CVA Halloween Fright Night Event

Aharon · Posted: Thu Oct 25, 2012 8:55 pm

Shalom and greetings all my pals,

Long long long long before the famous tv show ICE PILOTS NWT that made Buffalo Airways famous throughout the world, Pacific Western airline had been doing JET VERSION of ICE PILOTS NWT tv show for years operating to unimaginable northernmost Arctic Canada areas with freezing subzero weather!!!!

This photo as seen below has amazed and motivated me to make a nice flight in northernmost Arctic Canada areas!!

Here is Pacific Western flight from CYRB Resolute Bay Airport to CYLT Alert Airport which is the world's northernmost permanent airport located at Alert, Nunavut, Canada approximately 500 miles south of the true North Pole as part of emergency airlift to CYLT via CVA Halloween Fright Night event.

Loaded up with lots of emergency supplies, sophisticated heavy automatic weapons, and commandos

Nice tail view

Took me 40 minutes to start engines in Resolute Bay which is one of the coldest inhabited places in the world!!!!

Sorry still trying to start engines

Finally after starting engines now entering into icy runway 17 for more taxi and backtracking

Taxiing on runway 17 with background view of frozen Resolute reservoir

Backtracking on runway 17

Airborne on climb to FL330 with background view of Resolute reservior just next to the airport and bigger Char Lake in front of body water called Northwestern Passages

Still climbing to FL330

Nice full moon in perfect time for Halloween!!

Cruising at FL330

Nice tail during FL330 cruising showing sunrise (sorry cannot pinpoint locations as maps of Arctic areas are lousy)

Cruising across freezing sub zero Arctic landscape

I wish I could identify this water

Still cruising

Cruising past waters of Fjord Greely

On descent with background view of a lake called Lac Hazen with its own island called Ile Johns from FL330 to 10,000 ft on way to CYLT runway 23

At 10,000 ft with ground view of Parc National Quttinirpaaq

At 5,000 ft

Non edited sky turned into nice and weird color

Nice wing view of Arctic sun glow

Gorgeous tail view of Arctic sun glow

At 3,000 ft and I have no idea why there would be two cruise ships on pleasure cruise in the area where weather is -40 temperature

Deploying landing gear on way to CYLT runway 5

Finding CYLT runway without GPS and radar being knocked out by magnetic interference from North Pole is very hard but after two tries, I managed to find runway 23!!!

On final runway approach

Seconds before touchdown

TOUCHDOWN

Taxiing into gate

Arriving at gate

Dropping off weapons, supplies, and commandos and then picking up Alert station's survivors, broken machines in need of repairs, and mail while leaving engines running and flaps down

Getting ready for return flight making final checklist and checking engines' efficiency

Nice tail view before starting take off run (wondering if there is jetblast in -40 degree temperature)

Thank you for viewing!!! Stay tuned for next exciting flight!!

Regards,

Aharon

cva0182 · Posted: Mon Nov 05, 2012 1:07 am

Nice shots, Aharon. I've controlled at one of those airports! Hoping to get in the second sometime soon. Haha

Aharon · Posted: Mon Nov 05, 2012 2:06 am

cva0182 wrote:

I've controlled at one of those airports!

Kris,

Thanks for kind words Really WOW THAT IS REAL COOL that you had been to CYLT Alert airport. Do you have any photos of passenger or cargo jets at CYLT, please? How did you survive cold weather there??

Aharon

cva0182 · Posted: Mon Nov 05, 2012 2:45 am

Aharon wrote:

cva0182 wrote:

I've controlled at one of those airports!

Kris,

Thanks for kind words Really WOW THAT IS REAL COOL that you had been to CYLT Alert airport. Do you have any photos of passenger or cargo jets at CYLT, please? How did you survive cold weather there??

Aharon

Well, you had a 50/50 chance of getting it right...and got it wrong. Hahaha.

I actually controlled at Resolute Bay in August of last year as part of Operation NANOOK 2011, and was there for the unfortunate crash of First Air 6560. And it wasn't all that cold when I was up there...only ever dropped below freezing maybe twice while I was there.

As for CYLT, it's a military installation so the RCAF does all the resupply missions, and it's very rare to see much up that way in terms of passenger a/c, especially anything with a jet engine (save for the beast that is the CC-177 Globemaster III). 5,500' of gravel strip isn't exactly jet friendly, after all

. It's mostly C-130 Hercules and smaller that work up that way, and that's primarily during the resupply missions done twice a year during Operation BOXTOP.

Although, as I haven't actually been there myself, it's entirely possible that one of our resident flight crew may prove me wrong.

CAF440 · Posted: Mon Nov 05, 2012 3:47 am

Buffalo Airways is a frequent contracted duty at CYLT along with Canadian North out of Iqaluit. Basically it's all contracted supply runs of rubber dog doo out of Hong Kong goes the cliche :wink:

Ya I wouldn't get close on the Rwy there when the CC177 screams in to TD, it is like being on the deck of a USN Carrier with hornets launch 5. As native Arctic Canuk from Yellowknife cold WX there doesnt scare me, just makes me more Energetic and Alert. My hats off to you Kris for controlling at CYRB, no easy task considering the WX and topography and region.

Aharon · Posted: Mon Nov 05, 2012 12:52 pm

Thanks to Kris and Tim for amazing explanations!!! Right now, I am doing research on Operation NANOOK 2011!!!!! Fantastic reading.

Kris, do you have any photos of Resolute Bay airport?

Regards,

Aharon

CVA Halloween Fright Night Event

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