Southern Hemisphere Circumnavigation in the TBM 930

[GimbalAxis]

Stories of the Southern Ocean(s) always captured my imagination. I was lucky enough to travel across Australia and New Zealand in real life, but of all of those volcanic reefs remained out of reach.

I wanted to see if I could island hop across the South Pacific in MSFS - using default scenery and default aircraft.

The challenge becomes smaller runways separated by large distances - and my own endurance. I think the TBM 930 has relatively short take off capability combined with pretty good range of 1700 nm or 3200 km, and altitude ceiling of FL310.

I then realized I might be able to circumnavigate the Southern Hemisphere. With so many islands, there are many possible places to stop, but with a range of 1700 nm, the only possible routes require some unusual stops at Robinson Crusoe, Ascension, St Helena, and Diego Garcia. The TBM should be able handle if tailwinds cooperate. It might be me that runs out of fuel, but I’m giving it a go.

Here’s the planned overall route, starting from Gold Coast Australia flying East to take advantage of prevailing winds - I will change and edit as I go, with some spontaneous island hops and route changes. Roughly 23,000 nm.

YBCG NWWW NFNA NFTO NSFA NCAI NCRG NTTB NTAA NTTO NTGJ SCIP SCIR SCEL SADF SBRJ SBRF FHAW FHSH FYWB FACT FALE FMMI FMEE FIMR FJDG YPCC YPXM YBRM YAYE YBCG

After getting myself confused, I have:

• Renumbered the legs based on departure.
• Distance is from Departure, estimated nm direct to the next stop not including take off, landing, and off-track excursions.
• Each Leg represents a landing, power off, and wander around, sometimes just for a few hours, lunch, siesta, or sometimes overnight or a few days.

Gold Coast to Santiago - 13 legs - 8,149 nm

Leg	Airport		Dist nm
1	YBCG	Gold Coast	845
2	NWWW	New Caledonia	736
3	NFNA	Nadi, Fiji	365
4	NFTO	Niuafo’ou, Tonga	235
5	NSFA	Faleolo, Samoa	766
6	NCAI	Arutanga, Cook Islands	142
7	NCRG	Rarotonga, Cook Islands	539
8	NTTB	Bora Bora, French Polynesia	140
9	NTAA	Tahiti, French Polynesia	496
10	NTTO	Hao Island, French Polynesia	455
11	NTGJ	Mangareva, French Polynesia	1,403
12	SCIP	Easter Island, Chile	1,620
13	SCIR	Robinson Crusoe, Chile	407
Arr	SCEL	Santiago, Chile
			8,149

Santiago to Cape Town - 7 legs - 6,520 nm

Leg	Airport		Dist nm
14	SCEL	Santiago, Chile	611
15	SADF	Buenos Aires, Argentina	1,066
16	SBRJ	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	1,007
17	SBRF	Recife, Brazil	1,220
18	FHAW	Ascension	702
19	FHSH	St Helena	1,222
20	FYWB	Walvis Bay, Namibia	692
Arr	FACT	Cape Town, South Africa
			5,909

Cape Town to Gold Coast - 9 legs - 8,573 nm

Leg	Airport		Dist nm
21	FACT	Cape Town, South Africa	690
22	FALE	Durban, South Africa	1,104
23	FMMI	Antananarivo, Madagascar	471
24	FMEE	Reunion, France	447
25	FIMR	Rodrigues, Mauritius	914
26	FJDG	Diego Garcia	1,474
27	YPCC	Cocos Keeling Isl. Australia	532
28	YPXM	Christmas Isl, Australia	1,062
29	YBRM	Broome	653
30	YAYE	Ayers Rock	1,226
Arr	YBCG	Gold Coast
			8,573

Route Maps

I’m already rethinking that last section, I might go north of Australia, to Bali and across to Papua New Guniea, and down to Cairns… I will wait to see how the winds are. Krakatoa volcano just erupted, and aparently a wide swath of airspace is closed.

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Leg 1: YBCG Gold Coast, to NWWW New Caledonia complete:

Leg 1: YBCG to NWWW Screenshots...

YBCG/32 DCT BN B578 NISAS NISA2A NWWW/PEPIT.I11-Z

See you on the other side, Brisbane

New Caledonia arrival

[Scet106]

My favourite plane. I flew it around Australia and plan on doing a circumnavigation of the globe.

[GimbalAxis]

I think in reality the King Air might be a better choice for my attempted route, with 2 engines and slightly better range. But in the sim, I like the TBM’s behaviour and avionics depth better, and it has shorter field takeoff for when I spontaneously land at tiny airfields on tiny islands.

Leg 2: New Caledonia to Fiji

Leg 2: NWWW to NFNA ...

