk. It was featured in the book & film "The Long Way Round", with Ewan "Obi-Wan" McGregor. This point is nearly the end of the Asian part of this virtual journey.

What remains to be seen is which way now- either go north, to Anadyr, which is about 960 miles, or south to the Kamchatka peninsula. Either would be the last airport in Russia, and in Asia. Anadyr, though, is way far away. Not sure the plane would make it. May have to retrofit for more fuel, and lighten the load. Luckily, I can leave Passpartout at Sokol, and have him meet me in Anadyr, should I choose to go that way.

Oh, bugger it. It's only about 801nm. I can make that.

Update: It's really not all that far. I've already run flights of up to 760nm, and 801nm isn't that big a deal. Forgot I was looking at statute miles in Wikimapia.

At Yakutsk, just after receiving the catering delivery (minivan pulling away).


Taking off


Starting the climb out


Turning to course over downtown Yakutsk


Some mountains near Magadan


Descending onto Sokol Airport


On Final


Just before touchdown, tower view from the replay

Yakutsk! Gesundheit.

The trip from Chuleman to Yakutsk is a shorter hop again, at 345nm. Basically due north, over the mountains that form a ring around the coal deposits. Took off from the minimalist landscape at 5am. Because there's nothing paved, FS put me at the end of the runway, and proceeded to pretend that I had to taxi to the runway. Took, like, no time at all...

At the end of the runway


It's another looooooong one...


Looking back


En Route


Coming even to Yakutsk, on the Lena river. There's no bridge for hundreds of miles, but the highway is on the other side. In the summer, you cross on a ferry, in the winter- drive over the ice.


On final

Middle O'Nowhere

This leg takes me to ...another place in Siberia! Imagine! FSX really just stopped trying with this airport. There's no town graphics, and there's nothing at all at the airport but the runway, the tower and the fuel box (see last photo.) According to Wikipedia, though, this airport sees two airliners a day or so, so it isn't off the grid or anything, plus it's designated as an emergency diversion airport for polar routes.

Here's the actual airport:



And it doea appear that there is an actual city there...



The flight was longer this time, 764.4nm, cruised at FL190 for fuel efficiency. The clinb up to FL190 happened over Lake Baikal, and there were some mountains- so this is not tundra in this area, nor steppe.

The destination, Chulman Airport, was built to service the area administered at Neryungri, which was founded in 1975 over a very large coal deposit. The airport and the towns around it all sit in a coal basin. It's as though if Siberians do anything, it's bleak. Bleak, Bleaker, Bleakest. If there were shellfis, you might say it was bleakest before the prawn.

Way to far to go for that joke.

Warming up at Irkutsk


Climbing Out


Over Baikal


On Approach to Chulman


Still Life with Fuel Pump and Aircraft

More Siberia...

On to Irkutsk, which, not content with being just another Chicago of Siberia, has a nickname of the Paris of Siberia. What evs, dude. Seems like the Siberians have City Envy, or something. On the other hand, this phenomenon ain't uncommon- Chicago (the Chicago of the Midwest) has had some New York envy at times, as evidenced by the "Second City" and all. So, if Chicago is the New York of the Midwest, then would Omsk & Novosibirsk be the competing New York of the Midwest of Siberia? That seems headed down the rabbit hole.

Anyway, the flight was 480nm, cruising at FL190. The thunderstorms & I seems to be pacing each other as I head east. The route took me near the junction of Siberia and Outer Mongolia- where the steppe meets the mountains (the Alps of Mongolia?) Ok,I'll stop now.

Warming up at Krasnoyarsk


Note the looooooooooooong runway...


Straight out departure


There's those thunderstorms


Where Siberia meets Outer Mongolia


Approaching Irkutsk


Instant Replay: Over the Threshold; View from the Tower

About Half Way Across Russia

Off to Krasnoyarsk, which is, oddly enough, not known as the Chicago of Siberia. Flew it at FL190, distance of 341nm.

But, hey, their hydroelectric power plant has a trading card:


(For more Power Plant & Industrial Trading Cards, go to http://www.industcards.com.

Taking off from Novosibirsk


Over Downtown


There's Some Actual Scenery near Krasnoyarsk


Descending before making a left turn to approach- because of winds, landed form east to west.


