Leg 156, Hami, Xinjiang, China via Mongolia to Baley, Zabaykalsky Krai, Russia
DAY01_25.PLN (7.5 KB)
A lot of bad weather this leg, ending in a snow storm. Also mostly rural sparsely populated areas, good for making distance with fun landing challenges along the way.
01-24 Hami ZWHM 6:05 PM
01-24 Altai ZMAT 7:31 PM
01-24 Donoi ZMDN 8:02 PM
01-24 Tosontsengel ZMTL 8:39 PM
01-24 Muren ZMMN 9:10 PM
01-24 Hatgal ZMHG 9:33 PM Foggy, 2 attempts
01-24 Kyren UKYY 10:19 PM Very low visibility
01-24 Irkutsk UIII 10:57 PM
01-24 Vostochny UIIR 11:04 PM
01-24 Oyok Airfield UOYY 11:13 PM
01-24 Ust-Ordynskiy UIOO 11:26 PM Short runway, boxed in by houses
01-25 Khuzhir UKHZ 12:09 AM Unclear runway, invisible in the snow
01-25 Goryachinsk UTUU 12:25 AM Plane animations broke, no flaps, no gear visible
01-25 Barguzin UBAU 12:51 AM Landing without gear, hovercraft style
01-25 53°2’0.15"N 110°42’54.21"E 1:11 AM CTD, inevitable, more and more plane functions breaking
01-25 Last known position 1:19 AM
01-25 Sosnovo-Ozerskoye USOZ 1:34 AM Unclear runway, snowing
01-25 Kashtak Airfield USMO 2:08 AM
01-25 Cheryomushki Air Base UCHI 2:12 AM
01-25 Kadala UIAA 2:17 AM
01-25 Domna Air Base UDON 2:25 AM
01-25 Baley UBAL 3:23 AM 20 knot headwind
Flight time 9:10 19 stops
Ground spotted (with boosted exposure) near Tsagaanchuluut
Donoi Airport at dawn
With a slanted runway, one way not to have standing water issues
Uliastai, waiting for the sun
Sunrise near Yaruu
Frosty morning, pretty much icing through the entire flight
Clearing up for a bit near Ider
Still so cold, and no window defrost
Tosontsengel in western Mongolia along the Ider river
Where is that ice scraper
Peaceful place
Declaring a missed approach at Hatgal, climbing back out
The runway is just a chalk line on the grass
Hatgal on the southern tip of Lake Khövsgöl
Then the weather got really bad, arrival at Irkutsk, Siberia, 11 AM local time
130 Kvartal on the left, restaurant area and Ice-Breaker Angara Museum on the right
The Angara came in service in 1900, transporting passengers and goods over lake Baikal. During the civil war (1918-1920) the Angara became the flagship of a warship flotilla on lake Baikal and got armed with two 6-inch cannons and 4 machine guns. After the war the Angara went back to serving as a passenger vessel, then as a fishing vessel until getting decommissioned in 1963. In 1991 the donations of the inhabitants of the city helped to turn the oldest ship of its class into a Museum.
Sobor Bogoyavlensky, used as a bakery and grain store during the Soviet era
A glimpse of the terrain at Turskaya
Oyok Airfield. The runway is barely distinguishable from up here, invisible lower to the ground
Interesting airfield, lots of old planes to admire
Back to zero visibility at Chernorud
Khuzhir on the west side of Olkhon Island in lake Baikal
Shaman rock at Khuzhir, marble & limestone rock with cliffs & a cave with spiritual significance
Approaching Barguzin over the forest
Barguzin airport, I picked the straight going slightly right as the ‘runway’
Barguzin, rural locality in the Republic of Buryatia, Russia
Flying over Berezka
Sun spotted at Kadala Airport, about 3pm locally
Final stop today at Baley, just getting out of the storm
Baley or Balei on the Unda River
I’m heading back to Mongolia tonight, towards Ulaanbaatar.