Leg 10 - Grand Rapids to Meigs Field, Chicago, IL

I've been looking forward to this leg since the start of the trip; Meigs Field is of course the original "home base" of flight simulator up until version 9.

Leg 10. Early morning Christmas Eve at Grand Rapids - heavy snow falling.
A White Christmas, but not so good for me.
Hoping for a reasonable break in the gloom, I filed an IFR plan to Meigs.


General scene around the airport boundary


Waiting on the ramp for the snow to stop.




Well the snow actually stopped, and so I taxied out into the gloom.
The forecast for Meigs is supposedly reasonably fine!
Note some happy soul on short final off the ILS, no doubt very pleased to see the airport.



Waiting for the green light.



Lining up, 26L. Hmm, looks desolate.




Away, with Grand Rapids city just visible at right of pic.




Turning over Jackson, shortly to begin the crossing over Lake Michigan.



Starting the crossing. The weather is improving.



Enroute across Lake Michigan.
Note the other traffic (red labels) heading to Chicago.




Chicago appearing on the skyline; the weather's clearing up nicely.



ATC handoff screen


Getting close now. Under ATC vectors to RWY 18.



Beginning the turn to final.



The Chicago skyline.




Final approach. Sure is a big city!



At last, there it is... a wintry Meigs Field!



Short finals, watch the yacht!



Welcome to Meigs!
http://maps.google.com.au/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=110013569282561347279.000440cea7f6c1f3d0d08&ll=41.459195,-79.519043&spn=12.015904,20.566406&z=6&om=1

Leg 9 - Toledo to Grand Rapids, Michigan

Grand Rapids

In 1880, the country's first hydro-electric generator was put to use on the city's west side^[2]. With the new century, the people of Grand Rapids numbered 82,565. In 1916 the citizens of Grand Rapids voted to adopt a home rule charter that abolished the old aldermanic systems and replaced it with a commission-manager form of government, one of the first in the country. That 1916 Charter, although amended several times, is still in effect.

Grand Rapids was a home to the first regularly scheduled passenger airline in the United States when Stout Air Services began flights from Grand Rapids to Detroit (actually Ford Airport in Dearborn, Michigan) on July 31, 1926.

Leg 8 Cleveland to Toledo Express, Ohio

I've arrived at Toledo, and winter will be upon me soon.
A pretty cloudy run, originally planned for 4,500', the cloud meant a lower run around 3000'.

Leg 7 Niagara to Cleveland, Ohio (KCLE)

Well, today I left Niagara behing and embarked on a longer leg to Cleveland International.

Off we go..


















Had 35 kt headwinds the entire way, and several times had to divert off track to avoid cloud and remain VFR.


















































Above the oddly named "Lost Nation" airport




















En-route, passing the Perry Nuclear Power Plant near Painesville.

More cloud avoidance...

Above KBKL Burke Lakefront Airfield, adjacent to Cleveland, turning on to the 24L ILS for KCLE Cleveland Hopkins International. (Airport just visible in the distance with three parallel runways).

Gear down..

24L ILS short final. Note the American Airlines Regional holding at left.

Welcome to Cleveland Hopkins International. Now... which way?

Progress so far....

Progress so far....

Scenic flight over the Niagara Falls in a Beechcraft Baron

Leg 6 Syracuse to Niagara Falls, New York (KIAG).

Niagara Falls (French: les Chutes du Niagara) is a set of massive waterfalls located on the Niagara River, straddling the international border separating the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of New York.

A fairly cloudy run heading 282 degrees the entire trip of 123 nautical miles, with Rochester the approximate half-way point.

En-route to Niagara - view over the left engine.

Crosswind landing off the 28R ILS.

Leg 5 Pittsfield to Syracuse, New York (KSYR).

Syracuse was named after the original Syracuse, a city on the eastern coast of Sicily, Italy, with which it shares some similarities, including a formerly important salt industry and a neighboring town of Salina.

Landing at Syracuse

Leg 3 to Hartford, Leg 4 to Pittsfield

Leg 3 Next hop was to Hartford, Connecticut
Sometimes referred to as the "insurance capital of the world," Hartford houses many of the world's insurance company headquarters, and insurance is one of the region's major industries.
Leg 4 Hartford to Pittsfield, Massachusetts
In 2005, Farmer's Insurance ranked Pittsfield 20th in the United States as Most Secure Place To Live (Small Towns fewer than 150,000 residents).










On the tarmac at Pittsfield

Leg 2 completion - Arriving at Newport, Rhode Island.

A sunny day welcomed me in to Newport, Rhode Island.












Final approach into Newport

Flight Sim Adventure - USA East to West by Seneca

Well, after returning back from my holiday to Hungary and Vancouver I have decided to embark on another trip immediately!

However this trip is within the virtual world of Flight Simulator - but at least I am at the controls.

The trip begins in Nantucket on the East Coast and the plan is to head to Seattle on the West Coast.

Once there will head to Vancouver to begin a Canadian adventure.

Leg 1 is Nantucket, Massachusetts (KACK) to Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts (KMVY)
In all the excitement, I forgot to take a pic leaving Nantucket!

Leg 2 is Martha's Vineyard (KMVY) to Newport, Rhode Island (KUUU)

Departing Martha's Vineyard