Australia
The East Coast Tropic of Capricorn To Alice Springs Uluru - Ayers Rock Tibooburra Kangaroo Island Victoria Flying Australia	Australia - Go Bush and Beyond October, 2006 1.4 MB of image files - take your time, lad ... Not for navigational use!
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Ready for Adventure	G'Day, mate! Some things in life keep itching forever - say, that dream to travel Outback Australia. So you sit down, do hours and hours of planning, and finally find yourself halfway around that good old globe in the morning sun. Your mission: Three weeks and 4000 NM to fly up the East Coast, right into the Red Centre, and around the South of Australia. Already like that idea - then off we go! After 10.450 miles and 22 hours on the airlines, we relax for a few days in Sydney, enjoying spring in October. For our flying holidays, we have chosen Airborne Aviation at Camden Airport (YSCN), some 60 km to the southwest of Sydney. They maintain a fleet of all new generation Cessna airplanes, which seems a good choice if you want to head out to the bush. The necessary paperwork had been filed with the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) two months ahead, so I have already in my hands the Certificate of Validation for my German license. On the spot I'm in for a familiarisation flight in Australian airspace, actually a trip to nearby Bankstown Airport (YSBK) to pay a visit to the local pilot shop and get me outfitted with one pound of charts (you need a lot of charts out there) and the En Route Supplement Australia (ERSA). Next day, after the company checkout, we are ready to go.
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The East Coast	Day 1 - Camden to Brisbane, 435 NM Our flying vacation starts at Camden Airport (YSCN) on a sunny Sunday morning. Passing through Sydney metropolitan airspace, we head out north. We track along the coast passing RAAF Williamtown (YWLM) restricted airspace, and take a break for fuel and lunch at Port Macquarie (YPMQ). Arriving in Brisbane-Archerfield (YBAF) the late afternoon, the huge, old airfield is pretty deserted, not even a payphone around to call a taxi. Glen, a local pilot, helps out with a decent hotel recommendation, and we start learning about Australian hospitality - have a good chat of where you came and where you're going, and in return we get a bunch of useful tips for our bush trip to come. Day 2 - Brisbane to Rockhampton, 315 NM Flying on to Rockhampton (YBRK), we miss our planned aerial tour of Fraser Island, as a shower front along the coast forces us to track north in the drizzle at 1000ft along the highway. Half an hour later, we're breaking free of the cloud deck, and it's back to bright sunshine. We overfly the Fitzroy River estuary inbound to Rockhampton and are greeted by Rocky Tower with a straight-in approach for runway 04. Rockhampton‚ the "Beef Capital of Australia", welcomes us with 30°C. Again, organising our trip to town comes with a chat to the locals: we get a nice informal briefing about Rockhampton at the Royal Flying Doctor Service hangar. James, MD and pilot, has some hints for me on flying the desert, and - now that's a doctor's order - advises us to an Outback Dinner of steak and beer at the Bush Inn Bar & Grill in the historic Criterion Hotel. Before we head back to our plane next day, we pay a morning visit to the Dreamtime Cultural Center. Set in natural bushland outside of town, it offers informative tours with aboriginal guides, who will explain much about traditional life, give a demo and lessons of throwing the boomerang, and take you for a live performance of the didgeridoo.
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Tropic of Capricorn	Day 3 - Rockhampton to Longreach, 342 NM Today we are headed west into the vast, open Queensland Outback. We pass by huge coal mining sites, the excavations spreading for miles. Else, this is grazier's country, who breed cattle on their extensive farmland. Visual navigation is still a simple task, as we follow the paved road and railway lines headed for Longreach. Else, we monitor our track on the GPS and tune in Longreach NDB for backup. Longreach (YLRE) is a central Queensland outback town – site of the acclaimed Stockman's Hall of Fame and of the QANTAS Founders Museum located at the airport, with a fully fitted Boeing 747 Jumbo on display - you can't miss the huge plane while on final approach. Longreach has grown on cattle and sheep, but today‘s businesses embrace tourists as well.
