#63 Great Wall of China

Start: ZBAA, 0916; $9283.58 and 37gal

I'm starting today by making up for yesterday's unsuccesful photo tour of Beijing. And a beautiful day it is, too! Then I'm off to see the Great Wall. I'll be joined by 2 Gov't Charter passengers and 1 Corporate VIP, who I'm eventually taking to Zhoushuizi, Dalian.

Forbidden City (apparently abandonded!)

Temple of Heaven (apparently non-existent)

Generic Beijing

The Great Wall (you can see it from space, but not from FSX!)

Well, after a big build-up, that turned out to be quite a disappointment. FSX really does not do justice to Beijing. Anyone flying in China needs to get some add-on scenery.

End: ZYTL, 1352; $11658.49 and 14gal


Total Distance Flown:  34,705 nautical miles
Total v$ Deposited: $160,000

#62 Beijing (sort of)

Start: ZSSS, 0842; $7500.77 and 54gal

I've looked and looked, but there just aren't jobs going the way I need to go. So, I'm going to fly empty to my next destination; Yaoqiang, 238 miles away. From there I'll have paying passengers the rest of the way, so thing will work out just fine.

End: ZSJN, 1203; $7500.77 and 24gal

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I'll now be taking 3 Private Shuttle passengers north to Binhai in Tianjin, just over an hour from here. It's awfully overcast (I'm a little surprised that I'm getting the okay to fly VFR), which might make for disappointing photos of Beijing. We'll just see if things clear up....

Well, 18 miles from Tianjin, the skies above are a beautiful turquiose. But below is pretty heavily fogged. I request a landing, and am told the airport is IFR. So, I'll quickly file an IFR plan, because my passengers want to land!

End: ZBTJ, 1353; $8585.17 and 45gal

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A bit surprising, but there's no fuel in Beijing! So, I gassed up to the limit before taking off. I've exchange my 3 passengers for 3 others; this time, 3 Private Shuttle passengers going along with me to Beijing. With this fog, I may not get any decent photos until tomorrow morning though...

Beijing is fogged in

Busy Beijing airport

End: ZBAA, 1503; $9283.58 and 37gal

This is the first time in this entire trip that weather prevent my planned photo shoot. With over 34,000 nautical miles covered, I think that's pretty good!


Total Distance Flown:  34,404 nautical miles
Total v$ Deposited: $160,000

Bali Hai? No, #61 Shanghai

Start: RCGM, 0932; $3243.89 and 40gal

First things first: a quick trip to the nearest Taiwanese ATM, to deposit another v$10,000.

Well, I'm starting to go in circles! I've searched for quite a while to find an efficient way to get to Shanghai from here, and there just isn't one. But I finally found a direct flight to Shanghai from Chiayi. Not that it's such a huge sin, but I was at Chiayi Aero just yesterday! Oh well.

So, I'll be taking 1 JAL passenger, 1 USMC Officer and 1 Chiayi passenger back to Chiayi. And it turns out, I'll be taking them there through a 36kt headwind! Probably would have been quicker to drive.

End: RCKU, 1127; $5472.45 and 45gal

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I've gassed up to the limit, because I've got 467 miles to go on this leg (plus a little detour for a Shanghai photo shoot). I'm taking 3 Business Charter passengers to Hongqiao, and I'm hoping that headwind turns into a tailwind (which it should, since I'm now going the other direction!).

Scary dark clouds; perhaps not so good for sightseeing?

I wonder if I should thread the needle?

Did I, or didn't I? (I didn't!)

End: ZSSS, 1636; $7855.65 and 12gal


Total Distance Flown:  33,804 nautical miles
Total v$ Deposited: $160,000

#60 Taipei

Start: ZGGG, 0946; $10479.51 and 30gal

Although I've already been to Taiwan, it was just an intermediate stop, and I didn't get far enough north to see Taipei. So, today I'm going to correct that oversight. I'll be taking 270 kg of Cargo to Shang Yi in Chin Men (just off the coast of mainland China) to start off. This leg will be IFR, just for the practice.

End: RCBS, 1301; $11819.95 and 25gal

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Now I've got 3 JAL Shang Yi passengers, heading for Taoyuan. This leg will be VFR, because I'm going to pass my destination for an over-fly of Taipei, before heading back for a landing.

Downtown Taipei

Sprawling Taipei

End: RCGM, 1630; $13574.05 and 7gal


Total Distance Flown:  33,232 nautical miles
Total v$ Deposited: $150,000

#59 Hong Kong, at last!

Start:  RPVI, 0602; $6752.42 and 35gal

Another day, another v$10,000 in the bank!

Today, though, is a very special day; one long in the making. Today I am going to see Hong Kong! I'll start off, near the crack of dawn, by taking 1 Corporate VIP to Clark International in Angeles City.

Some thunderstorms off to the east, and some mountainous terrain to dodge, but overall a smooth, easy flight. I'm giving it a little more gas today to speed things along. I'm really hoping to get to Hong Kong before the sun goes down -- after seven days of travel, I want some good photos!

End: RPLC, 0931; $8456.25 and 45gal

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A quick turnaround -- I've loaded my 3 Business Charter passengers, and I've fueled up to the max (for my full payload), because I've got a long leg this time; 498 miles to Chiayi Aero in Taiwan.

End: RCKU, 1303; $10839.29 and 45gal

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Okay, here's the leg we've all been waiting for! I've got 1 Corporate VIP. He's going to Baiyun in Guangzhou, China. But on the way, he's going to get a nice aerial tour of Hong Kong! It's already 1:00 in the afternoon, so I'd better get a move on -- I'm burning daylight!

Looks like I timed it amazingly well. It's 5:00pm, and I'm approaching Hong Kong. Now THIS is a city; there's so much to look at, I don't know where to head first!

Hong Kong, filling the horizon

Looking north

Looking southeast

Wow, I take back all the complaining I've done over the past week or so -- Hong Kong was definitely worth the wait! But, I must be on my way, and it's getting dark, so I'd best file an IFR plan to follow from here on out.

Time to say goodbye

UFO sighting?

End: ZGGG, 1803; $10751.69 and 10gal


Total Distance Flown:  32,753 nautical miles
Total v$ Deposited: $150,000