This week we leave the Wairarapa behind and head for the Manawatu via the Manawatu Gorge. After a stop-over in Feilding, we follow the Rangitikei River north up onto the Central Plateau to our final destination at Waiouru.
In the course of this 110nm flight we'll follow portions of three railway lines, two of the lower North Island's three biggest rivers, and State Highways 1, 2, and 3.
Small aircraft and helicopters of all stripe are welcome.
Departure Time: Thursday November 27th 2008 19:00 NZDT
Flight Time: 1.0 to 1.5 hrs
Route:
- Depart Masterton (NZNS) and head north following SH2 and the Ruamahanga River to the gap in the hills at Mt Bruce.
- Follow the highway north-east through Eketahuna, and down the valley to Pahiatua and Woodville.
- Then follow SH3/the Wellington-Napier Railway Line/the Manawatu River west through the Manawatu Gorge to Ashhurst.
- Follow the Ashhurst Rd to join the North Island Main Trunk (railway) Line at Bunnythorpe.
- Continue north-west to Feilding (NZFI) for a touch-and-go.
- Follow the railway north-west to Kakariki, and then follow the Rangitikei River north-east through Mangaweka to Taihape.
- From Taihape, follow SH1 north to Waiouru (NZRU) for a full stop landing in the shadow of Mr Ruapehu.
If you feel like you cannot follow specific landmarks to each waypoint, never fear - just form up with someone else who looks like they may know where they're heading. As always, the focus with these flights is on having fun and getting to see parts of virtual New Zealand which you miss flying at altitude between the cities.
Late-comers: Late-comers or people not wanting to fly the whole route can join us from Palmerston North, Ohakea, or Feilding.
Voice Channel: General pilot-to-pilot voice chat during this will be available on rw1.vatpac.org/vatnzflightclub.
(Use the Private Voice Chat in SB or the Company Frequency feature in FSInn to tune this server.)
For further enjoyment of this flight I recommend you have the following,
- Red Baron New Zealand Land Class
- Geographx 75m Mesh or 20m Mesh (payware)
- Roads and Rivers of New Zealand (payware)
If you have any further questions please reply to this thread or PM me,
Nick