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To Alice Springs	Day 4 - Longreach to Alice Springs, 585 NM Five hours flight time to Alice Springs (YBAS) today – we have to stop for fuel on our way. This important aspect of outback flight planning is always done well ahead by phone. Boulia (YBOU) has confirmed: "Yes, we got fuel for you". So we take off on a rough, windy morning - gusting at 25 kt - which to our benefit turns out to a splendid tailwind at cruise altitude and 138 kt groundspeed during today's first 243 NM leg. On descending into Boulia (YBOU), the desert welcomes you with rock-dry, hot air out of the cabin vents. Boulia is basking in the heat. Making my intial call, an automated recording answers "Boulia Aerodrome" - no one at the airfield except for the flies. At the Passenger Terminal - a wooden shack - we find a telephone in a box and a note tacked to the lid: "For fuel, call 0427 163 773". Ten minutes later, a 4WD approaches trailing a huge cloud of red dust - Willy, a stout public services worker, arrives and gets the pump going. Asked for a place to grab a lunch, he gives us a ride to "the other side of town" – four blocks in walking distance. Chicken and pineapple sandwiches fit us well. Back to the airport, we're firing up the engine and climb out to 6500 ft, heading on further 342 NM to Alice Springs. The ochre earth's surface below looks not all too hospitable. In my weather briefing this morning, I had been cautioned about dust devils in the area raising up to 8000 ft. If I was still wondering what these should look like, we were given a few impressive demos while heading into the mountaineous terrain around Alice Springs. 'The Alice' is the major settlement of the Red Centre. As we are only passing through, we can just take a glance at the inhabitants of the Alice Springs Reptile Center. This interesting little zoo presents many of the elusive creatures of the Australian desert, which you usually do not meet while travelling on your own (which in some cases is fine with us, as some of the little buggers are quite venomous). Part of their show is the chance to handle snakes and lizards, at least some of the more docile species, and this was where I learned to know George, a 10 kg Green Python.
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Uluru - Ayers Rock	Day 5 - Alice Springs to Ayers Rock, 208 NM Two flight hours to Uluru, as the Aborigines call the amazing rock in the bush. We pass by the mission station Hermannsburg and the Lake Amadeus salt pans. Our ADF receiver needle points straight to Ayers Rock Connellan Airport (YAYE). Ayers Rock Connellan is a major airport, since Uluru is one of Australia's premier tourist attractions. Still, it is just an uncontrolled field with a huge runway. With incoming passenger jets, small planes like us, and local sightseeing helicopter traffic, procedures and communications can get interesting. Unusual radio calls like "Qantas 1922, 50 miles inbound Ayers Rock, expected arrival at 42" intend to inform all traffic that said passenger plane will join the pattern for landing at 42 minutes past the hour.
	We pick up our rental car and drive up to the Lost Camel Hotel at Ayers Rock Resort. The resort offers a broad range of accommodations from campsite to five-star hotel. Rooms are in high demand, and it is strictly advisable to make early reservations. Our first approach to the Rock is to drive up to the Sunset View spot in the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. Weather is forgiving this evening, as the clouds part to give way for just that half an hour. As it is still spring, we enjoy an early base walk around the Rock in four hours at moderate 32°C - just carry enough of water. The Aussie flynet is not a tourist gadget - hundreds of little "blowies", size of a small housefly, may hitch an unevenful ride on your backpack. That instant you lift the net, they will go straight for your eyes, mouth and into the nose in search for that precious drop of moisture. The "Aussie salute", waving the hand in front of your face, works fine with few flies around, but at times they can become a serious nuisance. Flies are gone once the sun has set. The following day, we're back for an Aboriginal Guided Tour to learn of a different perspective of Uluru. Anangu Tours, an aboriginal-owned tour company, has local guides conducting various walks at and around the Rock to present aspects of the traditional significance of this area for the Aborigines. An enjoyable experience worth while and going well beyond demonstrating weaponry tooling from wooden sticks and flintstone, or a spearthrowing class. Special thanks to Richard and Jamie, his interpreter.
