Flying to under-visited countries in IF

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Route 12: VQPR (Paro) → VNKT (Kathmandu Tribhuvan)

Status: Not departed
Departure time: 0810Z
Spawn gate: VQPR Terminal 1
Aircraft: Airbus A319-100
Livery: Drukair
Flight Number: KB400
Server: Expert
Cruising Altitude: 34,000ft
Cruise Speed:M0.78
Estimated Flight Time: 50mins

Info about Nepal:
Nepal is a landlocked country located in South Asia, bordered by China to the north and India on all other sides. Its capital and largest city, Kathmandu, is nestled in a valley and serves as the country’s cultural, economic, and aviation centre. Nepal is known for its dramatic Himalayan landscapes, including Mount Everest, which is the highest point above sea level on Earth. Despite its natural beauty and rich cultural heritage, Nepal remains one of the least developed countries in the region, with much of the population reliant on agriculture and remittances from abroad. Political instability, a decade-long civil war, and several major earthquakes have slowed its progress, and infrastructure outside major cities is often poor. Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu is the country’s main international gateway, having flights to Tokyo, Singapore, Istanbul and Guangzhou, although Pokhara receives service from Lhasa, and Siddharthanargar formerly received service by Jazeera and Thai AirAsia. Nepal Airlines, the national flag carrier, has a fleet of 4 Airbus aircraft, and two Twin Otters. They used to operate to a lot of countries, but due to factors such as corruption and financial difficulty, they had to downsize. Currently, they have connections to big cities such as Tokyo, Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong. The domestic aviation sector is quite large, with many small airlines operating turboprop and GA aircraft to reach small airports all across Nepal, especially ones in the Himalayas. A notable airport known for it’s challenging approach is Lukla Airport.

Today we will fly a relatively short hop into Nepal from Bhutan, using Drukair’s A319 from Paro. This route is mainly operated by ATR-42s, however the A319 is utilised on this route a couple times a week. The only other airline to fly this route is Bhutan Airlines, which solely use their A319s.

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@Cwaker
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Royal Bhutan 400 is en-route!

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Route 12 has been completed!

Boarding passengers for a short hop across the Himalayas

Making our first turn navigating through mountainous terrain

Sandakphu peaking through the clouds

Descending above the Bagmati River

Final approach into Kathmandu with endless mountainous terrain all around

Parked and deboarding in a warm Kathmandu

Thank you to those who watched this flight take place. Feel free to join the ping list, or if you want to be pinged for a future specific flight(s). Our next flight will be into Afghanistan!

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Route 13: OMSJ (Sharjah) → OAKB (Kabul)

Status: Departed
Departure time: 1150Z
Spawn gates: OMSJ Gates 18-26
Aircraft: Airbus A320-200
Livery: Air Arabia
Flight Number: G9718
Server: Expert
Cruising Altitude: 33,000ft
Cruise Speed:M0.78
Estimated Flight Time: 2hrs 55mins

Info about Afghanistan:
Afghanistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia, bordered by Pakistan, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and China. Its capital, Kabul, sits in a mountain valley and is the nations cultural and economic center. Known for its rugged terrain and strategic location along ancient trade routes, Afghanistan has a long history of foreign invasions, which made it the country mostly associated as the “graveyard of empires”, since many nations that have attempted to invade Afghanistan have ultimately failed, or left quickly, with notable examples being the Anglo-Afghan wars, Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the USA in the War in Afghanistan. Since the U.S. withdrawal in 2021 and the return of Taliban control, the country has faced international isolation, economic collapse, and worsening humanitarian conditions. Despite having mineral wealth and natural beauty, decades of war have left much of the population in poverty, with crumbling infrastructure and limited access to services, leading to living conditions in Afghanistan to be extremely poor. Kabul International Airport is the main gateway to the country, although several other airports have connections to Iran, most notably Herat and Mazar-i-Sharif. It’s only main connections are to Dubai, Istanbul and Sharjah. Two main airlines dominate the market, with the first one being Ariana Afghan Airlines, the state carrier, which flies a small fleet mainly within the region, while Kam Air, a private airline, has become the main operator for domestic and international routes. Even so, air travel to the country is still heavily limited due to high levels of terrorism and security concerns.

Today we will fly one of the only “other” airline routes into Afghanistan, being Sharjah to Kabul onboard Air Arabia. flydubai and Turkish Airlines are the only other major airlines that continue to have services into Afghanistan.

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@Cwaker
@MyGoal_isNASA
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@Laureano
@FlightAvgeek
@BronxiteMalone
@Yourlocalavgeek

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Route 13 has been completed!

