Indonesia Tour 4

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Tour 3 started with some excitement ....see Post Wed29Apr15

Cruising the Freeway at 11500 ft 3500 m
hoping for a clear patch at the destination
( there was not ....so RTB )

Highland landing roll (plus dog)

Papua - working our way through a cloudy Freeway

Bilorai - breaking off the approach from right base as cloud moves across finals

Quid enim dices ?

Outbound - low in a cloudy Freeway

High on the way back....
passing opposite traffic 1000 ft 300 m above us over a cloud-filled Freeway

Due entirely to the corrupt practices of those near and far, Asian One Air was grounded for a month waiting on spare parts and DGCA (Civil Aviation Authority) paperwork.
This was very frustrating for our team in Nabire and we escaped for a day to the waterfalls along the Kali Legari and its tributary Kali Negari.
Although we often felt like we were on a road to nowhere, this one took us inland to the rivers


Fish farm along Makini Road GoogleMaps

Parking downstream beside the deteriorating bridge and weir over the Legari.
In 2025 it looks like a wider road and new bridge have been built GoogleMaps



The last two kilometers to the pool on the Kali Negari
....starting with a walk through the Legari
( some shaky frames from the camcorder )


Up a hill beside the rockface over which, had it not been for a long dry spell,
the Kali Negari would have poured

....and along a jungle path

Cocytia durvillii moth in the jungle above the Kali Legari, Papua

....reaching the lower [shallow] pool with a small waterfall
in the middle of the jungle on the Kali Negari
....and lunch with the insect chorus !


The upper [deeper ] pool where the air temperature is a comfortable 27°C
but the Negari comes straight off a 10000 ft 3000 m mountain so the water feels ice cold

....in the throes of jungle fever

Starting back towards Nabire along the jungle path by the Kali Negari

Walking back out thru the Kali Legari

The jungle wall along the Kali Legari





At the end of a very pleasant day where the Legari joins Cenderwasi Bay

Strange, daybreak light effect - the sun is rising BEHIND us

Frame from rearward facing GoPro - departing Nabire runway 34


Frames from GoPro - Nabire

Plateau between coast and West Papua highlands

Turning finals at 7400 ft over the KP key point (Blue-Red-Blue buildings)

A very tropical scene captured from far away
....Asian One Air C208B Caravan PK-LTF landing in Nabire


The jungle wall east of Nabire


West Papua, Indonesia

Dog on the runway at Nabire - she needed a blast of reverse thrust just to get her moving


 Full movie on YouTube

A few camcorder frames from the end of the runway in Nabire,
starting with a normal scene at the close of the school day
( at least these ones kept an eye on the approaching aircraft )

Another normal day for Papua's airports

Trigana Air ATR42 taking off from Nabire

We all understand you are tired at the end of the school day
but an active runway is not the place to rest !
....and we are phoning your Mother !!!

Our favourite trees on short final at Nabire

AMA Pilatus PC6 Porter departing Nabire



We often carry fighting cocks to/from matches.   Some of these birds are worth more than the rest of the cargo combined.   Our Ground Crew, not knowing the English words, called it a 'Battle Chicken'.   This one flew with us so regularly I dubbed it BattleChicken Galactica

Working our way around Bilorai in bad weather

Landing at Bilorai in the rain

Crew day out to the Pantai Pasir Putih ( White Sands Beach )
GoogleMaps - sorry, can't find it.  A search for Pasir Putih ends up on an island

Pantai Pasir Putih - white sands in a mangrove



Pantai Pasir Putih - tree in a tree

Herding tiny pufferfish on to the sand

Our Engineer Marsel trapping pufferfish in the surf

We are not amused....

Our Avionics Engineer Jefri at his best

GoPro frame from the tailcone - smoking it into Ilaga.
For the purists :
Touchdown was on the threshold at Maximum Landing Weight with a 13 knot tailwind
at Density Altitude 11500 ft 3500 m followed by a graceful 80 m bounce.
Because of slope and/or terrain, most airstrips in Papua are one-way (landing in one direction and taking off in the opposite direction) so you always end up doing something in a tailwind

GoPro movie frame - departing Ilaga

AscoNusa C208A without Cargo Pod in the Freeway

AscoNusa C208A westbound in the Freeway at 10500 ft 3200 m

C208A PK-FLM with Lake Paniai and a dissipating thunderstorm in the distance

....and us seen from PK-FLM

We stayed together all the way to Nabire where, with Air Traffic Control's kind permission,
we followed PK-FLM into the circuit

Fun with AscoNusa C208A PK-FLM

Our Ground Crew trying to fit 1000 kg of slippers into the aircraft

GoPro frame - checking the cargo door secure after unloading at Bilorai

How to see the top of your wings without a ladder....
Counting fuel filler caps - ours were all still there
See post 
Wed29Apr15

GoPro movie frame - departing Bilorai RWY27.
We are heavy so accelerating low over the runway and banking left to follow the slope ahead




That departure filmed by Ramli, our man in Bilogai

....and as seen from the tail

GoPro movie frame - on another day departing Bilorai RWY09
into a headwind with a very light load so we can climb steeply

PTMQ Amano traditional gold mine along the Kali Derewo

Thru neglect, most of the river mining airstrips have become unusable for fixed wing aircraft.
Instead they are serviced by the rotaries
( which also does not always end well - in this case 1 fatality and 6 injured )

Starting another day at 0500L and 28°C, our Engineer Meli captured the dawn

0600L and 30°C ....departing on the day's 1st mission into the Highlands


0745L and 39°C ....on finals for Runway 34 at Nabire after the 1st mission


Preparing our Caravan for the second mission ....the aircraft settling as the load comes on board.  Note the engineers and pilot post flight-ing ....checking for leaks, damage to controls, structure and prop caused by rough airstrips [ and the occasional hole caused by irate humans ]


0800L and 39°C ....lifting off with the 2nd 1200 kg cargo for the Highland villages


0945L and 44°C ...back from flight 2 and obliging ATC request for a tight right base



1000L and 44°C ....departing on the 3rd run of the day into the Papua Highlands


1200L and 47°C ....a bit of  PhotoShop on our 3rd and final landing of the day

Runway 34 Nabire Papua
Cessna C208B Caravan PK-LTF settling into the mirage in the midday 47°C

Insect removal - harking back to my first job in aviation
....cleaning aircraft in Canberra, Australia in 1985.
Not so simple in Papua in 2015 when the water evaporates out of the soapsuds
before you get the chance to wipe


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END OF TOUR 4