On Mon, 24 Nov 2003 12:04:43 +1000
SteveK wrote:

Shortly, I will have to fly a Baron from USA to Australia after I have
ferry tanks installed.

The route I plan to do is:

Oakland/San Francisco - Hawaii : 3850 Kilometers (2075nm)
Hawaii - Tarawa : 3860 Kilometers (2080nm)
Tarawa - Brisbane : 3840 Kilometers (2070nm)

I understand that I need to fly below 10,000 feet because of the
westerlies especially during the first 2 legs. I'm working on 13
hours flying time on each leg with a 2 hour reserve.

What do others think?? Especially other pilots who have flown this or
a similar route. Is what I plan OK or do you have any other
suggestions or hints you think I should need to know??


You'll want to read the articles by Bill Cox, I think he has been working
on getting a twin from the Phillipines to the US. I haven't heard if
the plane ever got here. He had to leave it on a remote island for
lack of avgas. During the time it was left there it acquired a few squaks
(squawks?) and last I heard it was still there.

I've always wondered what the break even point is for ferrying?
(assuming the pilot is expendable) After reading some of the stories Bill
Cox writes it seems to me that the risk is too high in those long-range
ferry trips. I'm sure preparing a plane for a cargo container ain't
cheap. But with all the possible pitfalls in ferrying it seems that
the shipping might be the best bet. You are almost guaranteed to get
your plane from point a to point b on time.


R. Hubbell