Look forward to it Tertius. I completed the first two legs and will have a go at a couple more over the weekend. Keep the AArs coming

Leg 7
Depart: Madrid (LEMD)
Arrive: Córdoba (LEBA)
Aircraft: Beechcraft King Air C90B (Carenado) *

Flight Plan: LEMD LEBA
Distance: 168.9 nm

Scenery: Default (Aerosoft LEMD)

For the longest leg of the Prologue of the Big Tour, I've chosen to fly the King Air again since we'll make good time at a cruise of 200 kts. Also, I just can't get enough of it; the plane is a real pleasure to fly! Even though this is a slightly longer route, I'm keeping it simple and flying direct, using the airfield VORs at Madrid and Córdoba for navigation (BRA and CDB respectively).



We leave Madrid in the evening, heading south past the city.



The flight is pretty uneventful and there's not much to see in the dying light. However, as we descend into Córdoba, we catch a nice view of the city at twilight, dark clouds hanging overhead. You can see the lights of the airfield just to the north west of the city.



It's a completely manual landing but, as I've said before, the King Air is very nice to fly. We touch down just as the sun sinks beneath the horizon.




Next leg: Córdoba (LEBA) to Sevilla (LEZL)

Leg 8
Depart: Córdoba (LEBA)
Arrive: Sevilla (LEZL)
Aircraft: Douglas DC-3 (Leading Edge Simulations / X-Aviation) *

Flight Plan: LEBA SVL LEZL
Distance: 56.7 nm

Scenery:

• LEBA Cordoba (custom)
• LEZL Sevilla

Today's flight is a short jaunt to the south-west from Córdoba to Sevilla. At only 56 nm, Leg 8 will be the shortest individual flight during this introductory chapter to The Big Tour. After departing Córdoba, we'll fly toward the Sevilla VOR/DME (SVL) and line up for a landing on runway 27.



The aircraft I've selected for this leg is the legendary Douglas DC-3. I recently acquired this bird during a Cyber Monday sale over at X-Aviation so this will be the first time I've gotten to take it up. Even though I've read the manuals, I know that this flight will definitely be a learning experience. Apropos our continued adventures in Spain, I've picked the Iberia colors for this flight.



Because the DC-3's great, big, 1,200 HP Pratt & Whitney radial engines can be temperamental if treated unkindly, initial checks and start-up are a painstaking affair. But, after following the check-lists to the letter, I line us up for departure. The Twin Wasps have a lot of get-up-and-go and before long we're in the air.



After a short initial climb, I circle around and overfly the airfield on the way to SVL. The scenery that I'm using at LEBA is just something that I threw together while trying to get a handle on OverlayEditor, so don't judge it too harshly!



I cruise at a mere 6,000 feet so that I can spend some time fiddling with the Sperry Autopilot, one of the first autopilot systems ever produced. Even with the system enabled, constant adjustments are required to keep the plane on course; the DC-3 is by no means a hands-off plane! Our flight takes us over the valley of the Guadalquivir, one of the largest rivers in the Iberian peninsula. The surrounding countryside, which you can see out the windows, is pretty flat and featureless. It's a big change from the hills and mountain peaks just a few flights previous.



The DME ticks town the last remaining miles to SVL and, as the airport comes into view, I turn on course with runway 27. I drop the flaps and ride the glide slope in for a safe--if somewhat bumpy--landing. The DC-3 is by far the largest tail-dragger I've ever flown, so I misjudge my height off the ground and bunny hop before I can flare properly. Like I said, this flight would surely be a learning experience!



After taxiing off the runway, I pick a parking spot off to the side and cool the engines down. Leg 8 and my first successful flight in the DC-3 is in the books. Expect to see lots of flights in this bird!




Next leg: Sevilla (LEZL) to Granada (LEGR)

Leg 9
Depart: Seville (LEZL)
Arrive: Granada (LEGR)
Aircraft: Cessna 208B Grand Caravan (Carenado) *

Flight Plan: LEZL SVL LEGR
Distance: 102.6 nm

Scenery: LEZL Sevilla

Eager to get to Gibraltar and conclude this first chapter of the Tour, I decide to make a late afternoon flight, hoping to beat the sunset into Granada. After departing runway 09, we'll fly the 100 degree radial out of SVL until we reach Granada, where we'll circle around to land on runway 27. Since Granada lies at the foot of Spain's Sierra Nevada mountains, I'm a little apprehensive about making this flight so late in the day.



