Hello Captains and welcome back to the 10th update post of my around the world adventure in the A2A Piper Comanche. If all goes as planned, I’ll cross over the equator from the southern hemisphere back to the northern hemisphere as I make my way from Indonesia towards the Philippines then further north to Taiwan then into China as I continue my easterly course around the world. While the detour south to Australia, New Zealand and all the various Pacific Islands has extended the trip, it’s been well worth it. The landscape of Australia is simply stunning flying low and slow across the land.
Flight Day 46
Today we’re crossing the equator back into the northern hemisphere. Our goal today is to reach the southern coast of the Philippines in the city of Zamboanga after a brief stop in Manado, Indonesia for lunch and fuel.
Flight Day 47
Early morning start. After a light breakfast we headed to the airport for a walkaround inspection and reviewed the charts and weather for the flight up to the Manila area. The weather is good and we should arrive just after lunch. We will spend the remaining part of today and tomorrow exploring the area.
Flight Day 48
We really needed the downtime, but it’s time to return to the skies and make our way to Taiwan with a brief stop on the northern coast of the Philippines for lunch and fuel. Once we reach Taiwan, we will land at Chiayi Airport RCKU which is a joint use civilian and military airport in Shuishang Township. This is considered the gateway to the Alishan National Scenic Area, a popular tourist destination in Taiwan. We will spend a bit of time exploring before departing Taiwan for mainland China.
Flight Day 49
Another early morning start as we prepare to cross the Taiwan Strait for mainland China. Our destination today is Zhoushan with a brief stop at Fuzhou. Over the next two days our course will take us along the eastern coast of mainland China as we make our way towards Dalian.
Flight Day 50
The alarm clock woke us much earlier this morning than usual. We’re setting off just before sunrise as we’re planning to push all the way to Dalian with two stops along the way. First we’ll fly to Yancheng, then on to Qingdao where we will have a late lunch then back in the air for Dalian. We will spend the night in Dalian and push off tomorrow for another day of flying.
That wraps up this update post. Tune back in next time for another series of updates as I continue around the world in the A2A Comanche.
Until next time…
Happy Flying!!!
Jerry