NWWW/29 LAMAK B601 ATPEN B599 NN Q296 NAVUA NFNA/10

Dramatic arrival over the mountains in Fiji

And a nice hotel for the night.

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To accomplish the circumnavigation in the southern hemisphere, there are a couple of legs which might be a challenge the maximum range, so I’m practicing getting up to the operating ceiling of FL310 and then easing off the torque to get the fuel flow below 48 GPH. Combined with tail winds, I hope to make it.

[SolvedAir1158]

Thanks for that flight plan. I’ve already loaded it and will give it a go with the Pilatus PC-12. Should be interesting but may take me a while.

[GimbalAxis]

Cool. I didn’t even think of the PC-12… I should have tried it out before departing.

I’m using the flight plan as a guide, not being strict, because in the first few legs there are many tiny volcano islands with short runways and I’m stopping at a few, flying VFR so I can circle the islands for the views. And, learning how the plane handles fuel and distance on these shorter legs - because that final stretch to Chile will be a challenge.

Leg 3: NFNA Fiji to NFTO Tonga

NFNA/10 ATOLL A580 DOMAX NFTO/08

Departing FIJI for this tiny caldera with an airport at NFTO Niuafo’ou Island, Tonga, which I’m going to try to land at.

It’s a good thing they have nice facilities - my passengers needed them after my landing.

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Leg 4: NFTO Tonga to NSFA Faleolo, Samoa

NFTO/08 UVUTI UVUT2D NSFA/I08

Departing NFTO

Arriving at NSFA Samoa at Sunset

The sky was particularly beautiful over Samoa

[GimbalAxis]

Island hopping begins in earnest today, although I have realized that trying to land at each island I see is not practical. Some of the runways are pretty short, and many don’t have refueling services. So to conserve fuel and my own endurance, I will just do fly-bys, and make 1 stop for lunch on each leg.

Leg 5: NSFA Samoa to NCAI Arutanga, Cook Islands

NSFA/26 PONA1Q PONAT NSTU NSAS NSFQ 180227S1630933W NCAI/TORIX.R32

Flying over:

• NSTU, Pago Pago
• NSAS, Ofu
• NSFQ, Fitiuta
• A submerged caldera near NCAI

Departing NSFA Samoa … the sim does have some moments of beauty

Most of the airfields on these islands are … opportunistic, and optimistic, out of necessity, built where there is just enough flat surface, usually right at the ocean side. You can just see the airstrip at NSAS, Ofu, Samoa here:

A submerged caldera, Cook Islands, near NCAI

On Arrival at NCAI Arutanga - apparently there is a POI here

20 Kt crosswind. I don’t know which was crabbier, the plane or my PAX.

The plane needs some work after that landing.
Nice airport. The sign says Aitutaki, part of the POI I think.

We rented a car, gas seems reasonable

It would have been very easy to skip over NCAI, but I’m glad we stopped here. The sim has sound of waves lapping and birds chirping when you stop in places like this.

Lunch and a siesta. I had the fish…

[AttachedFiend39]

stunning pictures!

[GimbalAxis]

Leg 6: NCAI Arutanga to NCRG Rarotonga, Cook Islands for the night

NCAI/32 PULOS PULOS OSPI1A NCRG/L08

NCRG Rarotonga approach

This is a more populated and busy Island, the city is built around the entire circumference of the island. It’s amazing when you google some of the names like this lagoon cruise, it does look exactly like this!

[GimbalAxis]

Leg 7: NCRG Rarotonga to NTTB Bora Bora

NCRG/08 RG NCAT NCMR NTTP NTUU BB NTTB/11

Thunderstorms were moving in at dawn so we had an early departure

We wanted to see another caldera on the way. I finally figured out an easier way to add custom waypoints to a flight plan, using the MSFS EFB. You can click anywhere on the EFB map to add a waypoint to your flight plan, and then re-Send to Avionics.

NTTB Bora Bora

I had not been paying close attention to the weather reports, but there are 3 major hurricanes moving across the Pacific, well north of our route, thankfully.

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Leg 8: NTTB Bora Bora to NTAA Tahiti

NTTB/11 NTTR NTTH NTTE NTTM NTAA/VEDRI.R04

Departing Bora Bora

Passing NTTR Raiatea Uturoa

Passing NTTH Huahine

Passing NTTM Moorea Temae

There was a dark mood over Tahiti!

And this odd church, which is apparently exactly like this.

A lake up in the crater on Tahiti

[GimbalAxis]

Leg 9 departing Tahiti. It’s beautiful, but we didn’t see much, with nothing but dark clouds and rain for our visit.

This is a really weird geographical region - the map shows a lot of little islands, which are mostly tips of calderas. But from the air it is strange and breath-taking to see.