As planned, we depart Sevilla heading east.



It's not long into the flight that I realize we'll never make it before it's completely dark. It's nearing winter and the days are getting much, much shorter. However, we are treated to a nice sunset.



We descend toward Granada through an eerie layer of cloud and fog.



Fortunately, we break out of the clouds as we turn onto the base leg. Still, pretty spooky looking!



I put the plane on the ground just before a thick layer of fog rolls over the airfield. I'm suddenly in the mood for a warm drink.




Next leg: Granada (LEGR) to Gibraltar (LXGB)

Leg 10
Depart: Granada (LEGR)
Arrive: Gibraltar (LXGB)
Aircraft: Beechcraft Baron B58 (Carenado) *

Flight Plan: LEGR MLG LXGB
Distance: 98.2 nm

Scenery: LXGB RAF Gibraltar

The last flight of the Prologue to the Big Tour takes us from Granada to Gibraltar, a small British territory near the southern tip of the Iberian peninsula. I've been looking forward to this flight since I began the Tour: Gibraltar is often considered one of the most scenic and daunting airports in the world, but I haven't before made the attempt in X-Plane.

We'll be departing Granada from runway 27 and climbing over the layer of low-lying cloud that's still blanketing the area. After overflying MLG, we'll adjust our course for Gibraltar where visibility might be limited this morning.



As planned, we take off from Granada heading west, just after dawn.



It's a short flight to the south-west to the coastal city of Málaga, Spain. Here we catch our first glimpse of the Mediterranean Sea.



Nice morning for flying:



About 30 miles from our destination, we begin the descent. As expected, the visibility begins to taper off and landmarks become scarce while we pass over this corner of the Mediterranean. Before long, however, the Rock looms out of the mist.



The wind is blowing stiffly out of the east so we'll need to circle around the southern tip of Gibraltar and approach runway 09 from the harbor. The downwind leg offers us a good view of the Pillars of Heracles, the ancient boundary into the Atlantic Ocean.



Something in the waters below catches my eye as I begin the turn north. A submarine! Looks like he's steaming west toward the Atlantic. I can't help but recall a particularly dramatic scene in Das Boot; it's a good thing everyone is currently on friendly terms!



It's a sharp right turn onto final followed by a steep 5 degree glideslope down to the runway. There's a lot of activity going on in the harbor--the scenery author has done a good job of making Gibraltar look like the busy crossroads that it is.



Despite the 20 kt wind and turbulence around the Rock, we land without a hitch. Given LXGB's reputation as a "scary airport," I feel like I must have gotten lucky somehow. But, as we taxi toward the terminal, I realize that maybe the airport is more frightening for motorists than it is for pilots: after all, Winston Churchill Avenue intersects the runway! Just imagine an A320 barreling past you at a traffic signal--pretty spooky!



I power down the engines under the Rock of Gibraltar, bringing Leg 10 and the Prologue portion of The Big Tour to a close. Next stop: Africa!




Next leg: Gibraltar (LXGB) to Tangier (GMTT)

Prologue - Recap
Begin: Paris Le Bourget (LFPB)
End: Gibraltar (LXGB)
Distance Traveled: 1122+ nm



Although this introductory chapter to The Big Tour is, in the grand scheme of things, quite short, I feel as if I have already made significant progress. I'm choosing to think--optimistically--of the Prologue as a kind of initial hurdle. By completing these ten flights, I've shown to myself that I'm more than capable of flying in some less than ideal conditions and navigating unfamiliar terrain completely without the aid of GPS systems. The rest of this grand journey, then, will be a matter of fortitude and incremental steps.

