How do we get back from here?

Just how does this time zone thing work?

We arrived yesterday afternoon from Beijing without incident. There was about a 20 minute delay for an overflight issue as we waited at the end of the runway, but no big deal. We flew the entire trip at only 27,000 feet. Air Traffic Control said it was for traffic considerations. Our TCAS didn't show us much nearby, but what the heck. The Citation burns a lot more fuel down low, but that is why we've always been conservative on our fight planning, never pushing the range limit of the aircraft when we might encounter traffic problems or lower altitudes like yesterday. The result was that we once again had an ILS to near minimums in haze/fog/smog, but landed with almost half our initial fuel remaining. We realized that we have had an instrument approach in real limited visibility conditions on every single leg since ISTANBUL! Once again on this early morning on Sunday in Seoul, it is misty and perhaps drizzling outside, we'll have to find out in a few hours when our tour starts.

ITEM: Blackberry's don't work in Korea!

We all feel like we've stepped off the edge of civilization with that development! IF YOU NEED TO REACH ANY OF US IN AN EMERGENCY, YOU SHOULD CALL THE JW MARRIOTT IN SEOUL AND ASK FOR OUR ROOM.

SO, HOW DO WE GET OUT OF HERE?

Many of you have asked about the time zones and how they come into play on the trip home. Here in Seoul and tomorrow in Sapporo, we will be operating on a time that is 13 hours AHEAD of Orlando. When we land in Nome, we will be landing in a place that is 5 hours BEHIND Orlando. Keep that in mind as I go over the plan:

1. Tomorrow, we go to Sapporo, a fairly short flight. I think Chris and I will then spend the rest of the afternoon on the flight planning for the three legs that we fly "Tuesday #1", the day we will repeat after we've crossed the dateline.
2. On "Tuesday #1," we go first to Petropavlovsk, an old Cold War fighter base on the Kamchitchka Peninsula of Russia for fuel (and Mercer hopes some cans of caviar!)
3. Then we fly on to Nome, Alaska, stopping again for about 45 minutes for fuel and catering, then;
4. another hour and a half flight from Nome to Anchorage. We don't know yet whether we will do Customs in Nome or Anchorage. If the Nome guy has duty time left, he'll clear us, if not, we stay "sterile" in Nome and fly on to Anchorage and do customs there. Either way, we will be arriving in the middle of the night... just after Tuesday starts in Alaska. I don't try too hard to figure it out on local time. I know that our day will begin in Sapporo at about 5AM get up and it will end at about 10PM Sapporo time in a bed in Anchorage if all works well. That's a long day but doable. Remember also that it will be only two days past the Summer Solstice, so it will not get real dark in Nome or Anchorage at all that night!
5. We will then sleep in a hotel right at the Anchorage airport , getting to bed at about 2AM Anchorage time for a good 8 hours or so in the sack.
6. We will then get up late morning on "Tuesday #2" and have "brunch" and take an afternoon flight of about 4 hours to Portland. We will be "losing" another two hours on the way there, so we will land about 6PM Portland time (9PM Orlando time) on Tuesday#2.
7. Dinner and bed in Portland, again at a hotel near the airport- then a 0730 Portland time (10:30AM Orlando time)departure is planned from Portland on Wednesday morning.
8. A fairly long flight to Little Rock, landing for fuel and catering and...
9. A flight of less than two hours from LIT to Orlando. As we "lose" three hours crossing the country and with the fuel and catering stop in LIT- we will land in Orlando just at 5PM (2PM Portland time and 6 AM THURSDAY Sapporo time)for...
10. A PARTY!

OK, you got it? Well, I'm not sure either, but the five of us are going to find out soon enough! Well, as all you 'foodies' know, it is time I get ready to meet the guys for breakfast and head out to see Seoul. Ta Ta for now.

Bob