There's no Frikkity Grass Runway(!)


This airport is supposedly one of the most modern in the area, and Lufthansa was comitted to moving their Asian cargo hub here in 2008, but there was a problem in that the airport did not have ILS, or approach lighting, so they noted they would wait until moden safety features had been installed. As of when FSZ was published though, back in the early aughties (it really feels dumb to type that phrase), none of those features had been installed. All the field has here is a VOR. As usual, though, the runways are so long that it really doesn't matter- take all the time you want lining up. Go have a lunch break, come back, settle in, and flare. And you'll still roll out for yards. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, it's just a thing.

Siberia

On to Novosibirsk, which can be translated as [Novo]=New + [Sibirsk]=place where it can get cold enough to freeze your wrists off. Novosibirsk is another Siberian CIty claiming to be the Chicago of Siberia. Evidently, there's been competition between Novosibirsk and Omsk for that title, as well as competition for status as the capital of Siberia for some time. Novo grew larger, and has a population of over a million, and is the third largest city in Russia, after Moscow & St. Petersburg. So I guess they won. For whatever that's worth.

This leg is 320nm, and I cruised mostly at 5,000ft, so if there was anything to see, I could see it. There wasn't. On the plus side, now being hip to the grass runway thing, I was able to get the controller to allow an approach into Novo in their Frikkity Grass Runway, but sidestep to the regular runway and land there. Still don't have any idea what causes FS to think that landing any aircraft other than an ultralight or glider on grass is better than concrete.

Warming up in Omsk


Taking off to the west, Frikkity Grass Runway visible to the left.


Over Downtown Omsk


Heavy Weather, Man- thunderstorms en route.


Making a Withdrawl from the Cloud Bank

Miles and Miles of... [sigh]


On approach into Novosibirsk


The Actual Downtown Novosibirsk

More on the Frikkity Grass Runway

Here's Wikimapia's overhead on the Omsk Airport. Maybe FS just decided that since I was in a small plane, a grass runway would be OK. Maybe it's based on the length of runway, and it picks the runway based on wind direction and then length. Donno. Either way, there was a perfectly servicible concrete runway right next to it, and the buggers wouldn't let me land there.

As a side note, it seems Dostoevsky was holed up in Omsk when in exile, and it is western Siberia, so it is kind of a dreary place. (At least that's the impression I got from the Wiki article. Your mileage may vary.) So any comic releif is probably welcome. Like twinning Omsk with Milwaukee, as a sister city. To quote Deteriorata, "reflect that whatever misfortune may be your lot, it could only be worse in Milwaukee." Or Omsk. "The Chicago of Siberia." Really. Not. Making. That. Up.

Omsk! Omsk! Omsk!

...or so the Swedish Chef's Russian Cousin might sing.

Omsk just kinda sounds silly to us westerners- like it's the punch line of a joke involving plungers and skunks or something. To be honest, the pronounciation in FS seems to involve a lot more vowels.

Anyway, after fueling up in Yekaterinburg, I immediately took off for Omsk (Smock backwards?! No!!) a trip of 434nm, or another short flight, compared to the transatlantic hops back at the beginning. Alson the way, there was yet more incidence of miles and miles of miles and miles. Russia seems to have that in abundance. One of their biggest natural resources seems to be the sheer size of the place. If we could just work out some sort of parking arrangement...

Taking off from Yekaterinburg


More of the Miles and Miles of Miles and Miles


On Descent into Omsk at Dusk


...Another View


Here's the Punch Line: Frikkin' 9000ft Grass Runway. Who's idea was that?

Ural Washed Up

This is a pretty short flight from Perm to Yekaterinburg, but it marks a pretty serious divide: Europe & Asia. As near as I can tell, Perm is in Europe, and Yekaterinburg ...ain't. Flying over the Urals was almost unnoticed, though, as there was some weather afoot. Overall the trip was 168nm, and cruising altitude was 15,000.

Warming up in Perm


Takin' Off, Eh? (But not to the Great White North...)


Thar She Billows...


Descent into Yekaterinburg


At the Fuel Box, Gassing up for the Next Leg