It is fitting that the Prologue should take us from Paris, the starting point of L'Oiseau du France, the 1930s inspiration for the present Tour (see the introduction for more on this), to Gibraltar, a historically significant crossroads and boundary point. I am particularly entertained by the Prologue's conclusion in Gibraltar: the Rock and the adjacent North African coast were in antiquity known as the Pillars of Herakles and traditionally demarcated the limits of the known world. It is beyond these Pillars that Odysseus wandered for ten years, encountering all manner of monsters and strange lands. When I pass through the Straight of Gibraltar on my way to Tangier, I too will be entering the unknown: I've never flown in Africa, Asia, Oceania, or South America and It won't be until I return to North America that I begin to enter familiar territory again. Quite the odyssey indeed!

Below I've included some selected screenshots that represent a kind of visual summary of the trip thus far. I'll try to do this at the end of each chapter so that those who don't have the time to read through everything can still get the gist of what's happened.

Thanks for joining me on the journey thus far! Onward and upward!

Congratulations for completing this prologue, looking forward to read further ! I spent quite some time in Africa for my job in the 80s so might see a few places I know.

Fantastic journey. Congratulations indeed.

Congratulations! First part down. Bigger hurdles ahead for you now. Great AARs. Keep it up.

Very nice, and quiet enjoyable to read. I spent a week or so a couple of years ago, bush hopping across Africa in FS9, was quiet a bit of fun. You've inspired me to restart a round the world flight I had begun several years ago, who knows maybe we'll run into each other at a FOB one of these days?

-Jenrick

Leg 11
Depart: Gibraltar (LXGB)
Arrive: Ibn Batouta Airport, Tangier, Morocco (GMTT)
Aircraft: Hawker Hurricane Mk IIC Trop. (ND Art and Technology) *

Flight Plan: LXGB GMTT
Distance: 37.5 nm

Scenery: LXGB RAF Gibraltar

Welcome back to the first major chapter of The Big Tour! Today we'll be leaving Europe behind and beginning our journey across and around Africa. As I mentioned in the previous recap, I've never once flown in the skies above the African continent so all of this will be a new experience for me. I'm excited to begin, so let's cut the chatter and get right to it!

Today's flight is a very short jaunt across the Strait of Gibraltar to Tangier, a deceptively brief introduction to flying over the expansive continent of Africa. Our ETE is under 20 minutes, but the trip will probably be even quicker thanks to my choice of aircraft.



I'll be flying the Hawker Hurricane Mk IIC in a tropicalized variant created for combat over North Africa and the Mediterranean. This version is equipped with a robust, 1,480 hp Rolls-Royce Merlin XX engine that will get us going pretty fast over the Strait. I start this bad-boy up on the military apron and taxi to runway 09.



For having such a powerful engine, the Hurricane is pretty forgiving on the take-off roll. I retract the undercarriage and begin to climb up and around the Rock.



As I pass the southern tip of Gibraltar, I turn south for Africa. Get one good, last look at Europe now because it will be quite sometime before we see her again!



It's a mere minute or two before the northern coast of Africa comes into view. The peninsula to the left is home to Ceuta, an autonomous city of Spain, and dead ahead is the peak of Jebel Musa, generally thought to be the southern Pillar of Herakles.



As I approach the Moroccan coast, I turn west and fly along the length of the Strait of Gibraltar. Cruising at around 220 mph (just under 200 knots), I make short work of the bulk of the trip; a few minutes later, I spy the city of Tangier off to the left.



Ibn Batouta Airport lies to the south-west of the city; I fly west, passing over the waters of the Atlantic Ocean for the first time during the Tour, before beginning a large, banking approach toward runway 10. I drop the gear and flaps to prepare the Hurricane for landing.



I come in a touch too fast and bunny hop slightly before putting all the wheels on the tarmac. Welcome to Morocco; welcome to Africa!




Next leg: Tangier, Morocco (GMTT) to Rabat, Morocca (GMME)

So, how is the tour going?

Sorry about the lack of updates! I've been pinging back and forth for the holidays so I haven't had access to my simming computer. Additionally, it's about high time for me to upgrade the GPU.

Woohoo!!! GPU Partytime

<cough> BUMP <cough, cough> :-)