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This summer I flew a little airplane across the Atlantic. Here's how it went!
We were three: John, a flight instructor; Sam, a ferry pilot from Belgium; and me. I did all the flying, but was glad to have so much expertise on board. 1/n
This summer I flew a little airplane across the Atlantic. Here's how it went!
We were three: John, a flight instructor; Sam, a ferry pilot from Belgium; and me. I did all the flying, but was glad to have so much expertise on board. 1/n
The prep was tricky because 3 people, full fuel, luggage, and survival suits and raft put the airplane at max gross weight. Insurance thought we were idiots and only relented after much convincing. Permits and self-isolation before and during the trip had to be organized too.
(Important note: This was a ferry flight, which is why we could land in (most) places. We self-isolated strictly everywhere, and before and after the trip.)
Bye Princeton! Bye New York!
Burlington, VT: One of my worst landings. I'm nervous. Then Québec City
From Québec City to Kuujjuaq in Nunavik: first time out of radar coverage; getting serious.
About halfway into the 5h flight the engine sensor unit gives out. This is not what this screen is supposed to look like, and now there's a thunderstorm to dodge too
But we get past the storm and the backup instruments do their job. Welcome to Kuujjuaq! The engine sensor comes back after a restart. It's 11.30pm in these pictures; goodnight little plane
Next day: refueling in this place is a trip; you wait for the guy with the forklift, buy a whole barrel, and then finagle it into the tanks with a PVC hose
The next news is that Greenland won't let us stay overnight, and it's too late to make it to Iceland today. So we're stuck in Kuujjuaq for another day. Fine.
Trip planning: we don't have electronic maps for Greenland
Trip planning: we don't have electronic maps for Greenland
Next day is a monster with 9h of flying: Kuujjuaq - Nuuk (Greenland) - Kulusuk (Greenland) - Reykjavik. It's also the first open ocean crossing, so it's survival suit time!
We start by cruising along the cost of Nunavik - first sea ice!
Torngat Mountains, Laborador Peninsula
Torngat Mountains, Laborador Peninsula
This place is called Resolution Island and has spooky military installations on it.
Call to Gander radio and over to Greenland! It's mostly IFR but there are glimpses of ocean.
Call to Gander radio and over to Greenland! It's mostly IFR but there are glimpses of ocean.
Welcome to Nuuk, Greenland! The clouds lift just in time for a visual landing. The Dash-8 on the runway gives a sense of the dimensions.
Little planelet looks a bit lost on the big ramp. We get fuel and a weather briefing for the ice shelf crossing.
The tricky thing about Greenland is getting across the ice shelf, which is 9000 ft thick. Getting into clouds isn't good because of icing; normally you can climb through it or descend, but descending is not an option here, and our service ceiling is 17,500 ft.
The departure from Nuuk is beautiful
But soon we're at 12,500 ft, the air temperature is -7C, and we're still in clouds: now icing is a risk, and we have to climb above the clouds. At 15,500 feet we're out. Oxygen time!
Where the ice shelf meets the ocean: not a good place for engine rumble. Later turns out to be just nosewheel shimmy, but we don't know that yet and are happy to get to a rainy Kulusuk.
After takeoff from Kulusuk we pass by Bluie East 2, an abandoned USAF field. Last glimpses of Greenland...
...and a few hours later we land in Reykjavik. I'm exhausted but the FBO serves whiskey.
Next day is nosewheel fixing day, then we leave Reykjavik and head for Scotland. The longest overwater leg, 640 NM: last day for survival suits and nervous glances at the raft.
On the way out we pass The Volcano That Cannot Be Pronounced*
*[ˈeiːjaˌfjatl̥aˌjœːkʏtl̥]
![Next day is nosewheel fixing day, then we leave Reykjavik and head for Scotland. The longest overwater leg, 640 NM: last day for survival suits and nervous glances at the raft.On the way out we pass The Volcano That Cannot Be Pronounced**[ˈeiːjaˌfjatl̥aˌjœːkʏtl̥]](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/El4fCjWWMAUohDJ.jpg "Next day is nosewheel fixing day, then we leave Reykjavik and head for Scotland. The longest overwater leg, 640 NM: last day for survival suits and nervous glances at the raft.On the way out we pass The Volcano That Cannot Be Pronounced**[ˈeiːjaˌfjatl̥aˌjœːkʏtl̥]")
![Next day is nosewheel fixing day, then we leave Reykjavik and head for Scotland. The longest overwater leg, 640 NM: last day for survival suits and nervous glances at the raft.On the way out we pass The Volcano That Cannot Be Pronounced**[ˈeiːjaˌfjatl̥aˌjœːkʏtl̥]](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/El4fFTDX0AUxU-E.jpg "Next day is nosewheel fixing day, then we leave Reykjavik and head for Scotland. The longest overwater leg, 640 NM: last day for survival suits and nervous glances at the raft.On the way out we pass The Volcano That Cannot Be Pronounced**[ˈeiːjaˌfjatl̥aˌjœːkʏtl̥]")
On the way out we pass The Volcano That Cannot Be Pronounced*
*[ˈeiːjaˌfjatl̥aˌjœːkʏtl̥]
And then, just like that, we're in Wick, Scotland. To not make it too easy, Europe welcomes us with low clouds and the only instrument approach of this trip.
Noodling through UK airspace is a radio challenge: controllers are changing constantly, there's different "services" (do you want to be "deconflicted"?), but the views compensate
After few more beautiful flights, I drop Sam and John and am home.
US friends: If you haven't yet, please vote today!
The end
US friends: If you haven't yet, please vote today!
The end
PS: Many thanks to @rogerharr @mattguthmiller @the_candourist for documenting their crossings so well, and to @rogerharr especially for much advice. Also @JohnSkittoneWFA is on twitter!
