Ever Heard of Gilgit?
Gnome de PPRuNe
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Too close to Croydon for comfort
Age: 60
Posts: 12,623
Received 294 Likes
on
162 Posts
I'm sure I've read some great stories in the past about PIA's operations in there with DC-3s and F-27s.
Gets a couple of mentions from F-27 days in Alexander Frater's book "Beyond the Blue Horizon", starting with tall stories he was told about it, through to him reporting a discussion with PIA pilots who said it wasn't as hairy as it was often cracked up to be. Yes, you fly up a valley prone to low cloud, but there are sensible minima, which can lead to suspensions for days, and you can make a 180 if you need to pretty much anywhere along the way.
Here
History of PIA - Pakistan International Airlines
is an interesting little trip report about going to Gilgit in F-27 days.
History of PIA - Pakistan International Airlines
is an interesting little trip report about going to Gilgit in F-27 days.
Somewhere up in the valley, probably in the town of Gilgit itself, I'm sure that there's a hotel which has an old PIA DC-3 fuselage in the grounds. I remember seeing pictures on Google Earth sometime in the past.
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: UK
Posts: 55
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Flying into Skardu was (don't if it is now) an "interesting" experience. If I remember rightly, the PIA flight was always scheduled for an early start so that they could delay it indefinitely if there was any cloud...
I was actually asked up front for an outstanding view of the Karakoram range as we flew into Skardu - got some great pics of K2 and Masherbrum somewhere...
The Shangri-La Hotel in Skardu is about as close to the mythical Shangrila as you could get - a beautiful crystal clear mirror calm lake, surrounded by stunning peaks and yes, the old DC3 in the grounds adds a little fun to the stay...It's a shame that this part of the world is so riven by political & religious problems as the tourism potential is massive....
I was actually asked up front for an outstanding view of the Karakoram range as we flew into Skardu - got some great pics of K2 and Masherbrum somewhere...
The Shangri-La Hotel in Skardu is about as close to the mythical Shangrila as you could get - a beautiful crystal clear mirror calm lake, surrounded by stunning peaks and yes, the old DC3 in the grounds adds a little fun to the stay...It's a shame that this part of the world is so riven by political & religious problems as the tourism potential is massive....
