Unfortunately I did not find any way to fly this leg in VFR (and fortunately I did not even try to).
There is a kind of a challenge though. The distance is long enough to make this leg available to the classes 6-7 of the EHM fleet. However, before fueling up your B747, take a look at the destination runway: kind of short, no navaids (except for a NDB), and not even PAPI lights for guidance. It is possible of course, and many did it already, but I preferred to add a touch of originality here (too).
The A318 Elite, entered in service at EHM in 2008, is the smallest aircraft having a "published" range above this leg distance. After a few tests, I concluded that it is usable for this leg but subject to some particular conditions.
First, I did not use any "fancy route planning", just the plain straight line between departure and destination airports. Well, "straight line" is a way of speaking, so expect to see a perfect circle segment displayed on the FS map. At long range altitude (FL370) the flight should take 11-12 hours.
Then, this is a trip to "travel light". No passengers, no flight attendants (to attend whom?) and no extra cargo and luggage. I could not give up the galleys, though, for realism sake: On such a long and boring flight, if I was a pilot, I suppose I would spend some time eating...
Weather surprises are not quite welcome on this flight either. I think a merely 10kts headwind would make the difference between ending the flight with a landing or a ditch. Of course you may try the opposite and setting up some tailwind, but I doubt this is the correct spirit here.
Eventually, as the approach at destination is forcefully visual, one must ensure to get there by daylight. The leg duration and polar vicinity make it for a difficult planning here. I got it not very well myself, as I arrived one hour too early (than I previously planned) so I barely had enough light to see the trees near the runway.
And this is all about planning, but there is one more thing to remember for the departure. Make sure you get a good (that is fuel effective) climb profile, because wasting fuel during this flight is the worst thing to do.
Once at cruise level, there is not much advice to use, possibly except this one: if you plan to take a nap during this long flight, set your alarm clock and set it wisely. If the aircraft reaches destination it will just orbit above the airport but in this case it will not take long before it falls out of the sky of fuel starvation.
Close to destination, care must be taken to follow a smooth descent profile, and, especially, avoid flying tenths of miles at very low altitude before the finals. This would induce a frightening fuel flow when compared to what is left in the tanks. Start descending at 80-90nm from destination, with engines idle or close to it.
One difficulty is to locate the runway in time for proper alignment. Here are some hints:
- From the cruise track, a turn to the left is necessary to get room for a finals turn to the right. Note that the final part of the flight follows a long bay with the destination near its western tip. Make sure you fly over the mainland south of this bay (though possibly close to it) and this will ensure the necessary space for a decent finals leg.
- The airport itself is not visible from far away, but as you get close to the bay western end an isolated hill appears in the area where the airport should be. The airport is JUST east of it, so prepare to fly a little right of this hill.
After completing your landing, note that the airport facilities (as of the default FS scenery) include - and are limited to - one parking position, hopefully you did the flight without wingmen.
Welcome to Australia (or Tasmania, to be more precise)!
