Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2013/12/02
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]The landing feels just like the one in Leh in Ladakh, into a narrow valley with steep mountainside all around! Cheers Jayanand On Mon, Dec 2, 2013 at 8:11 PM, H&ECummer <cummer at netvigator.com> wrote: > > > Esther and I are just back from a fascinating week visiting Bhutan ? > the mountain kingdom nestled between India, China (Tibet) and Nepal ? and > famous for measuring its Gross National Happiness (GNH) rather than the > usual Gross Domestic Product. Also it is a no smoking country ? that?s > right country! > > Sharing this visit with you I want to start with the Paro Airport ? > located in the Western end of Bhutan. Travel and Leisure in 2009 named it > the most dangerous airport in the world for landings. The 6500 foot runway > is at 7,300 feet elevation and Paro is surrounded by mountain peaks up to > 18,000 feet high. The zig zag landing approach down the valleys ? with > severe cross winds - means that only day time visual landings are allowed. > No instrument landings and certainly no night flights. Initally only 8 > pilots (2009) were certified to fly into Paro ? but I am sure there are > more now. > > Flying to Paro from Bangkok Druk Air stops at the Indian airport of > Bagdogra to off load pilgrims and to fuel up ? there being no jet fuel at > Paro. This pretty well empties the plane and allows passengers to crowd on > to the left side in order to get a full view of the Himalayas in the 20 > minute flight from Bagdogra to Paro. > > We got a good seat: > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/DistantHimalayasW.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/l6xcm6h > > More Mountain views > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/HimaMtn1w.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/kqukaes > > Yet another view > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/HimaMtn3w.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/oq97lsy > > A third view - this time of Jhomolhari (24,000 ft) The Dalai Lama fled > Tibet through the Chumbi valley on the western side of Jhomolhari ? > considered a sacred mountain by both Tibetan and Bhutanese Buddhists. > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/JhomolhariW.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/n8t2h4y > > Our goal ? the Paro Airport runway ? far away deep in the valley: > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/ParoAirportfmairW.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/kmpfyo9 > > Another view of the runway: > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/Parorunwayw.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/m4jo3xc > > The Druk Air Airbus 319 coming in for its approach > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/DrukAir1w.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/l9n2ah2 > > Closer and turning > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/Druk2w.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/km4tlpr > > Lining up for the runway > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/Druk3w.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/knsyfl8 > > Touch down! > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/Druk4w.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/lp25xxv > > The Airbus on the ground. > > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/Bhutan/DrukAirbus319w.jpg.html > > http://tinyurl.com/kwnsuc3 > > Please look large. C& C always welcome. More pictures to come (of course) > > Nice to be back, > > Howard > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information