Apparently the US built many of these airstrips on French territories during war time, and I wanted to land at one of them to look around. We chose NTTO Hao Island.

Leg 9 - NTAA Tahiti to NTTO Hao Island

NTAA/04 NTGA NTGM NTGH 172244S1413022W NTTO/R12

It rained the whole time we were in Tahiti

Pax were ready to leave early

NTGA Anaa Island, French territory

Once in the air, these calderas were numerous and eerie. It felt like an X-Files episode. I got a sense of vertigo thinking about the unseen depth of these undersea mountains, or volcanos.

Landing at NTTO Hao Island. It has a 10,900 foot runway, which is impressive, since the ridge it is built on is only about 1000 feet wide on average.

Runway in sight … which is good, because, I didn’t put enough contingency fuel and we are landing one way or another.

The ad said, “Private Beach House”. But this is low tide. What happens when the tide comes in? We might fill the tanks and push on…

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No more spontaneous flying from here on. We have to plan for the long legs to Easter Island, and then to Santiago. We chose NTTO because it has fuel service. The TBM 930 has a range of 1700 nm, but SCIP Easter Island is 1800+ from here. So we must stop at NTGJ for fuel. Since you have to arrange fuel ahead of time, and it’s very expensive, our plan is to fill the tanks here, and just top up at NTGJ.

That brings a new challenge - landing at, and taking off from, NTGJ’s shorter runway at Maximum Weight. We need at least 2400 feet, and the runway is 5709 feet, and paved, so weather permitting, we should be just fine.

Leg 10 - NTTO Hao Island to NTGJ Mangareva (Totegegie)

NTTO/12 DCT NTGJ/R12

Leaving NTTO with 4 souls (2 PAX) and full tanks at Max Takeoff Weight. Landing distance required is 2400 feet minimum, and NTGJ has a 5709 foot paved runway.

The airport is really remote, and the last stop eastward before Easter Island. The runway is on the outer ridge (Totegegie), and people appear to live on the island (Mangareva) in the center of the caldera

Landing elevation is exactly 0 feet ASL

We only need 80 gallons or about 600 lbs to top up for the next leg

If a ferry doesn’t arrive, we’ll be sleeping by the maintenance shed.

Consulting the old gods and the new, for a wind forcast for the leg to Easter island tomorrow. A strong tail / cross wind is foretold.

[GimbalAxis]

Leg 11 to Easter Island

This is my first real test of the TBM 930’s endurance, and my own planning. Very favorable tail wind, and full tanks, taking off at Max Takeoff Weight. A big storm is moving in. There is an established airway, and luckily if we leave now it keeps us ahead of the storm.

Leg 11 - NTGJ to SCIP

NTGJ/12 MG SUNTA UL348 VUGSU VUGS2B SCIP/10

No time to wait

Full tanks, and Maximum Takeoff Weight. Technically I could reduce fuel, have less reserves and be a bit lighter, but we have a longer leg after Easter Island, and I want to see the performance.

If you’ve ever wondered what Pitcairn Islands look like… they are very small

We had favorable tailwinds of up to 90 kts most of the trip, which dropped to 70 when I took this screen shot. Even when I dialed back the throttle to minimize fuel burn, I kept IAS at about 170 kts (M .470) at FL310, but Ground Speed was about 350 kts!

If the wind is similar tomorrow, it looks like I can have an extra 2.5 hours of range! That gives me the confidence that the next leg - our longest for the whole trip at 1620 nm, close to the maximum range of the TBM - is doable.

Easter Island arrival

The 1400 nm trip took about 4 hours, given the solid tail wind, plus another half hour I spent flying around the Island before landing.

[AttachedFiend39]

Enjoying your updates and routes etc. Keep them coming

[GimbalAxis]

Leg 12 to SCIR Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile

At 1620 nm, this is the longest leg of the mission - and landing at the shortest runway. SCIR RWY 14/32 is only 3304 feet, and ends at a cliff’s edge in both directions.

Based on yesterday’s performance, I’m trusting that the tailwinds will give me about 1900 nm of range, and by the time I get there the plane will be light enough to land and stop short.

I considered trying to make it directly to Santiago - a long-shot possibility if I stayed at altitude, and the wind doesn’t shift. But once I start my descent to SCIR, that option disappears because of limited fuel.

Leg 12 - SCIP Easter Island to SCIR Robinson Crusoe

SCIP/10 ASAL2J ASALA UL348 XONAT SCIR/14

Yes, Simbrief, I know it exceeds the range, but today we are relying on feelings not facts. I’ve learned that I can extend the fuel endurance by about 2+ hours once at cruise by reducing torque to about 55, as long as there is a decent tail wind.

Departing Easter Island, Max Takeoff Weight, Clear Prop.

There really is nothing else to see down here but ocean and clouds.

