A little update to this age old thread for those interested.
About a year ago Sergei and his companions flew to Los Angeles to pick my old Commander up to fly her back to Russia. It was a 8000 mile trip to be done VFR in a plane that hadn't had an annual in over a year. It was almost a documentary in the making.
We took her up for a short spin on her new Russian registration in Los Angeles ("cleared for takeoff RA-…..ehum….01803..") and I showed them the ropes very briefly. She'd run rough on one mag on the ground, but I knew it was just oil that had collected in bottom plug after sitting for more than 6 months. Cleared up right away after 5 minutes of flying.
The Russians just before departure from LA.
They took her up to Northern California for a good once over at some mechanic's place, then flew up to Alaska. Returned to Russia via Nome and crossed over that way. Not without troubles, I later heard. Some of the bottom plugs had fallen out and oil pressure had dropped as they departed Alaska. They turned back and managed to get it fixed, apparently. A week or so later I got word they'd landed safe in Vladivostok. Not bad for a 60 year old girl.
Today, she lives somewhere in eastern Siberia and Sergei sent me this photo from this winter. Apparently, they don't fly her in the winter months, which sounds sensible to me. The new owners love her and she's perfect for their smaller strips and lack of Avgas.
Her new home in Siberia.