#31 Lyon #32 Lake Geneva #33 Matterhorn #34 Neuschwanstein #35 Munich

Start: LFMN, 0637; $5289.34 and 25gal

I'm up bright and early this morning, looking forward to a fabulous day of Alpine scenery! I'm starting off by taking 3 GFC passengers to Geneva by way of Lyon. Don't actually know what "GFC" stands for. KFC I know, but not GFC.

We'll see how good my fuel usage estimate is -- after take-off, I've got to climb (with my 3 passengers) to 8,500 feet, so I'd like to be as light as possible. To Lyon and then on to Geneva is 222 nautical miles, or just over 255 statute miles. At 90 mph, I'll be flying for almost 3 hours. At an average of 8 gph, that would be 24 gallons. So, I'll top up to 25 gallons. Hope I guessed right (I've built in some "wiggle room" by adding a little time, and estimating my fuel burn rate on the high side)!

Lyon was kind of a bust. As almost always happens, the building I find first turns out to the the sports stadium! The city was fine, but nothing to go out of your way for (which I did!). It was interesting, though, to find what appears to be a replica of the White Tower of London!

Lyon, France

So, it's on to Geneva! Sixty miles, and 12 gallons still in the tank, so I should be fine. But I won't do any sightseeing just yet.

End: LSGG, 0927; $7658.86 and 27gal

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Eight gallons left upon landing, so I had a generous safety margin. I've filled up about halfway for this next let.

I now have 3 Redditors bound for Kempten, Germany (I don't know what a "redditor" is, though!). This is a straight shot, so I'm tempted to fly IFR. But, I'm hoping for some spectacular views of the Swiss Alps, so I think I'll stick with VFR so I can wander around as needed. Plus, I'll be passing quite close to both Bern and Zurich, so I'll think I'll swing by just to see what they look like....

The famous "plume" fountain in Lake Geneva

Bern isn't really much to look at from 3,600 feet in FSX. Unbelievably, it isn't until just now that I realize that I'll be missing the Matterhorn. While the autopilot keeps me aloft, I start poring over my charts, trying to find it and figure out if I've got enough fuel to get there. I'm 110 miles from Kempten, and have roughly 215 miles of range left. So, I'm going for it. Now, I just have to navigate my way there! Of course, the other question is elevation. I think the Matterhorn is something like 15,000 feet, and I don't think my Skyhawk will get over 12,000 (and if it did, I'd pass out!). So, we'll see how close I can get.

Well, I'm rather disappointed. I'm pleased that I was able to "cheat" and climb to 13,000 feet. But although I flew around Zermatt several times (the scenery is striking), I could not find a peak that I recognized as the Matterhorn.

Is this the Matterhorn? It's lost weight!

Time to get back to where the oxygen is!

End: EDMK, 1316; $10275.16 and 10gal

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

After a very quick lunch, I'm heading out on my own. I'll fly to Oberpfaffenhoffen (gotta love those German names!) because: it's where my next job is, and; I'll pass Neuschwanstein castle on the way!

Now I'm crushed. It was bad enough that the Matterhorn was missing. But Neuschwanstein isn't there, either! What should have been perhaps my best sightseeing day yet has turned out to be an exercise in futility. Bah humbug!

End: EDMO, 1357; $10255.86 and 12gal

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

I have no idea why anyone would pay $512 to fly 26 miles. But several people are apparently willing to; maybe rush hour traffic is REALLY bad! The ones I'm transporting from one side of Munich to the other are: 1 Helli Airline CEO; 1 Helli Airline Crew; and 1 Baby. An interesting mix, to say the least!

Maybe I'm just in a bad mood, but Munich is a big snooze from the air. I found the stadium, and one or two other interesting buildings, but that's it. Barely worth the effort.

Munich. Ho hum.

End: EDDM, 1423; $11638.26 and 9gal

Total Distance Flown:  9,000 nautical miles