I really lucked out on this part of the trip. Most of the Pacific is under hurricanes, but we have clear skies, nice cold air, and a steady tail wind. By getting up to FL310 and dialing back the Torque to about 55 and IAS of 170, I was able extend the fuel endurance giving us about 2 extra hours… Changing the default fields shown on the MFD really helped me keep an eye on fuel, distance, speed, endurance, and time.

… although the extra time doesn’t buy me a lot, as there is no where else in this range to land!

Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile.

I had forgotten the story of Robinson Crusoe and looked it up. Apparently it was based on the life of Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish “privateer” - a so-called legal pirate - on the English ship Cinque Ports. Privateers were granted a Letter of Marque, which was a temporary wartime license to pillage enemy ships…

The ship was partially wrecked in a storm on this island in 1704. The Captain (Charles Pickering) had died of scurvy, and Selkirk argued fiercely with the 21 year-old Second Captain, Thomas Stradling, believing the ship was doomed - and so Selkirk was left behind. The Cinque Ports later sank off the coast of Columbia, and those who survived were captured and imprisoned by the Spanish. Selkirk somehow managed to survive alone on this island for 4 years before being rescued. Yikes.

It’s ironic that the Chileans would name the island after a character who they would have imprisoned - except perhaps for the money that tourism brings with the name? Apparently.

The single runway is short - I have no choice but to land.

The town of San Juan Bautista

Moment of truth

5.5 hour flight - longer than predicted even with a tail wind. And only 390 lbs / 59 USG of fuel remaining. It’s a good thing I landed instead of trying to make Santiago.

There is no road from the air field to the town, just a ferry.

[AttachedFiend39]

The TBM is incredible on short runways. With the reverse it has, it can stop on a dime

[Maxijam5454]

Enjoying following this — Ascension and St Helena is an inspired way across the Atlantic. I lived and worked in South Africa for years, so one suggestion for when you reach the Cape: if your legs allow it, follow the coast east out of Cape Town rather than cutting inland. The stretch from Hermanus round to Plettenberg Bay is some of the best low-level coastal flying you will find, and George makes a sensible fuel stop along it. If you are then routing north-east towards Madagascar, the Drakensberg escarpment is worth the detour on the way up to the coast. Looking forward to the write-ups.

[TundraKeks22440]

i would pick the blacksquare TBM850, its a way better aircraft modelled than the 930 stock. or one of the dukes might also go.

[GimbalAxis]

@AttachedFiend39

The TBM is incredible on short runways. With the reverse it has, it can stop on a dime

Yes the reverse really helped me stop very quickly on SCIR.

@Maxijam5454

The stretch from Hermanus round to Plettenberg Bay is some of the best low-level coastal flying you will find

Thanks for the tips!

@TundraKeks22440

i would pick the blacksquare TBM850

Thanks for the suggestion. I wanted to use default aircraft and scenery, just to see how it goes. I haven’t tried any 3rd party turbo props yet - but this experience will give me appreciation for distinctions between them.

[GimbalAxis]

Leg 13 - SCIR Robinson Crusoe to SCEL Santiago, Chile

SCIR/32 GERKI LOKOL UT101 VTN VTN1D SCEL/17R

Yet again, weather forced a move on.

There is no road from San Juan Bautista, the town on the far side of the mountains, and it takes some time to get the ferry back to the air field, so we are leaving later than planned. It’s a short runway, so I loaded just enough fuel to get to Santiago with a bit of contingency.

And the runway, well, has an interesting curve…

Takeoff was a bit closer than I would have liked, but I did reach Vr at the cliff, so all good.

Fairwell to the Pacific, for now.

Zoomed in a bit here, I can’t describe how this looked on 3 screens - I got a shiver when I realized the line of clouds along the horizon were not clouds, but the vast snow-covered peaks of the Andes stretching along the entire horizon. They came in to view about 150nm from shore, through an offshore haze that I just cleared on descent in to Santiago.

SCEL on approach

I can honestly say this was the best landing I’ve ever made in the sim.

Pacific crossing, total time: 32.1 hours, over 8,150 nm.

Even though I’m sitting at home, looking at a simulator, doing 1 leg per day in this way has been very immersive, and blurs the lines a bit. I actually feel a small sense of accomplishment, because I had always wanted to see what these countless, distant islands of the South Pacific looked like.

[AttachedFiend39]

i was exactly the same when i did a northern world trip, its great to see some of the smaller airports and when land somewhere to read a bit about the city it serves and how the airport came to fruition, normally being used for WW2 and then being open for commercial/GA traffic.

Brilliant.

Where you off to next?

[GimbalAxis]

Thanks. Work is keeping me in the real world for a few days, but I will be continuing along the flight plan