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Tibooburra	Day 8 - Ayers Rock to Tibooburra, 721 NM Today's major task is fuel management. 306 NM from Uluru to Coober Pedy (YCBP): gas up. The airport is totally deserted, we can't catch a taxi and thus have to lunch from our provisions of Scottish Shortbread. Flying along the Stuart Highway the last 30 miles to Coober Pedy, we spot a huge Road Train. Buzzing targets on the ground is not a pilot's preferred attitude, but this time in the flat and featureless desert, we take a closer look at that rig. To pay a little tribute here, it's those "truckies" who drive all the fuel we take at Outback airports out to those towns. A Road Train this size sports, at 56 metres length, 600 hp and 150 tons total weight. 215 NM from Coober Pedy to Leigh Creek (YLEC), our second fuel stop. Talk about hospitality: Rose, the fuel station manager, offers us a cup of tea and biscuits, and we take the welcome break for a chat. At 3 pm we have to go. I call our party in Tibooburra to arrange for pickup at ETA. 200 NM are awaiting to close this long day's trip, and we want to arrive in Tibooburra (YTIB) well before sunset. Navigable features of the terrain get less, and are soon reduced to a few distant mountain peaks and salt pans, before we head out across the Strezlecki Desert dunes some 80 miles to Tibooburra. Course tracking then much boils down to the dunes themselves (their orientation, due to constant winds, pretty much reflects our heading), the GPS track and the good old ADF needle pointing straight to the distant station.
	Translated from the local aboriginal language, Tibooburra means "lots of rocks". The town has a population of 150, spring greets us here with 38°C. We have come to visit Ingrid, a friend of Sabine's who went to Australia, became a Park Ranger and now runs Sturt National Park in this remote spot. Ingrid not only manages the park, but also raises "joeys", orphaned baby kangaroos, which are often left behind when the mothers are killed in traffic accidents. Joeys need several months of nursing and are always keen for a nap in the pouch. The kangaroo carer would strap on a bag serving as pouch for three to four hours each day, as the joey needs the body contact for proper development. Even when they're already grazing, the kangaroo young still go for the pouch and an occasional suckle of milk. Sturt National Park is mostly rocks and barren countryside. One hundred years of overgrazing have turned the soil to stony desert. Due to several years of drought, native wildlife has suffered severe losses - in the Tibooburra area, 90% of the kangaroo population have died.
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Kangaroo Island	Day 12 - Tibooburra to Kingscote, 468 NM Get fuel the next town – that's 155 NM to Broken Hill (YBHI) for you. After topping off and grabbing a sandwich or two it is time for another 313 NM southbound to the coast. We are leaving mainland Australia to cross eleven miles of open sea, inbound for Kingscote Airport (YKSC), Kangaroo Island. What a contrast - now it is windy at 15°C. Kangaroo Island, Australia's third largest island, is located off the coast of South Australia. A lack of predators or introduced vermin has enabled native animals to flourish on the Island, hence Kangaroo Island is highly regarded as a premier wildlife destination and often described as a zoo without walls. We take a rental car and stay a few days at Kangaroo Island Wilderness Retreat to enjoy Flinders Chase National Park, its wildlife and the tranquil wilderness setting.
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Victoria	Day 15 - Kingscote to Melbourne, 483 NM At Kingscote, again we wouldn‘t get fuel. By chance, we run into the airport manager, and he recommends the private field of Goolwa (YGWA), 61 NM back on the mainland. So we do the short hop and fill our tanks, check on a low-pressure starboard tire, and have some hangar talk with the owner, Geoff. The next leg is 173 NM to Mount Gambier (YMTG), the field is deserted. No chance to get decent tucker (food), so we just take fuel to stay on the safe side. Taking to the coast, we fly the remaining 249 NM along the Great Ocean Road and then into Melbourne-Essendon (YMEN). We arrive the late afternoon and are cleared into Essendon Class C airspace. The hungry crew comes back to town. We stay in Melbourne one day longer than planned, enjoying museums, exhibitions, and the multicultural flair of this welcoming town. As a weather front moves through the Tasman Sea, we have to replan the remaining trip, cancelling a visit to Canberra.
	Day 18 - Melbourne to Merimbula, 296 NM Due to apparent difficulties to get hold of live people in Essendon (for an airport that size and location, we were extremely unsuccessful to contact anyone), we fly just an 80 NM leg out to Latrobe Valley (YLTV). Soon this proves a good decision. Real flying club style, we don't just get fuel at Latrobe Valley Aero Club, but are offered tea and have some good talk with the staff on duty. From there, it's 216 NM along the coast to our last overnight stay. We're in for some radio practice to receive our clearance through RAAF East Sale (YMES) restricted airspace, but then can enjoy our flight at few hundred feet altitude along Ninety Mile Beach (it takes a while), and later pass by the southeast corner of the country, headed for the seaside resort of Merimbula (YMER). Day 19 - Merimbula to Camden, 185 NM After a decent breakfast, we head out offshore flying low over Twofold Bay, and, fair enough, spot a number of humpback whales. Finally, it is time to head north and return the plane to Camden. Passing RAAF Nowra (YSNW) poses a final challenge. Due to strong westerly winds falling off the plateau west of Nowra, we hit unpleasant leeway turbulences and are bashed up quite a bit while tracking the VFR route at 1000 ft AGL through their restricted airspace. Leaving the area northbound to Wollongong, the air is getting smooth again. Finally, our flying vacation is over. We call inbound and touch down at Camden Aerodrome shortly after noon. After that, we spend some relaxing time in Tropical Queensland, with visits to the Daintree Rainforest and snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef, but that's ... well, another story.