Boarding in heavy haze in Sharjah

Turning over the Al Zorah Marina

The coastal city of Pasni welcoming us back to land

Cruising over scenic Balochistan

Battling 16kts of crosswind on landing after 2 go-arounds (looks like it wasn’t 3rd times a charm)

Deboarding next to mountainous Afghan scenery

Thank you to those who watched this flight take place. Feel free to join the ping list, or if you want to be pinged for a future specific flight(s). Our next flight will be into Sudan!

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Planned Next Routes -

Flight Number	Departure	Arrival	Airline	Aircraft	5th Freedom?
SN277	Accra Kotoka	Lome Gnassingbé Eyadéma	Brussels Airlines	A330-300
ET908A	Dakar-Diass	Bamako Modibo Keita	Ethiopian Airlines	777-200LR
PK234	Dubai	Skardu	Pakistan International Airlines	A320-200
WS2232	Toronto Lester B. Pearson	St John’s V.C. Bird	WestJet	737 MAX 8
AT265	Casablanca Mohammed V	Kinshasa N’Djili	Royal Air Maroc	737 MAX 8
MF8641	Fuzhou Changle	Vientiane Wattay	Xiamen Airlines	737-800
TP175B	Funchal Cristiano Ronaldo	Caracas Simon Bolivar	TAP Air Portugal	A330-900neo

I will be on a roadtrip for a few days until Thursday, and I will be focusing solely on VA challenge flights unless I have time to do this challenge as well. Keep in mind these flights have the possibility to be changed. I have moved Sudan to somewhere more down the list. I will proceed with the Lome flight today though.

@J-F_V

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Route 13: DGAA (Accra Kotoka) → DXXX (Lome Gnassingbé Eyadéma)

Status: Departed
Departure time: 1340Z
Spawn gates: DGAA Terminal 3 Gates C3 → C7
Aircraft: Airbus A330-300
Livery: Brussels Airlines
Flight Number: SN277B
Server: Expert
Cruising Altitude: 15,000ft
Cruise Speed: 300 knots
Estimated Flight Time: 30mins

Info about Togo:
Togo is a small West African country located along the Gulf of Guinea, sandwiched between Ghana and Benin, and is bordered to the north by Burkina Faso. Its capital and largest city, Lomé, lies on the coast and serves as the political, economic, and transport centre of the country. Togo was once part of various West African kingdoms before becoming a German colony in the late 1800s, later taken over by the French after World War I. It gained independence in 1960, but has and is still experiencing decades of authoritarian rule under the Gnassingbé family, which continues to dominate the political landscape. Despite being relatively stable compared to some neighbours, Togo still faces widespread poverty, unemployment, and poor governmental infrastructure, with more than 50% of the population living below the poverty line, which is equal to nearly 3.6 million people. The country relies on phosphate mining, agriculture, and port activity as key sources of income. Lomé–Tokoin International Airport is the main link to the entire country, which has connections to Paris and Brussels, as well as Washington and New York, operated as fifth freedom flights by Ethiopian Airlines. The national and biggest airline, ASKY Airlines, is based in Lomé and has developed into a strong regional carrier across West and Central Africa, after the collapse of the Pan-African airline Air Afrique. Ethiopian Airlines, another succesful African carrier is now one of the biggest partners of Asky, and owns 40% stake of the airline. The airline also has been consistently profitable, bouncing back from the pandemic amazingly. The airline operates an only 737 family aircraft fleet, and they fly to a whole host of African countries, ranging from South Africa, to Cape Verde, to The Gambia.

One of the shortest routes for this challenge, is Brussels Airlines 30 minute hop from Accra to Lome. The airline formerly operated directly to Lome, but now goes through Ghana. This route is one of many of Brussels extensive network to Africa. Other African countries they fly to include The Gambia, Cameroon, Tunisia and Uganda.

Ping List
@Cwaker
@MyGoal_isNASA
@Stargazer_Avation
@Laureano
@FlightAvgeek
@BronxiteMalone
@Yourlocalavgeek
@J-F_V

[Laureano]

Hey could I get removed from the ping list? I’m sorry it’s just that all your flights are very early in the morning for me so I got woken up a few times because of it.

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Route 14 has been completed!

Deboarding passengers heading to Ghana and preparing to reboard passengers heading into Togo after clearing customs

Departing with only 26% weight

Over Ghana’s largest port and harbour, Tema

After an extremely short cruise, we’re already descending - here’s us above the protected Songor Lagoon

A friend capturing our arrival into Togo

Deboarding and preparing to head back to Belgium via Ghana.

Thank you to those who watched this flight take place. Feel free to join the ping list, or if you want to be pinged for a future specific flight(s). Our next flight will be into Mali!

Also, @DanilVL summon

[DanilVL]

Thanks man for the summon

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Flights will be resuming today.

