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Leg #56 SAWH - YSRN

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EHM-2097 Andrei:
This time we do not go away without crossing the Andes again, fortunately it is a fast leg again available to jets (the A318 again for me).

Fly to the southeast while climbing to FL270. Follow the large river that ends at Conception and note the confluence point of two large tributaries. Fly towards this confluence, and then in the same direction (roughly southeast), until reaching the town of Los Angeles (not THAT one, of course) and the airport of Maria Dolores (SCGE) north of the town.

Turn south and fly over some low and rocky hills, until reaching the next town, which is Victoria, with the local airport south of it (SCTO).

Note several lakes on the left, inside and near the mountains. A first lake is long and narrow (Colico), while the second is larger (Villarica). Fly to this lake and note three volcanic peaks in a straight line to the east, located just south of the lake: Villarica, Quetrupillan (the lowest of the three) and Lanin.

The route is south of this peak line, over the next (long and thin) lake, which is Calafquen. By the time we reach the eastern tip of this lake, the next one is clearly visible to the east, on the Argentina side: lake Huechulafquen, easy to recognize due to its "Y" shape.

Fly over lake Huechulafquen to its eastern tip, and then turn south and start descending, as the destination airport will appear in sight VERY soon. Caution, there is no visible city so the runway is not easy to spot from distance.

The runway is located in a shallow valley, oriented roughly east to west. The safest approach is to fly over the runway, and then enter a left-hand downwind leg while descending, for a finals leg to the west. Do not descend too fast because this downwind leg occurs above some hills. Also, do not come too shallow on short finals because there is a hill foot near the threshold whose height is difficult to assess due to surrounding terrain. I was surprised by this and discovered later (during "replay") that I had cleared that hill by just a few meters.

EHM-2097 Andrei:
This is the last of the "fast leg" series that can be easily flown with jets. Moreover, it is one of the shortest legs of the tour yet. Thus, I flew the A318 again, but at a lower level - FL170, which also allows for a better view of the Andes we are crossing again.

Fly to the south, left of the high mountain ground but keeping this one in sight.

After some time, a large river is visible on the left (Linay River) while a large lake appears ahead in the mountains. This is Nahuel Huapi Lake. Fly to the eastern tip of the lake, where the town of San Carlos de Bariloche is located as well as the local airport (SAZS).

Fly to the west along the lake southeastern arm, and then continue along its western arm. Where the lake ends, on the left, is the peak of Tronador (the "thunderer"). When abeam the Tronador, turn slightly left towards the Todos Lake, on the Chile side of the mountains.

West of Todos Lake an isolated peak appears, (the Osorno volcano), and further west there is a large lake (Llanquihue). Start descending and fly towards the southwestern tip of Llanquihue Lake. The destination airport is just south of it, between the lake and the town of Puerto Montt. A procedure turn or half a pattern may be used to make a final approach from the south (and possibly use the available ILS).

EHM-2097 Andrei:
No more landmasses to cross... the remaining of the American part of the tour mostly cross the frozen fjords of Chile and Argentina. This leg may be flown by jet despite to the gravel runway at destination, however I preferred the B1900 for realism and to better enjoy the landscape.

Fly southeast and climb to 9500ft.This brings us over the Reloncavi Sound, where the city of Puerto Montt is located, and towards its exit. Once we reach this exit, we are not quite over the open sea, but over the larger Ancud Gulf.

Note the large Chloe Island on your right. Despite its size, it is relatively far from the mainland so further south it is barely visible. For orientation, turn south and follow roughly the centerline between the mainland and Chloe Island (and preferably keeping both in sight).

A plentiful of small islands is located in this part of Ancud Gulf. Further south, there are no more such islands to be seen, and we have passed into Corcovado Bay. The name comes from the prominent volcano visible on the left (and easily recognizable due to its cone shape and the lakes hung over its northern mountainside).

From this point, follow closely the mainland shore past Mount Corcovado, but pay attention not to enter any fjord. Note The Juan Yates Bay on the left, which harbors three small islands. Further south, another prominent peak is visible on the mainland (but near the shore): Mount Melimoyu.

Before getting abeam Mount Melimoyu, note the Refugio Island nery near to the mainland. Once over this island fly to the large fjord south of mount Melimoyu. Follow this fjord to the southeast.

The fjord ends in a "T" crossing into another fjord. The destination is located at the northern tip of this second fjord. However, due to the high terrain, expect the runway to be really close when you get it in sight so start descending before the two fjords meet.

The runway is short but well in line with the fjord so the approach is easy over the water.

EHM-2097 Andrei:
Generally it is a good practice to check the arrival airport before planning one's flight. Be sure you don't forget it before starting this leg. Moreover, while the airport loads into FS, be sure to sit down, because it goes like this:

"First view from the active runway, hmm, a nasty high mountain ahead. Let's try the reciprocal... oops, another one there! Time to look at the sides, hoping for an easy approach on base leg, and the result is, (drum roll) NONE". Indeed, this runway is located on the bottom of a deep hole!