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Flying Australia Flight procedures and requirements referred to are subject to change. The sole responsibility to verify all pertinent information by using official publications lies with the pilot attempting a flight.	License validation The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) is the responsible Aviation Authority in Australia. CASA will validate foreign pilot licenses for up to three months - see the conditions and how to apply for this Certificate of Validation. Pilots who wish to fly for longer than that period need to acquire an Australian license. Flight Planning Flight planning was prepared in advance on the PC using the PocketFMS flight navigation package. The same was used during the trip on a LOOX N520 GPS PDA for in-flight backup and nav data reference. Visual Navigation Visual Navigation Charts (VNC, 1:500.000, equivalent to Sectionals) are only available for few areas with higher air traffic density (left diagram, shaded boxes 1-8). For major parts of country, VFR pilots have to rely on World Aeronautical Charts (WAC, 1:1.000.000) lacking airspace and nav data imprint (right diagram). Terminal areas around the major airports are depicted in Visual Terminal Charts (VTC, 1:250.000). The "En Route Supplement Australia" (ERSA) lists the airports and facilities. Radio Navigation VOR navaids are only found at a few major airports. Flying the Outback definitely calls for the good old ADF, since most airports are equipped with an NDB transmitter. Limited radio coverage Be aware that in remote areas, VHF radio coverage is limited (refer to the Planning Chart Australia; PCA). Example: At Coober Pedy, we tried to figure the activity status of Woomera restricted airspace inflight. I could establish VHF contact only after climbing to 5500 ft, and then I still was unable to call Flight Watch. Using the Center frequency succeeded, and they helped out with the necessary information. When trying to contact ATC en route, you may even end up with an airliner overhead relaying your message for you. Keeping fit and Survival precautions While flying the Outback, always have water handy and keep drinking to stay hydrated. Even with ambient temperatures at altitude, you evaporate a lot of water since the air is extremely dry. Carry sufficient emergency water supplies. For the arid regions, calculate for 5 litres per person per day, and keep in mind that, in case of an emergency, you should be able to survive 2-3 days at your downed plane. Also, carry appropriate emergency rations and gear. Aviation Security The Australian government has embraced aviation security measures that highly contrast the relaxed way of living so typical for this country. ASIC: Aviation personnel - including private pilots - are required to carry a valid Aviation Security Identity Card, which is issued after a lengthy application process and security background check. To date of our trip, this did not apply for the visiting Certificate of Validation holder. However, having none of those already caused some hassle at a few places we flew. Security-Controlled Aerodromes: airports in Australia are undergoing a security upgrade program fencing airside areas in and securing these against unauthorised access with punch code security gates (big bargain for the metalworks industry, they must be selling miles and miles of fence). So take a good look when leaving any airfield through a security gate: to get back to your plane, you may either have to note down the access code posted on the inside, or you may have to call someone as specified in the ERSA to receive the code. Make sure you don't find yourself locked out. Airside access control can go a far way off: At Melbourne Essendon, we encountered a turnstile gate that would only allow re-entry to the ramp after you recorded your license number and fingerprint on an electronic scanner. To get back to your plane on departure, you would need to have your fingerprint scanned again to open the gate. However, we have usually found local people very helpful to diminish the side-effects of all this fuss. At Ayers Rock airport, for example, we were handed a temporary badge once the security officer learned we had no ASIC on us - on the back of it they had printed precise instructions and phone numbers to regain airside access. Unmanned airports Don't expect someone around when landing at a remote airport. We were amazed how often a field would be unmanned. Many gas pumps are automatic card swipe bowsers, so you can help yourself (indicated in the ERSA, and depending on the cards accepted). If in doubt, locate the phone number and call them up to find out about fuel before you fly. You don't want to get stranded in the middle of nowhere waiting for a fuel truck coming to town next week.
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Jan Monzer 2006