By John Bone
Editor’s note: This is part 1 of a 2-part submission by John Bone. Part 2 will appear in the next Transponder. JMD
In 2019 my wife Sherry and I flew our Cirrus SR22 from Florida to Nome, Alaska. In Nome, we joined the Alaska Airmen's Association Goodwill Flight to Provideniya Bay, located in the Chukotka district of Eastern Russia. While acquiring the necessary permits, I learned that it was possible to fly entirely across Russia. I found this astounding. For decades, the requirements to fly a private plane beyond Moscow or St. Petersburg required having a Russian speaker/navigator on board. I understood that the necessary permits were difficult to obtain and that avgas was hard to come by. With little notice or announcements, all of this has changed. A Russian speaker is no longer required. Avgas availability has tremendously improved and, oh, by the way, "hop in your small plane, come fly around Russia; we are open for business." Thinking about all of this for just a few seconds, I knew that I had to make this trip. Then Covid put a delay on the plan. It was not until July of 2021 the trip became possible.
The three significant obstacles to opening Russia to foreign General Aviation were language, radio coverage, and avgas. Russia has always had English speakers at its international airports and high-altitude airways to handle international commercial flights. The challenge was to bring the English language to its domestic airports and the lower altitudes. Considering the vast size of the country, this was an enormous undertaking. Russian and English could not be more different; therefore, introducing English to over 8,200 air traffic controllers took a while. Ensuring low altitude VHF radio coverage across the largest country in the world was also an enormous logistical task. Russia produces 100LL avgas in three different refineries, so it is readily available. It was just a matter of having it available at suitable locations, making it possible to cross the country. The only stop that I insisted on making that did not have avgas was Petropavlovsk, Kamchatka. The solution was shipping two 200-liter drums there, which was no problem.
Several Russian agencies have participated in opening up the country to foreign General Aviation. However, one individual that has provided the heart-beat to make it all happen is Evgeny Kabanov. Currently, the Chairman of the International Tourism Committee of AOPA Russia, Evgeny's company MAK Aviation Services, has driven the cooperation between the various agencies. In addition, he has organized avgas availability at many airports, making it possible to easily cross the country in a piston-powered aircraft. A trip across Russia can be quickly planned by just looking at MAKgas's fuel page. The complexities of obtaining permits, having flight plans and routings approved by the CAA and ATC are a breeze using MAKgas. Their fees are surprisingly reasonable.
A flight across Russia is as large of an undertaking as Russia itself. Consider that Russia has a landmass of 17.13 million square kilometers, the US 9.834 MSK, almost twice the size of the US. Russia is the largest country in the world. It encompasses more than one-eighth of Earth's inhabited land area. If you flew a great circle route from the most western border of Russia to its most eastern seashore, it would be over 5,000 miles. Russia has 11 time zones, spans two continents, borders 16 sovereign nations, and reaches almost halfway around the northern hemisphere; it is enormous.
Russia is such a vast landmass that practically flying across Russia amounts to an "an Around the World" flight. Since opening to general aviation, pilots wishing to complete an "Around the World" flight have found the Russian route a convenient and weather-friendly option. This route is also a much less expensive option than crossing the Middle East and Asia.
My departure was from my home base in Apalachicola, FL. The route took me to Iqaluit, Canada (CYFB), conveniently located to cross the North Atlantic. As luck would have it, the weather shut me down there for four days. Then halfway across Greenland, the electronic ignition system shut down, so another five days in Reykjavik (BIRK) waiting for parts. Two weeks in, I've not gone farther than Iceland. If there is any place to break down, Reykjavik is one of the best. A scenic, hip town, not to mention that Iceland has between 20 to 30 local craft breweries.
From Reykjavik, my route went to Wick Scotland (EGPC) and then onto the first Russian stop of Pskov (ULOO). Pskov, a favorite clearing spot for ferry pilots, is a scenic town with friendly but thorough customs agents. The river Velikaya runs through Pskov, one of Russia's oldest cities dating back to 903 AD. What a great place to get your first taste of Russian beauty and hospitality!
The next stop was Konakovo (UUEL), about 100 miles north of Moscow. Primarily a civilian helicopter field, it has a 1,950' runway, beautiful facilities, a 5-star restaurant, hotel rooms, cabins, a lake, and an expansive children's playground. Konakovo hosts helicopter competition events, and the club located there boasts several international awards. My hosts here were fellow Earthrounders Maxim and Natalia Sotnikov, who flew their Bell 407 around the world in 2017. They have done an excellent job of developing Konakovo, and it was one of my favorite stops.
From Konakovo, three stops were made at General Aviation airports around Moscow. First was Myachkovo (UUBM) home base for the busy flight school Aero Region Training. With an impressive fleet of G1000 equipped Cessna 172's and Tecnam aircraft, they have graduated over 500 PPL students in the last two years, and that's during the pandemic. They currently have an impressive 12 instructors and approximately 60 students. I presented Carrabelle Flying Club T-shirts to two of their Flight Instructors. They quickly produced a bottle of Beluga Vodka in exchange!
Next was Novinki (UUDN). Probably the most excellent airport in Russia and maybe just about anywhere. The general aviation-only terminal features a restaurant, bar, pilots lounge with a billiards table, and hotel rooms with beautiful facilities. Novinki even has hangar homes. The piston power Cessna/Beechcraft sales and service center is selling two new aircraft every month. Notice "sales and service." Getting service done in Russia, even on a Cirrus, was no problem. I found the facilities and maintenance technicians to be excellent throughout Russia.
Then on to Torbeevo (UUCT). Here the second largest airline in Russia, S7, has built a general aviation training center. Beautiful hangars, modern classrooms, and G1000 equipped 172's. The flight school at Torbeevo is separate from their Boeing and Airbus airline training campus located just outside of Domodedovo (UUDD). S7 happens to own the Epic Aircraft Company located in Bend, Oregon. Everyone at S7 is very proud to be involved in a US manufacture. There are several local airplanes based here, including a new Cirrus SR22 that was parked next to an Ilyushin 11-2 Shturmovuk, fully restored to flying condition, except for the bullet hole that shot it down in 1942
To practically fly east from any of the Moscow GA airports, you generally follow the Trans-Siberian Railway. This historic Railway dates back to 1916 and connects Moscow with the Russian Far East. It is the longest Railway in the world, with a length of over 5,772 miles.
John Bone is an Alaska Airmen’s Association Member, a retired Delta Airlines Captain, and a Cirrus Standardized Instructor Pilot based in Apalachicola, FL. You can find him at www.forgottencoastflyers.com.
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