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→Asia: The Paro Challenge!
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Published in [[FlightGear_Newsletter_April_2012#Suggested_flights| Newsletter April 2012]] by [[User:Thosten|Thosten]]. | Published in [[FlightGear_Newsletter_April_2012#Suggested_flights| Newsletter April 2012]] by [[User:Thosten|Thosten]]. | ||
== The Paro Challenge == | |||
The challenge consists in flying as fast and as low as possible from Hashimara (VE44) to Paro (VQPR) while navigating a maze of valleys, steep climbs and sharp turns with only one VOR-DME beacon to guide you (it sits on a mountaintop south of Paro airport). You cannot fly on instruments; this is a 100% visual flight. | |||
Spawn at VE44 (Hashimara Air Force Station). Take off in any direction then turn immediately to heading 013 while staying low. You will see the Himalayas appear on the horizon. Follow the valley as it turns 90° left then make a sharp U-turn (180°) to the right. Fly over the bridge, then U-turn left again (160°). Follow the valley and do another U-turn to the right. Take a deep breath for a couple of nautical miles. Climb to 8500ft while heading 080 to pass over the mountain range. Turn slightly to your right (heading 100) and do a steep dive to 4000ft into the valley. Turn left into the second valley (heading 000), which you will need to follow all the way to Paro airport (VQPR), while climbing slowly to the airport elevation of 7500ft. On the way to Paro, you will pass a monastery on your left. If you don't see this monastery, you've lost yourself in the maze; good luck! After this monastery, follow the valley to the left (heading 270), which will force you to turn right after a few nautical miles. The runway will be hidden behind a hill. You can pass over the hill (steep dive on the other side) or fly to the right of it (steep S-turns), your choice. | |||
=== Suggested aircraft === | |||
The Paro Challenge is a challenge for most aircraft and most pilots. You will probably not succeed on your first attempt; and successive attempts with various aircraft will renew the challenge. | |||
===== Easy ===== | |||
[[Cessna 550 Citation II]], [[Pilatus PC-6 Porter|Pilatus PC-6]], [[De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter|De Havilland Canada DHC-6]], [[Zivko Edge 540]]. | |||
[[De Havilland Mosquito]], Messerschmitt Bf109G, [[Lockheed P-38 Lightning]]. | |||
==== Challenging ==== | |||
[[Piper PA34-200T Seneca II|Piper Seneca II]], [[Cessna 337G Skymaster|Cessna 337]], [[Antonov An-2]]: keep an eye on your Exhaust Gas Temperature and Cylinder Head Temperature. If you can't lean your mixture, you lose. | |||
Cessna 172, PA-28 or DR-400 with 180hp engines and a light load; [[Cessna 182S]]; Cap 10b. Slower than the above and will require just as much concentration from you, for a longer time. | |||
[[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15|MiG-15]], [[North American F-86 Sabre|F-86F Sabre]], [[Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II|A-10 Warthog]]: make high-speed, steep turns while finding your way. Don't black out! | |||
==== Difficult ==== | |||
[[JT-5B|JT-5B autogyro]], Piper Super Cub 150hp: the Paro challenge takes well over an hour of intense concentration in these unstable aircraft. | |||
Cessna 172, PA-28 or DR-400 with low-power (160hp) engines. You will need to circle several times in the valley during the climb. If you can't lean your mixture, you lose. | |||
[[Boeing 707]], [[Boeing 757-200|757]], [[Tupolev Tu-154B|Tupolev 154]], [[Lockheed Constellation]] if lightly loaded; [[Cessna Citation X|Cessna 650 Citation X]]: Finding your way in these faster aircraft is a challenge. The U-turns before the steep climb are almost impossible without taking shortcuts. The final approach without seeing the runway requires you to control your speed, flaps and landing gear well in advance. | |||
==== Impossible (but you might try to beat them anyway) ==== | |||
Piper Cub 65hp (cannot climb over 7000ft when fully loaded). | |||
[[Boeing 737-300]] (poor low-speed handling), [[Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner|787]] (bank limiter). | |||
[[Dassault Mirage 2000-5|Mirage 2000]], [[Grumman F-14 Tomcat|F-14B]], [[McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle|F-15C]], [[General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon|F-16]]: will either stall or black you out during the sharp turns. | |||
=Africa= | =Africa= | ||