Flight
of the Month – March
You’ve
decided that it would be good experience for you to log some hours
hauling herring and other necessities around Alaska for a year or so.
You’ve finally worked your butt out of the right seat of that creaky
old Beaver and now can fly the left seat of anything the company has
(all four planes). Today you’re working your way up the Ketchikan
Peninsula. You started the morning in Sitka and are now in Yakutat, with
your next stop being Icy Bay. You have a quick turn around there before
heading to Cordova.
The
weather actually isn’t too bad today. Not much wind low, but expect to
get bumped around a bit on the way to Icy Bay and a crosswind landing
that will keep your attention. The ride to Cordova should be smoother, but
you’ll find some winds above one zero thousand. You can fly any plane
you want here, but be advised that Icy Bay is a 2,800’ gravel strip,
so fly something sturdy that you feel comfortable with, but won’t take
all day to get from Icy Bay to Cordova. I flew the DeHavilland
Caribou on this route. It has excellent STOL capabilities and
cruises at 270kt TAS. A word of caution though, if you decide to fly the
Caribou, plan your speeds well in advance, as it take a while to slow
this thing down.
The
briefing packet contains everything
you need to complete your assignment. All you need to do is run the
self-installer and everything will be waiting for you. When you start
FS, go to your “Flights” menu and look for “march_fotm” and run
it. You will find yourself on the apron at Yakutat, standing next to a
C-208. If you don’t want to fly this plane, just pick one you want. A
small plane will be easier to get into Icy Bay, but the routes are long
enough to need some speed. Besides, you have about 900kg of cargo to
haul… don’t think a 185 will handle this one. You may want to think
about a Twin Otter or the like. The weather has been set and will change
along the way. You also have your flight plans for FS2002, FS Navigator
and Squawkbox. To find them, go to each respective directory and look
for “mar_leg1a, mar_leg1b, mar_leg2 and mar_leg3” respectively.
Don’t run any type of real world weather during these flights, or you
may get some odd situations.
So,
ready to go?
Leg
One - Yakutat, Alaska (PAYA)
to Icy Bay (19AK)
This
is a short, easy flight to a little muni airport. This stop isn’t on
the regular schedule, but the locals are suffering a shortage of
sardines, so you need to get a rush shipment in to them. You have visual
conditions, so the approach should be straightforward.
Depart
PAYA from runway 11. After you’ve established your climb, turn right
to 290 to intercept the outbound Yakataga (YAK) 266 (113.3) radial.
Follow until 70nm dme, then turn hard to 053 for final to 19AK runway
05. This will be about a 2 mile final, so be awake and ready.
Leg
Two – Icy Bay to Cordova (PACV)
You’re
going to an airport named Merle K Mudhole Smith, so that should tell you
something about the kind of routes you get here.
You have two options on your approach to Cordova. Plan 2a takes
you around the point for a fairly easy ILS backcourse approach with a
7mi final. If you want to get in sooner and feel up to it, plan 2b takes
you in right before the mountains and gives you a 3mi final.
The
runway at Icy Bay is rough, so prepare to get bounced around on your
takeoff roll. Depart from 05, turn right and track straight in to the
CYT NDB (209.0). Depart CYT 257 and intercept the JOH inbound 257
radial. From here:
2a
– At 19nm DME JOH, turn right to 335 and visually follow the inlet for
5nm until you see a branch to the right. Follow this inlet until you
intercept the localizer (ILS/BC rwy 09) on 110.7.
2b
– At 29nm DME JOH, turn right to 340 and follow until localizer
intercept.
From
here, you can park your plane and take the rest of the day off if you
want, or you can earn some overtime and fly the next leg into Valdez.
Leg
3 (optional) PACV to Valdez (PAVD)
Depart
Cordova on runway 9. Turn to intercept the JOH 244 inbound. Depart JOH
on 315 and follow until 19nm DME. Turn to 015 and follow until Localizer
intercept (ILS/DME rwy 06) on 109.50. This is an offset ILS approach, so
you’re going to come in off the runway heading, so fly it like a
visual from this point since the weather is good. You can also fly an
NDB approach from the Mineral Creek (MNL 524.0) NDB. Either way, watch
out for the mountain on the left.
Have
fun and next time I promise something a bit warmer.
Tony
Download
briefing packet
|