[canton]

Route 15: GOBD (Dakar-Diass) → GABS (Bamako Modibo Keita)

Status: Departed
Departure time: 0645Z
Spawn gates: GOBD Apron T
Aircraft: Boeing 777-200LR
Livery: Ethiopian Airlines
Flight Number: ET908A
Server: Expert
Cruising Altitude: 37,000ft
Cruise Speed: M0.84
Estimated Flight Time: 1hrs 25mins

Info about Mali:
Mali is a landlocked country in West Africa, bordered by Algeria to the north, Niger to the east, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea to the south, and Senegal and Mauritania to the west. Its capital, Bamako, is located along the Niger River and functions as the country’s political and economic centre. Mali has a rich historical legacy as the heart of powerful empires like the Mali and Songhai, known for cities like Timbuktu, which was once a global centre of Islamic learning and trade, and Mali Empire was one of the richest empires on Africa, and had half of the old world’s gold, more than 50% belonging to the emperor, Mansa Musa, who is considered one of the richest individuals in history. Despite this cultural heritage, modern Mali faces significant challenges including coups, Islamist insurgencies in the north, and widespread insecurity, especially since 2012. The country remains heavily reliant on mainly agriculture and gold mining, but development is constantly hampered by instability, poor infrastructure, and poverty, particularly in rural areas. Because of this, air travel into the country is heavily limited, with Bamako International Airport serving as the main gateway. The airport has connections to Turkiye, Algeria, Ethiopia and Paris-Orly, with Air France scheduled to return in September. In terms of domestic travel, once again, is extremely limited due to instability throughout the country, mainly instigated by the Mali War, consisting of Islamist extremists, Azawad separatists and the Mali government. Sky Mali, the only Malian airline active, only serves a couple domestic destinations, as well a handful of regional international ones, however have been suspended due to ECOWAS sanctions on Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea. The airline uses a singular 737-500.

After a short hiatus, we will be flying yet again another 5th freedom flight, this time flying between Senegal and Mali onboard Ethiopian Airlines. This is one of many Ethiopian Airlines 5th freedom flights in West Africa. The 787-9, A350-900 and 777-200LR are used on this route on a rotating basis.

Ping List
@Cwaker
@MyGoal_isNASA
@Stargazer_Avation
@FlightAvgeek
@BronxiteMalone
@Yourlocalavgeek
@J-F_V

[canton]

Route 15 has been completed!

Boarding for the first leg to the other side of Africa

Turning after departure

Cruising over the Famele River

Turning onto final above the Niger River

Exiting the runway after a rather short landing roll

(No parked gate picture today, sorry)

Thank you to those who watched this flight take place. Feel free to join the ping list, or if you want to be pinged for a future specific flight(s). Our next flight will be into Pakistan!

[Cwaker]

Damn , I could’ve joined this one but I was at training lol

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Route 16: OMDB (Dubai) → OPSD (Skardu)

Status: Departed
Departure time: 0245Z
Spawn gates: OMDB Concourse D
Aircraft: Airbus A320-200
Livery: Pakistan International Airlines
Flight Number: PK234
Server: Expert
Cruising Altitude: 35,000ft
Cruise Speed: M0.78
Estimated Flight Time: 3hrs 15mins

Info about Pakistan:
Pakistan is a South Asian country bordered by India, Afghanistan, Iran, and China, with a coastline along the Arabian Sea. Its capital is Islamabad, though Karachi is the country’s largest city and main economic hub. Pakistan was formed in 1947 as a result of the partition of British India, intended as a separate homeland for Muslims, apart from the Hindus in India. Since then, the country has experienced multiple military coups, spending decades in the cold war under military rule, political instability with East Pakistan, which is known today as Bangladesh, tensions with India, particularly over the Kashmir region. Despite these issues, Pakistan has developed a large and diverse economy, with major industries including textiles, agriculture, and remittances. It also has a growing tech sector and a young population, though infrastructure, education, and healthcare remain inconsistent, especially in rural areas. Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, along with airports in Islamabad and Lahore, connect the country to major cities all across Eurasia, and some North American destinations, including Toronto, London, Dubai and Bangkok. The national carrier, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), was once regarded as one of the best in Asia but has heavily declined over the decades due to mismanagement, financial struggles, and safety violations which resulted in a ban from EU airspace. The only other airlines in the country are low-cost, and operate throughout the Middle East and South Asia (excluding India), such as Fly Jinnah, a joint-venture between Air Arabia and the Pakistani group Lakson Group, Airblue, a unique airline that used to operate to Manchester and Birmingham via Istanbul, which was cancelled years ago due to low demand and technical issues with aircraft. Domestic air travel, despite the nature of PIA and Airblue, remains weak, with connections to big cities such as Lahore, Quetta, Karachi and Turbat only being present.

Today will be a unique flight, we won’t be flying into any major city, but rather Skardu, a small Pakistani city nestled in the Kashmir Himalayas and Karakoram Range. Due to the terrain and unstable weather, flights are heavily limited, with the only international flight from Dubai operating every August, which is what we are flying today. PIA began this route in August 2022, marking the first ever international route into Skardu. Due to the nature of the airport, special training is required by pilots to be able to fly this approach. Here’s a small tutorial on how to land in Skardu! Credits to Captainhawkrige.

