Today’s route is one I’ve flown a few times, and it never gets old. This flight was between KRIV (March ARB) and KSUU (Travis AFB), based on a real C-17 mission flown on August 18, 2023. The callsign was RCH7E1.
Server - Solo
Route - KRIV to KSUU
The rest of the crew and I board the aircraft 05-5140 for our second flight of the day after completing a training mission this morning. It’s currently 3 PM.
We complete the pre-flight checks, start the engines, and begin taxiing to runway 32 via Alpha and Bravo.
We are cleared for a rolling takeoff from runway 32. As we accelerate down the runway—V1, rotate!
We begin cleaning up the aircraft as we climb to our initial altitude of 12,000 feet.
We level off at our cruising altitude of 30,000 feet, continue a bit further, and pass over Glendale with the San Fernando Valley and KBUR below us.
We begin our initial descent from 30,000 to 28,000 feet, with the beautiful Sierra Nevada mountains in the background.
We continue our descent from 28,000 feet, with the Sierra Nevada Mountains still looking great. (I would have included a different angle, but who wants to see Chowchilla. 😂)
As we pass over the California Delta, we set up for the visual approach to runway 21R at KSUU.
Fully configured, we begin an aggressive left turn to line up with runway 21R to avoid overshooting.
On short final for runway 21R, we bring the throttle to idle and glide over the threshold, landing right in the touchdown zone.
We continue our rollout, exit the runway at Juliet, and clean up the aircraft.
The flaps come up, and we make a left turn onto November to the cargo terminal.
We park at the cargo terminal and shut down the engines as the aircraft is unloaded. We’ll be here for three hours before departing for PHNL, fully loaded.
Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed today’s flight. Let me know which photo was your favorite—more to come next time!