Day 23: 1997-06-11
ATW Retro-blog: 1997-06-11 (Day#23)
Cherskiiy (RU) – Keperveyem(UHMK – RU)
120nm; 1h20; Purchase (833) / Cowan (962)
Keperveyem (RU) – Anadyr(UHMA – RU)
336nm; 3h20; Cowan (962) / Hughes (833)
At 69 degrees North, the team experienced the midnight sun.
The ‘salubrious’ apartment was found to have no runing water however.
Attempting to leave they were presented with a bill for 1,200,000,000,000 roubles. After four hours of ‘negotiation’ this was reduced to 9,800,000 roubles (about GB£1,170) for landing, refueling, air navigation and a met forecast.
Keperem proved to be another dirt strip, with plenty of dust and mosquitoes. Leaving again required the charade of high fees and much negotiation (Bill pretending to faint at one point).eventually resolved things to a modest 1,700,000 roubles (GB£200), but at least it took only an hour.
Pushing onward to Anadyr and the Bering Strait over frozen landscapes the team arrived to find the promised Avgas was nowhere to be seen.
The hotel had no running water in the shower, and food was scarce, but tomorrow held the prospect of leaving Russia and crossing the Bering Strait, into Alaska.
Keperem airfield, which employed 200 people to support typically three aircraft per day.
Approaching Anadyr over the frozen wastes. This was actually a hard-surface runway with gravel dispersal areas.
Day 23: UESS-UHMK-UHMA 456 nm, 4.66 hrs, GS 98 kts. Cumulative 6567 nm, 67.67 hrs, Average GS 97 kts.
Last edited by India Four Two; 20th Jun 2017 at 15:20.