Ping List
@Cwaker
@MyGoal_isNASA
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Approch Details:
Waypoints:
KAGLO
AKTIX
DELDA
BIREB: FL215
(Set VS to 1,800/fpm)
SD: FL155
Then handfly approach based on the image above

OR

Refer to this:

a320-skardu-operation.pdf

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Route 16 has been completed!

(I definitely botched the approach )

Check this topic out:

Dubai to Skardu | PIA A320

As part of my challenge to fly to underrated countries, next up was Pakistan. I decided to spice things up - to fly to Skardu, an infamous Pakistani airport known for its difficult approach. The flight went through some beautiful scenery on the way, so I recommend this route to everyone who wants to fly into a challenging airport other than Paro or Lukla! Both airports are 3D and the PIA A320 livery is also looks nice. Flight Information [IMG_8863] Last call for Pakistan 234 [InfiniteFl…

Thank you to those who watched this flight take place. Feel free to join the ping list, or if you want to be pinged for a future specific flight(s). Our next flight will be into Antigua and Barbuda!

[canton]

Planned Next 10 Routes -

Flight Number	Departure	Arrival	Airline	Aircraft	5th Freedom?
L6121	Gran Canaria	Nouakchott-Oumtounsy	Mauritania Airlines	E175LR
CA121	Beijing-Capital	Pyongyang Sunan	Air China	737-700
VA73	Brisbane	Apia Faleolo	Virgin Australia	737-8 MAX
HC408B	New York John F. Kennedy	Dakar Blaise Diagne	Air Senegal	A330-900neo
OS871	Vienna-Schwechat	Tehran Imam-Khomeini	Austrian Airlines	A320-200
KQ250	Nairobi Jomo-Kenyatta	Seychelles	Kenya Airways	E190LR
ZM404	Antalya	Bishkek-Manas	Air Manas	A220-300
NK435	Fort Lauderdale	Managua Augusto Cesar Sandino	Spirit Airlines	A321-200
FI115	Reykjavik-Keflavik	Nuuk	Icelandair	737-8 MAX
MS885	Cairo	N’Djamena	Egyptair	A330-300

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Route 16: CYYZ (Toronto Lester B. Pearson) → TAPA (Antigua V.C Bird)

Status: Departed
Departure time: 2025-07-12T01:10:00Z
Spawn gates: CYYZ Terminal 3
Aircraft: Boeing 737-8 MAX
Livery: WestJet
Flight Number: WS2232
Server: Expert
Cruising Altitude: 33,000ft
Cruise Speed: M0.79
Estimated Flight Time: 4hrs 40mins

Info about Antigua and Barbuda:
Antigua and Barbuda is a twin-island nation located in the eastern Caribbean Sea, part of the Lesser Antilles. It is situated between the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean, with its capital, St. John’s, located on Antigua, which is the larger and more developed of the two islands. The country gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1981 and remains a member of the Commonwealth. Its economy is heavily dependent on tourism, which accounts for the majority of GDP and general economy, with cruise ships, luxury resorts, and beach holidays being the primary draw. Agriculture is slowly but surely growing as a good portion of the Antiguan economy. This is the first country in this challenge to have a very stable economy, as well as a high GDP per capita, being around $21,000. Antigua is known for its 365 beaches, one for every day of the year, whilst Barbuda on the other hand remains sparsely populated and less developed, which offers a more remote and ecological experience. Despite its small size, Antigua and Barbuda has a relatively strong aviation presence in the region. V.C. Bird International Airport is the country’s main gateway, with many connections to cities in Canada and USA, such as Atlanta, Toronto, Charlotte and New York. As the gateway to a holiday destination, it also has seasonal flights to London, Frankfurt and Manchester. Although Antigua and Barbuda doesn’t have a flag carrier, the aviation presence in the nation is dominated by LIAT20, which is a joint venture between the government of Antigua and Barbuda, and private Nigerian airline Air Peace. The airline mainly flies around the Lesser Antilles islands, and operates mainly regional aircraft, being ATR-72s and Embraer E145s, with an Embraer E190-E2 on order, leased from Air Peace.

Today, we will fly to our very first Caribbean island on our list, going to V.C Bird International from Toronto. With Antigua being a popular holiday destination, Air Canada Rouge also operates the same route, but with an A319. Both Rouge and WestJet are the only Canadian airlines to fly into the country, as most of the international market is dominated by US airlines and regional flights from the Lesser Antilles.

Ping List
@Cwaker
@MyGoal_isNASA
@Stargazer_Avation
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@Yourlocalavgeek
@J-F_V