Thus, planning this leg is mostly about planning the approach. Note also that before getting to the approach there is a long leg to fly (longer than the previous ones, that is) so it would be a terrible loss for one to crash on landing after an hours-long flight. In fact, I strongly advise practicing this approach before (which I did too, of course).

The landing looks so bad that for a time I considered flying the leg in a chopper, but two things stopped me. First, I don't know whether it is allowed, and also (and especially) I am no chopper specialist either. Considering this, the wisdom took over and I decided that my best chances to get down in one (virtual) piece were aboard a C172.

Basically I tried two strategies. The first and the most promising one was to come over the "cauldron" edge aiming for a steep finals leg, but the results I got were below my expectations (and moreover, below the ground level).

So I tried - successfully - another strategy, which could qualify as a circle-to-land. Basically it means doing a 180 turn while descending inside the cauldron. More details will follow when this leg description will get to the approach, but for now we are still at its other end.

One consequence of flying this leg in a slow "approach-safe" aircraft is that it takes ages. So fill up the tanks, get airborne, start climbing to 5500ft and ... relax. Fortunately the landscape is interesting enough, but even so it is most likely you will need a good book in flight - or use time compression, "as fast as it gets".

Fly southwest along the fjord towards its exit. While flying along it, note the peak of the Cerro Maca volcano on the left side. Abeam the volcano cut the corner to the south. Do not enter the fjord that extends eastwards south of Cerro Maca, instead look for the (less obvious) continuation of the fjord to the south.

After passing a group of small islands, however, the way south appears clearly. Continue to the south until this fjord ends, avoiding the other ones that extend on the left or right.  

The fjord ends as a lake on the mainland, but beneath the land the ocean is visible further south. Cross the isthmus between the lake and the ocean. Once over the water again, note the Javier Island on the right, and follow the shoreline southwest. Near the island there is a labyrinth of fjords that we need just to ignore.

The next fjord is the one to follow. Further sound, this fjord too splits into several branches surrounding a triangular island. Fly over this island, then further maintaining direction, over a fjord that ends but close to the next one (east-west oriented).

This new fjord has one branch to the north, then one to the east and finally one to the southeast, left from a high and massive peak (Cerro O'Higgins). Follow this last one branch until its end. Near its end the fjord is splitting again, one branch to the south (with an island inside) then another one to the north. Ignore both and continue to the southeastern end of the fjord.

From this point maintain the direction of the fjord, and note a high thin lake on your right, and then a very long lake, roughly at sea level, which is O'Higgins Lake. Follow this lake to the southeast and descend to 3500ft, the destination is now close.

The lake bends to the south, shaped as a huge "U" with one end where we are now and the other at the destination. However it is easier to take the shortcut between the two branches of the "U". Try to find the best (that is lowest) point to cross.

Once over the eastern arm of the lake, you should already recognize the landscape if you practiced the landing before. If you did not, fly towards the mountainside to the east and note the "cauldron", which becomes more and more visible as you get close to it. In this case make a pass over the cauldron to memorize the runway position.

And now, here is "my" scenario for the landing. Descend to 1700ft, full flaps and level up (this hurts the C172 indeed) and aim for the northern side of the cauldron. Look for the road coming from the north and crossing the cauldron, and then cross the cauldron edge above and parallel to this road.

Once you cross the edge, start descending around 500fpm with 50% throttle. Stay as close as possible to the western side of the cauldron to allow for a large turn on finals. If there is still not enough space for the turn, it is possible to turn wider, overshoot the centerline and continue turning to intercept it again from the east. The drawback is that in this case the aircraft needs to slip between trees.

Once on the runway, hit the brakes and hope for the best...

EHM-2097 Andrei:
Landing an aircraft into that cauldron was difficult, but getting it out is not easy either. After a few attempts with the C172, in all cases too close to both the edge and the stall speed, I decided to go for something slightly more powerful and flew this leg with the B1900.

In any case, a steep crosswind leg is required to escape this aircraft trap. I can't call it a "natural trap" however, because I have strong reasons to believe this cauldron doesn't exist at all in real life.

Once you get out and able to look for landmarks, follow the O'Higgins Lake to the south, up to the base of the "U" and beyond, along a lake arm extending to the southeast. Before reaching the tip of the lake, the next large lake (to the south) appears in sight; this is Lake Traful. Fly towards its eastern tip, and a new lake appears further south: Lake Argentino. Again, aim for the eastern tip of this lake.

Fly westwards along the southern shore of Lake Argentino. Note the El Calafate airport (SAWC); the town itself is not rendered in FS. Further west, another airport appears having two crossing runways.

A narrow lake appears to the left, within a deep valley, but in fact it is just another arm of Lake Argentino. Fly to that lake arm and follow it to the south until it ends. From the tip of the lake continue to the south, right of a range of rocky peaks, which is Cordillera del Paine. Abeam of the Cordillera, note the lake south of it. This is Lake Pehoe, which is continued to the southeast and towards lower ground.

Fly southeast along Lake Pehoe, ignoring its large arms that extend to the east. Near the southern end of the lake, more lakes appear to the south, but this is actually a fjord of the Pacific Ocean. Fly towards this fjord and start descending. The destination airport is straight ahead, on the northern shore of this fjord.

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