Wow, what a Fantastic day!!!!

Today started with a wake up call at 5:15 am and N6511Y greeted her pilots at 6 am for departure from Goose Bay, Canada to Greenland.  The weather was misty with a low level fog and she waited patiently as her pilots were getting ready donning their dry suits, loading their bags in the baggage compartment, checking weather reports, and filing flight plans.  By 6:30 am she was getting a little anxious as her pilots seemed to just be futzing around rather than getting in and going…kind a like an Arabian horse on a Race Track before the races begin!

Flight plan was filed, fuel quantity was checked and verified, the oil level was checked and verified, the preflight was performed and N6511Y started to calm down as she saw a serious intent to finally take to the skies!  Her pilots looked like firemen and she was a little embarrassed by their bright orange dry suits as they climbed in but she was careful not to show her emotions and hurt their feelings.  She was just happy that things were finally underway and the runway was not too far away. 

The Pilot in Command (PIC) got busy with the checklist, checking circuit breakers, starting master switch, and with a turn of the ignition N6511Y came alive….she roared a cheery Good Morning as the RPM became alive, the oil pressure needle went in the green, and all the avionics came alive.  The PIC got busy loading all the air pressure settings, the GPS flight plan, the Auto Pilot altitude and climb rates, the radio frequencies, and the transponder frequency.  By the time everything was ready to go the PIC and co-pilot looked at the fog and became a little concerned about the worsening visibility, so they decided to taxi to the end of the runway and check it out.  After a couple of minutes of contemplation they decided to taxi back, give N6511Y a pat on the back, and remind her that Safety is 1^st.  She was a good sport about the whole thing and agreed to patiently wait for her pilots as they went back into the lounge to check the weather again, went out to grab breakfast and bag lunch to go, and by 10 am the fog lifted and she was happy to be back at the end of the runway again. 

Take off was nominal and as we climbed to 13,000 ft over the Atlantic Ocean she thought to herself…I don’t know what all the fuss is about a transatlantic flight…this is such a breeze!  And you know what…she was right!  All that preparation and training was finally paying off and the trip to Greenland and Iceland was smooooooth as can be. 

Perhaps the most amazing part of Day 2 was the immense scenery that can not be described in words.  I just wish you were there as the Atlantic Ocean rolled below, the Glaciers came into sight, and finally as we circled down in an amazing canyon for landing at Narsarsuaq, Greenland.  Speechless is the only word that comes to mind.  I wish you were there but since the back two seats were taken by life rafts we decided to take a lot of pictures to share the majestic beauty with you! [see the Transatlantic Flight photo album at http://picasaweb.google.com/Brian.B.Hashemi/2007TransatlanticFlightN6511Y]

N6511Y is spending the night at the Reykjavik airport and is in good company with a Pilatus, a Caravan, and a few other beautiful birds.  I just wish I could spend the night with them, but since I was not invited to the party I guess I will enjoy the warm company of my pillow in the hotel room.